Antonio Meucci

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   Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 269) expressing the sense of the House of Representatives to honor the life and achievements of 19th century Italian-American
Inventor Antonio

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Meucci, and his work in the invention of the telephone.

   The Clerk read as follows:

   H. Res. 269

   Whereas Antonio Meucci, the great Italian inventor, had a career that was both extraordinary and tragic;

Whereas, upon immigrating to New York, Meucci continued to work with ceaseless vigor on a project he had begun in Havana, Cuba, an invention he later called the ``teletrofono'', involving electronic communications;

   Whereas Meucci set up a rudimentary communications link in his Staten Island home that connected the basement with the first floor, and later, when his wife began to suffer from crippling arthritis, he created a permanent link between his lab and his wife's second floor bedroom;

   Whereas, having exhausted most of his life's savings in pursuing his work, Meucci was unable to commercialize his invention,  though he demonstrated his invention in 1860 and had a description of it published in New York's Italian language newspaper;

   Whereas Meucci never learned English well enough to navigate the complex American business community;

   Whereas Meucci was unable to raise sufficient funds to pay his way through the patent application process, and thus had to settle for a caveat, a one year renewable notice of an impending patent, which was first filed on December 28, 1871;

   Whereas Meucci later learned that the Western Union affiliate laboratory reportedly lost his working models, and Meucci, who at this point was living on public assistance, was unable to renew the caveat after 1874;

   Whereas in March 1876, Alexander Graham Bell, who conducted experiments in the same laboratory where Meucci's materials had been stored, was granted a patent and was thereafter credited with inventing the telephone;

   Whereas on January 13, 1887, the Government of the United States moved to annul the patent issued to Bell on the grounds of fraud and misrepresentation, a case that the Supreme Court found viable and remanded for trial;

   Whereas Meucci died in October 1889, the Bell patent expired in January 1893, and the case was discontinued as moot without ever reaching the underlying issue of the true inventor of the telephone entitled to the patent; and

   Whereas if Meucci had been able to pay the $10 fee to maintain the caveat after 1874, no patent could have been issued to Bell: Now, therefore, be it     Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives that the life and achievements of Antonio Meucci should be recognized, and his work in the invention of the telephone should be acknowledged.

   The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Jo Ann Davis) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) each will control 20 minutes.

   The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Jo Ann Davis).

   GENERAL LEAVE

   Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on House Resolution 269.

   The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentlewoman from Virginia?

   There was no objection.

   Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

   Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have the House consider House Resolution 269, important legislation introduced by my distinguished colleague, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Fossella).

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supposedly lost his working models needed to get a patent. Just a few years later, Bell who worked in the same laboratory, earned the patent for the telephone.

   Mr. Speaker, I ask all Members to support this resolution.

   Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

   Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Meucci spent the first 27 years of his life in Florence, Italy, 15 years in Havana, Cuba, and 39 years in Clifton, New York.

   Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

   Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from New York
(Mr. Fossella), the chief sponsor of this bill.

   Mr. FOSSELLA. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding me time. I thank Members on both sides, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis), as well as the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell) for supporting this resolution.

   Mr. Speaker, it is my strong belief that Italian Americans have contributed greatly to the United States and continue to contribute proudly as well. We know Columbus discovered America. Two Italians signed the Declaration of Independence. Enrico Fermi split the atom, and Captain Don Gentile, the fighting ace, was described by General Dwight Eisenhower as a ``one-man force.'' He, like so many other Italian-Americans, did and were willing to give their life in defense of freedom and liberty and supporting these great United States.

   Mr. Speaker, I wanted to spend a few minutes today to honor an Italian American and former Staten Island resident who is often overlooked, as announced already, and his name was Antonio Meucci.

   The 19th century was a time of great technological innovation, as its birth heralded the beginning of the Industrial Revolution.  However, unlike the century just ended and the new one we are beginning to explore, the rough-and-tumble of our young Nation had yet to develop information exchange to the extent we enjoy today.

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   The Founding Fathers made America a guarantor of unprecedented and, to this day, unmatched liberty. This liberty included again an unprecedented appreciation for intellectual property rights. Today with our study of historical records and ability to examine many disparate sources of information, we now know it is likely the invention of what we know today as a telephone took place in the middle of the 19th century rather than its end, and its creator is believed to be Antonio Meucci. He worked for years to develop a new system of electronic communication. However, poor and sick, he was unable to keep the patents enforced and died before the courts could decide with finality whether he or Alexander Graham Bell was the true inventor of the telephone.

   It is known that Meucci demonstrated his device in 1860, that a description appeared in New York's Italian language newspaper, and that Western Union received working models from Meucci but reportedly lost them.

   It is also known that Meucci, due to his limited means, settled for a caveat, a one-year renewable notice of an impending patent, first filed in 1871, but which he was unable to pursue after 1874, while Alexander Graham Bell was not granted a patent until 1876.

