Alexander Graham Bell's telephone (1876)
Thomas Alva Edison's phonograph (1877)
This is a record player. Useful for music, instructions, etc.,
Michael Faraday (1831)'s discovery of electromagnetic currents
Made generators and electrical engines possible
Thomas Edison (1879)
Invented the incandescent lamp. Though he was, in general, prone to rude tendencies.
Daguerre's daguerrotype (1838)
Early form of photography
This separated the useful raw cotton from its seeds, making the cotton industry much more profitable. It had mixed effects — remember how a lot of cotton was farmed using slave labor.
Robert Trevithick (1801)'s steam locomotive demonstration
George Stephenson's Rocket, 1829, would lead to great railroad infrastructure, which helped with city planning, made moving to the city easier, and made trade and large-scale commerce much better. For example, now placing factories in population centers made more sense. (I barely understand why myself, but okay)
Marc Brunel's first underwater tunnel (1826-1842)
Eiffel Tower (1889)
Joseph Monier (1849)
Reinforced Concrete
Richard Arkwright's water frame (1769)
More efficient thread spinning
Henry Bessemir's steel converter (1854)
Revolutionized the production of steel
Robert Fulton (1807)'s Clermont
The first successful steamboat. Like the locomotive, made trade so, so much better. For example, now the US could leverage its advantage in having the Mississippi river.
James Brindley (1761)'s Bridgewater Canal
First skyscraper (10 stories tall) (in Chicago)
Cathode rays discovered
1858
Cartwright's power loom (1787)
According to wikipedia:
Gugliemo Marconi (1896)'s wireless telegraph patent
Useful for, like, ship distress calls. Say, for example, the one the Titanic sent out.
Jethro Tull (1708)'s mechanical seed drill
Karl Benz's internal-combustion automobile engine (1885)
cars go vroom
William Murdock's cool thing he did (1792)
Singer's first practical sewing machine (1851)
Charles Babbage (1834)'s analytic engine
First ancestor of the computer
Thomas Newcomen (1712)'s steam engine
First commercially successful (though kind of clumsy) steam engine, used to pump water out of coal mines. Big deal, since we've just unlocked a new power source.
Crompton's "mule" + Spinning jenny and water frame fully automated weaving process. Yeah.
John Kay (1733)'s flying shuttle
Tremendously helped with making weaving easier, used in the putting-out industry at first.
Alfred Nobel's dynamite (1867)
First high explosive that could be safely handled. Useful for mining and clearing areas for infrastructure.
Samuel F. B. Morse's telegraph and Morse Code (1837)
Hiram Maxim's machine gun (1884)
Brooklyn Bridge opened (1883)
Large suspension bridge, "triumph of engineering."
