Did you know that Granville Woods sold the telegraphony device to American Bell Telephone Company. In 1887?

Did you know that Granville Woods was was often referred to as the "Black Thomas Edison."?

Did you know that the reason that Granville Woods  formed the Woods Railway Telegraph Company in 1884 was because he was denied  a promotions because of the color of his skin?

Did you know that his company manufactured and sold telephone, telegraph and electrical equipment?

Did you know that one of the early inventions from the company was an improved steam boiler furnace and this was followed up by an improved telephone transmitter which had superior clarity of sound and could provide for longer range of distance for transmission?

Did you know that in 1885, Woods patented a apparatus which was a combination of a telephone and a telegraph?

Did you know that this device, was called the "telegraphony," would allow a telegraph station to send voice and telegraph messages over a single wire?

Did you know that the device was so successful that he later sold it to the American Bell Telephone Company. In 1887?

Did you know that Woods developed his most important invention to date - a device he called Synchronous Multiplex Railway Telegraph?

Did you know that his invention allowed for messages to be sent from moving trains and railway stations, by allowing dispatchers to know the location of each train, it provided for greater safety and a decrease in railway accidents?

Did you know that Granville Woods often had difficulties in enjoying his success as other inventors made claims to his devices?

Did you know that Thomas Edison made one of these claims, stating that he had first created a similar telegraph and that he was entitled to the patent for the device?

Did you know that Woods was twice successful in defending himself, proving that there were no other devices upon which he could have depended or relied upon to make his device?

Did you know that after the second defeat, Edison decided that it would be better to work with Granville Woods than against him and thus offered him a position with the Edison Company?

Did you know that in 1892, Woods used his knowledge of electrical systems in creating a method of supplying electricity to a train without any exposed wires or secondary batteries?

Did you know that approximately every 12 feet, electricity would be passed to the train as it passed over an iron block?


Did you know that many of Woods inventions attempted to increase efficiency and safety railroad cars, Woods developed the concept of a third rail which would allow a train to receive more electricity while also encountering less friction?

Did you know that this concept is still used on subway train platforms in major cities in the United States?

Did you know that over the course of his life time Granville Woods would obtain more than 50 patents for inventions including an automatic brake and an egg incubator and for improvements to other inventions such as safety circuits, telegraph, telephone, and phonograph?

Did you know that Granville Woods sold a number of his devices to such giants as Westinghouse, General Electric and American Engineering?    

Now if you didn't know, now you know...

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