   Finally, it is known that the Supreme Court of the United States directed the case to proceed to trial but Meucci died a short time later, rendering the case moot.

   So with these facts before the House today, I ask for the passage of this resolution to honor the life and achievements long overdue of Antonio Meucci, a great Italian American and a former great Staten Islander.

   Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

   Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell), one who represents the feisty tradition of Italians and of Italian Americans, and a great spokesman not only for Italy and Italian Americans, but a great spokesman for all of America.

   Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) for yielding me time.

   Mr. Speaker, first I want to commend my good friend, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Fossella). How refreshing it is to talk about an Italian American out of the Hollywood spotlight and an Italian American not recognized. If only we took the time in this society to deal with all ethnics, people of all racial persuasions in fairness, and that is what this resolution is all about: Fairness, honesty, breaking the stereotypes that many of us have learned; in fact, probably, taught without our even knowing.

   We recognize today the life and achievements of Antonio Meucci. He was a pauper. He had nothing. He came here with nothing. He could not even put $10 up for a patent application. And yet his life is one of brilliance in science, particularly. He is only a footnote in our history books. We all know those great publishers that steer the education process of America. He earns, if he is lucky, a footnote. Indeed, many local libraries, if you search for his name in a card catalog, you may come up empty. Yet, substantial evidence exists that he indeed developed the first telephone. It is Alexander Graham Bell who is most commonly given credit. After all, it was he, and not Meucci, who was awarded one of the most valuable patents in American history. But the fact remains that Meucci's scientific discoveries concerning human voice transmission as well as his tangible teletrofono preceded those of Bell.

   In fact, when you examine, Mr. Speaker, how this all happened in a place where Meucci heard an exclamation of a friend who was in another room over a piece of copper wire running between them, he realized immediately that he had something that was more important than any discovery he had ever made. But that realization also came with the understanding that to succeed as an inventor, he would need an environment that truly fostered his inquisitive mind and his vibrant spirit.

   I believe that it is proper to honor the far-reaching contributions that Antonio Meucci made to our society, and I am not the only one. The Government of the United States and the Supreme Court agree with me. In this Supreme Court document, Mr. Speaker, it is very clear in the many pages laid out across the record that this is no ordinary young man in his struggle. In 1887 the Government moved to annul the patent issued to Bell on the grounds of misrepresentation, an indication that the Supreme Court found viable and remanded for retrial. This is only one of many published documents during the time, the late 1800s that outlined the case being made for Meucci, indeed, the case we are making today on both sides of the aisle. In 1860 a description of his first telephone model was published, as the gentleman from New York (Mr. Fossella) pointed out, in an Italian language newspaper in New York City, 16 years before Bell's patent.

   Indeed, Meucci's extraordinary career flourished upon immigrating to New York in 1850. His poor finances, his limited English, his grasp of the language was not very good. It plagued him throughout his life. Yet, he worked tirelessly to bring long distance communication to a practical stage.

   When his wife fell paralyzed in 1855, Meucci set up a telephone system which joined several rooms of his house with his workshop in another building. This was the first such installation anywhere; anywhere. Unfortunately, Meucci was unable to raise those funds to pay his way through the arduous patent application process. Instead, he had to settle for a caveat, which is a one-year renewable notice of an impending patent. He first filed this on December 28, 1871. Three years later his finances were absolutely zero.

   Living with the aid of public assistance and unable to get a 7-A loan, which today we have available through small business, Meucci was forced to allow the caveat to lapse at the end of that year. Two years after the expiration of his caveat, Alexander Graham Bell performed experiments in the same laboratory that Meucci worked, and he took out a patent for his own voice-transmitting device. The same laboratory.

   It is possible that sometimes several inventors have the same idea at roughly the same time. In this case, what has mattered is not who had the idea for the telephone first, but who first turned the idea into a viable commercial enterprise. Let us not forget that if Antonio Meucci could have paid the $10 fee to maintain his caveat, the Bell patent could not have been granted. Ten dollars.
 
 

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   Let us not forget that the Supreme Court of the United States found that Meucci's case was viable and warranted a trial at a circuit court. It is unfortunate that Meucci died before his case could even be continued and before a resolution could be reached as to who truly invented the telephone; but most importantly, let us not forget that Antonio Meucci's great contributions to science have had a profound impact on our modern society.

   Mr. Speaker, many people from many different nations have contributed to this greatest of all democracies. Antonio Meucci was one such person. He is a reflection of our brothers and sisters from all over the world who came to this country with nothing and worked hard to make this a better place for mankind. Some heralded, some not even a footnote in the library.

   It is fitting that his efforts are recognized here today, and I thank the gentleman from New York for allowing me to work with him on this important resolution.

   Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

   We have no further requests for time, and I would just like to close by thanking both the gentleman from New York (Mr. Fossella) and the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell) for this tremendous depiction of history that they have given us this afternoon, which reinforces my desire to be a strong supporter of this resolution; and it also reinforces how great and how much opportunity there is that exists in this country. Every time we pass one small measure, in this instance, it might have been a microbusiness loan that could have changed the history of our understanding of telecommunications.

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   Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

   Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Fossella).

   Mr. FOSSELLA. Mr. Speaker, I just wanted to add and commend the two gentlemen, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) and especially the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell) for a very strong and passionate defense in support of the life of a great American and great inventor and merely add to the course, so to speak, that he was emblematic and remains so as a representative of all those who have come to this country to seek a better life and an opportunity and, in particular, to those Americans of Italian descent who have and will continue to make this the greatest country in the history of the world and in a small way and a long overdue way but in a small measure. I would ask my colleagues to support it.

   Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, the story of Antonio Meucci is a tragic one, and although he successfully demonstrated his electronic communication years before Alexander Graham Bell received a patent for the telephone, Meucci has been all but forgotten.

   This resolution attempts to remedy this oversight and give credit to one of history's great inventors. Meucci should be remembered with other innovators, like Edison, the Wright Brothers, and Marconi, whose vision and tenacity changed our lives for the better.

   Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members to support this resolution.

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   Mr. ISRAEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a great New Yorker and a great inventor, Antonio Meucci. As the first member of the House to join with our colleague from New York, Mr. Fosella, on this resolution, I am gratified that it is coming before us today.

   House Resolution 269 honors the life and achievements of Antonio Meucci, who came to New York in 1950. Born in San Frediano, near Florence, Italy in April 1808, he was an inventor through and through. He constantly read scientific tracts and conducted experiment after experiment. He went to Havana in 1835 to work as a stage technician. It is there that he had the first inkling of his greatest invention.

   Meucci developed a type of electro-shock treatment for the ill. While preparing to administer one of his treatments, Meucci heard his patient say something from the next room over the piece of copper wire running between them. This was the event that sparked his breakthrough.

   Meucci spent the next ten years bringing the idea of voices being transmitted over wire to a practical stage. With this goal, he left Cuba for New York in 1850. There he found many other Italians who had left their native land, including the great revolutionary Garibaldi, who stayed in Meucci's Staten Island home.

   During his time in New York he had success with his invention. After his wife became ill in 1855, he installed a kind of intercom system in his house, the first installed anywhere in the world. Five years later, he was arranging demonstrations to attract financial backing. Unfortunately, nothing came of this, and he spent a considerable time in poverty. His poverty forced him to sell rights to his inventions to others, and he never filed for a patent on a telephone. After an accident left the inventor hospitalized, his wife sold all of his inventions, including the telephone prototype, to help pay for his treatment. The ``secondhand dealer'' resold the items to an ``unknown young man.'' To this day, we do not know the identity of this unknown young man.

   Meucci tried to reconstruct his invention, but unable to raise the $250 needed for a patent, a considerable sum in 1871, he filed a ``notice of intent'' on December 28, 1871, which he renewed for two years, but not after. He tried to sell his ``Talking Telegraph'' to the newly established Western Union Telegraph Company, asking permission to demonstrate it over their wires. That test never got set up, and in 1876, Alexander Graham Bell filed a patent.

   Meucci instructed his lawyer to protest to the U.S. Patent Office, but his lawyer failed to do so. A friend did contact the office, only to learn that all the documents filed by Meucci had been lost. Later investigation produced evidence of illegal relationships linking certain employees of the Patent Office and officials of Bell's company.

   Antonio Meucci was a brilliant inventor but a poor businessman. Despite his lack of success in business, he most certainly invented the telephone. He is honored in my district with a road named for him in Copiague. I am proud that we, the entire House of Representatives, today will honor this man who has been overlooked by history for too long.

   Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I add my voice to the praise and honor of Antonio Meucci who, through his work toward the invention of the telephone, has brought the world together as few others have. Through his ingenuity and perseverance, this Italian-American changed the way the world communicates, although as a newcomer to America, he was often thwarted by his own inability to communicate with those who could have, and should have given him the recognition he deserved.

   Antonio Meucci came to America, pursuing his dream of introducing his ``Talking Telegraph'' to the world, and hoping to make a living doing so. Instead, he struggled against his own meager beginnings--not having the money or verbal skills he needed to protect his intellectual property. He also struggled against the incompetence and greed of others. Tragically, this extraordinary man's decade-long struggle for justice ended in poverty and frustration. I am pleased that we are finally helping him attain his rightful place in history.

   I strongly support H.R. 269, honoring a man who embodies the travails of the American Immigrant experience--Antonio Meucci, the true inventor of the telephone.

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   Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

   The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Dan Miller of Florida). The question is on the motion offered by the gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Jo Ann Davis) that the House suspend the rules and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 269.

   The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor thereof) the rules were suspended and the resolution was agreed to.              A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

END