Thomas Edison invented the phonograph in 1877.
The machine could record and reproduce sound, making it one of the first devices to achieve both functions. Edison’s team developed the apparatus at his laboratory in Menlo Park, New Jersey, during a period of intense experimentation with telegraph and telephone technology.
Edison announced the invention near the end of 1877, and it quickly attracted international attention. The device used a stylus that traced sound vibrations onto a rotating cylinder covered with suitable recording material.
The year 1877 is sometimes confused with 1878, when Edison received the phonograph patent and commercial promotion expanded. The invention itself dates to 1877.