History

Many radio enthusiasts know that it got it's experimental start in the 19th century.  In fact many of the experimental, and exploration components of radio still continues to this day.  If it weren't for the likes of Samuel F. B. Morse, Marconi, and even Tesla, there would be no communications services on earth.  What do these people have to do with radio, and communications?  Good question, the answer is a lot.  However....let's start from the beginning.

 

 

The honor of the first father of radio is hotly debated.  The names are Heinrich Hertz, Nikola Tesla, and Guglielmo Marconi Other Names that have come up are Amos Dolbear, Reginald Fessenden, James Clark Maxwell, Sir Oliver Lodge, Mahlon Loomis, Nathan Stubblefield, and Alexander Popov.  However, the most major things happened in the late 1800's. 

 

First in 1895, Tesla was able to detect radio signals from his West Point, NY lab.  The distance was approxomately 50 miles. 

 

Next Marconi, in 1896 was able to have first a successful transmittion of Morse code on Salisbury Plain, England.  Of course, the transmittions were from between 2-6 kilometers, even a little longer.  Then in 1899, transmissitons over the English Channel was establish...then (by Marconi's Reports) in 1902, the first transatlantic transmitions.

 

To read more about this go here to this wikipage.  It is more detailed than I can do it.