Science, inventions & engineering
Alexander Graham Bell
1847–1922
Massachusetts connection
Boston
In Boston on March 10, 1876, Bell spoke words that his assistant Thomas Watson heard through their experimental telephone. Their work helped people communicate across distances. Bell worked within a wider history of inventors exploring sound and electricity; inventions rarely come from one person working entirely alone.
You can use your device’s reading tools or read with a partner.
Your turn, historian
Find a detail. Build an idea.
- What did this person or group do? Point to a detail in the reading.
- What problem did this person investigate? Who else helped make progress?
- What would you like to find out next? Which kind of source could help?
“Alexander Graham Bell mattered because ___. A detail that supports my idea is ___.”
Follow the evidence.
This short reading is an original classroom summary. Open the source with your teacher to check details and learn more.
Read the source: loc.gov ↗Ask: Who made this source? What can it tell us? What might it leave out?