How did the telegraph inspire the telephone?

Among them Graham Bell. he worked on a device called the Harmonic telegraph where you could send more than one message over a single wire. While perfecting it with his assistant he stumbled on the discovery of what was to become the telephone. read more

The telegraph and telephone are both wire-based electrical systems, and Alexander Graham Bell's success with the telephone came as a direct result of his attempts to improve the telegraph. When he began experimenting with electrical signals, the telegraph had been an established means of communication for some 30 years. read more

In 1876 the telephone was patneted by Alexander Graham Bell, marking the end of the telegraphs reign over communication. Through the 1880 and up until the end of the century the telegraph remained an important part of communication. read more