Chronology of Events - 1700s

he following is a chronological listing of significant events in the development of the field of Information Technology during the 1700s. For other time periods see:




 * Chronology of Events - Pre-1800
 * Chronology of Events - 1800s
 * Chronology of Events - 1900-1930s
 * Chronology of Events - 1940s
 * Chronology of Events - 1950s
 * Chronology of Events - 1960s
 * Chronology of Events - 1970s
 * Chronology of Events - 1980s
 * Chronology of Events - 1990s
 * Chronology of Events - 2000s
 * Chronology of Events - 2010s

1710 &mdash; The Statute of Anne is enacted in England. It is considered the origin of modern copyright law. It ends the private publishing monopoly of the Stationers' Company. It gives authors/creators the exclusive right to publish their works and profit from them for a limited time, after which it falls into the public domain.

1714 &mdash; Henry Mill is issued a patent for an "artificial machine or method" for forgery-proof writing (e.g., a typewriter.

1725 &mdash; An early form of punch cards begin to be used in textile looms.

1747 &mdash; Sir. William Watson demonstrates the transmission of electricity along a metal wire.

1782 &mdash; The U.S. Congress enacts legislation making the opening of mail in transit a criminal offense.

1787 &mdash; Article 1, §8, clause 8 of the U.S. Constitution provides that "Congress shall have power . . . to promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries."

June 23, 1789 &mdash; First federal bill relating to copyrights (H.R. 10) is presented to the first U.S. Congress.

1790 &mdash; The French Chappe brothers create the first optical telegraph system. It consists of a system of pendulums that can be moved to send messages from one tower to the next.

May 31, 1790 &mdash; U.S. Congress enacts the Copyright Act of 1790 &mdash; the country's first copyright law. The law provides for a term of 14 years with the option of renewing the registration for another 14 year term. The law only applied to books, maps, and charts.

1790 &mdash; U.S. Congress enacts the Patent Act of 1790 &mdash; the country's first patent law.

1791 &mdash; The U.S. Bill of Rights is enacted.

1792 &mdash; Claude Chappe invents the wireless semaphore telegraph.

1791 &mdash; Thomas Jefferson invents the Jefferson disk cipher.

1799 &dash; The Rosetta Stone is found. It makes it possible to decipher the Egyptian hieroglyphs.