|
|
Nathan Stubblefield was an unschooled melon farmer from Murray, Kentucky, who invented the wireless telephone in 1902. Stubblefield has been mired in obscurity partly because of his humble origins, partly because his invention was flawed - but mostly because he was denied the opportunity to improve it after his Wall Street partners plundered his development company and left him bankrupt. Even with its imperfections, Stubblefield's telephone was a remarkable accomplishment. It could have ushered in the era of wireless communication in the 1920s, rather than the 1990s. Instead, Stubblefield - always suspicious of outsiders - was crushed by the betrayal of his business partners. He retreated into self-imposed isolation, eventually starving to death in a pauper's shack. One of his final acts was to destroy every prototype of his invention.
|
|
For the full story of Nathan Stubblefield's raw deal - and those of 22 other American victims - read RAW DEAL, new in paperback from Blast Books. If you know of other visionary victims of Wall Street - or maybe a paranoid genius or two - please share your thoughts.
|
