The Library of Congress believes that many of the papers in the Alexander Graham Bell Family Papers at the Library of Congress collection are in the public domain or have no known copyright restrictions and are free to use and reuse. For example, all manuscripts that Alexander Graham Bell and his descendants wrote are in the public domain. The Library has also obtained permission for the use of many other materials, and presents additional materials pursuant to fair use under United States copyright law. Researchers should watch for documents that may be copyrighted (for example, published in the United States less than 95 years ago, or unpublished and the author died less than 70 years ago).
You are responsible for deciding whether your use of the items in this collection is legal. You will need written permission from the rightsholders to copy, distribute, or otherwise use copyrighted materials except as allowed by fair use or other statutory exemptions. Some materials may be protected under international law. You may also need permission from holders of other rights, such as publicity and/or privacy rights.
The letter by Mark Twain is © 1999 by Richard A. Watson and Chase Manhattan Bank as Trustees of the Mark Twain Foundation, which reserves all reproduction or dramatization rights in every medium. It is published here with the permission of the University of California Press and Robert H. Hirst, General Editor of the Mark Twain Project.
The letter from Marie Curie to Alexander Graham Bell is made available here with permission from Eve Labouisse-Curie, Helene Langevin, and Pierre Joliot. Musee Curie, 11 rue Pierre et Marie Curie, 75005 Paris, France. Email: cjc@curie.fr
The letters from William H. Forbes to Alexander Graham Bell are made available here with permission from Beatrice Forbes Manz.
Correspondence from Elisha Gray to Alexander Graham Bell and specification by Elisha Gray are made available here with permission from Elisha Gray III, 672 Maple Street, Winnetka, IL 60093, Michael Gray, and Gray Atkinson.
The letters and notes from John Hitz are made available here with permission from Susan Hitz, 6 Rolling Knoll Court, Gaithersburg, MD 20877.
Correspondence from William James, Alice H. James, and Margaret M. James to Alexander Graham Bell is made available here with permission from Bay James, 25 Plum Bush Downs, Newbury, Massachusetts 01951.
Correspondence and other writings from Helen Keller is made available here with permission from the American Federation for the Blind, Helen Keller Archives.
The letter from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow to Mabel Hubbard Bell is made available here with permission from Frances Wetherell.
Correspondence from Guglielmo Marconi to Alexander Graham Bell is made available here with permission from Francesco Marconi Paresce, 6 Ohm Strasse, Munich 80802, Germany. Email: fparesce@eso.org
Correspondence and notes from Arthur W. McCurdy and J.A.D. McCurdy are made available here with permission from Mrs. M.J. McCurdy, 3 Av Forden, Montreal, PQ, H3Y 2Y6, Canada.
Correspondence from John D. Philbrick, Superintendent of Boston Public Schools, is made available here with permission from Boston Public Schools. Office of Legal Advisor, Central Administration Building, 26 Court Street, Boston, MA 02108.
Correspondence from Laura C. Redden to Alexander Graham Bell is made available here with permission from Judge Thomas McGinn Smith, 777 Marshall Street, Redwood City, CA 94063. Email: Lehuaofca@aol.com
Correspondence, drawings, and script from and by Thomas A. Watson are made available here with permission from Susan Cheever.
The letter from H.G. Wells to Alexander Graham Bell is made available here with permission from A.P. Watt Ltd. on behalf of the Trustees of the Estate of H.G. Wells, 20 John Street, London WC1N 2DR United Kingdom.
Credit Line: Library of Congress, Manuscript Division [unless another division is specified], Alexander Graham Bell Family Papers at the Library of Congress.
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Image 1 of Specification by Alexander Graham Bell, September 20, 1904 No. 770,626. Patented September 20, 1904. UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. ALEXANDER GRAHAM BELL, OF WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. AERIAL VEHICLE OR OTHER STRUCTURE. SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 770,626, dated…
Image 2 of Specification by Alexander Graham Bell, September 20, 1904 2 770,626 surfaces of this winged cell is the resultant (and equivalent for the purposes in view) of its horizontal and vertical components, constituting a decided gain in lightness 5 as well…
Image 3 of Specification by Alexander Graham Bell, September 20, 1904 3 grave kite. It is certainly a unique feature of tetrahedral construction that the largest flying structures compounded out of winged cells weigh no more relatively to their wing-surfaces 5 than the…
Image 4 of Specification by Alexander Graham Bell, September 20, 1904 4 engaged therewith to tightly clamp and secure the parts together. As will be apparent, each of the four faces of the tetrahedral connecting-nuts is available 5 for the attachment of a…
Image 5 of Specification by Alexander Graham Bell, September 20, 1904 A. G. BELL. AERIAL VEHICLE OR OTHER STRUCTURE. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 1, 1903. NO MODEL. 3 SHEETS —SHEET 1. Fig. 1. Fig. 2. Fig. 3.
Image 6 of Specification by Alexander Graham Bell, September 20, 1904 Fig. 4. Fig. 8.
Image 7 of Specification by Alexander Graham Bell, September 20, 1904 Fig. 5. Fig. 6. Fig. 7. Fig. 9. Fig. 10.