Abstract :
This month marks the hundredth anniversary of the birth of the inventor of the telephone, who was a charter member of the Institute, one of its original vice-presidents, and its seventh president (1891–92). Among the awards he received were the John Fritz Medal (1907) and the Edison Medal (1914). The story of his life is one of alternate discouragement and success, with his outstanding achievement constantly postponed by the urgent needs of more immediate problems.
