Thomas Edison Park: Who Really Invented Sound Recording? (VIDEO)

WEST ORANGE, NJ — Think that Thomas Edison was the first person to invent a device that recorded sound? Think again, says the staff of the Thomas Edison National Historical Park in West Orange.

“Recent scholarship makes it clear that sound recording was invented twice: first by inventor Edouard-Léon Scott de Martinville in 1857 France, then 20 years later by Thomas Alva Edison in the United States,” the park recently stated on its website.

“While Edison's story is often told, history books mention Scott's name merely in passing,” the park states.

Here’s how it went down, according to the park:

“Scott’s phonautograph graphed airborne sound waves for visual analysis. But because it lacked the ability to ‘play back’ its recordings, there was no proof that it actually made interpretable sound recordings. In 2008 researchers located Scott’s surviving recordings. Using digital technologies, they proved Scott's recordings could be understood upon playback. This confirmed Scott as the initial inventor of sound recording and called upon historians to reexamine and reframe Edison’s 1877 invention of the phonograph, a device that could both record and playback sound. Since 2008, historians have learned a great deal about Scott and his work. As a result, we now have access to a much fuller, clear picture of this history, and a better understanding of how it relates to Edison and his phonograph.”

In recognition of the 200th anniversary of Scott’s birth this year, the Thomas Edison National Historical Park launched an exhibit at the Edison Laboratory and hosted a symposium titled "The Origins of Sound Recording."

Watch videos from the symposium here.

Learn more about the origins of sound recording here.

Send local news tips and feedback to eric.kiefer@patch.com

YouTube screenshot: Thomas Edison National Historical Park

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