David Edward Hughes Wireless Apparatus 1879
David Edward Hughes demonstrated his wireless experiments to members of the Royal Society in 1979-1880, however they were unconvinced that he had discovered anything new! Putting it down to induction. This was unfortunate for science as he discontinued his wireless experiments and it was left to Hertz and Lodge and subsequently Marconi to bring wireless to the forefront. Hughes experiments, notebooks and apparatus languished until the end of the century when his experiments came to light and J.J. Fahie included an account in his book in 1899 “A History of Wireless Telegraphy”. As the correspondence came too late for inclusion in the main body of the book and Fahie deemed it too important not to include, he inserted it as an appendix D. and that is reproduced in the accompanying folder. When a second edition of the book was published it included additional material.
In 1928 George Blake wrote an account of Hughes wireless experiments in his book “History of Radio Telegraphy and Telephony” and the relevant pages are reproduced here. This was written shortly after Hughes apparatus and notebooks were rescued from obscurity in a storage facility by Cambell Swinton and bequeathed to the British Museum. Hughes apparatus is now in the Science Museum London and his notebooks are in the British Library.
G.G. Blake Documents
J.J. Fahie Documents
