Anthony Pollok
Encyclopedia
Anthony Pollok was an American patent attorney
who, with Marcellus Bailey
, helped prepare Alexander Graham Bell
's patent
s for the telephone
and related inventions.
about 1828-1829 He graduated from the Ecole Centrale of Paris and was Chevalier of the Legion of Honor of France
. Pollok immigrated to the United States about 1884 where he built a successful law practice and enjoyed the opulent lifestyle of a prosperous Washington, D,C. lawyer. Pollok's office was a half block from the Patent Office. He was vice-president of the International Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property and testified twice before the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the U.S. Senate.
When Alexander Graham Bell began work on the telephone, Pollok was a partner with patent lawyer Marcellus Bailey in the law firm of Pollok & Bailey. Bell's patron and future father-in-law Gardiner Hubbard paid Pollok and Bailey to work on Bell's patent applications and patents. The well-connected Anthony Pollok was also one of Hubbard's associates in promoting the "U.S. Postal Telegraph Bill" that would have bought all the telegraph lines from Western Union
to make the telegraph industry a government monopoly, similar to the telegraph monopolies employed by several European countries. The proposed bill
(law) did not pass its vote.
After Bell's patent application for the telephone was approved on February 29, 1876, Pollok invited Bell to his home to celebrate. Bell wrote to his father:
The Alexander Graham Bell Papers collection at the Library of Congress
contains letters from Bell to Pollok and Bailey regarding Bell's patents for the telephone.
Pollok and his wife Marie (born about 1840) were passengers on the steamship SS La Bourgogne
when it sank after collision with the ship Cromartyshire on July 4, 1898.,
After their death, his heirs established the "Anthony Pollok Memorial Prize" that was offered for the best device for saving lives in case of disaster at sea.
Patent attorney
A patent attorney is an attorney who has the specialized qualifications necessary for representing clients in obtaining patents and acting in all matters and procedures relating to patent law and practice, such as filing an opposition...
who, with Marcellus Bailey
Marcellus Bailey
Marcellus Bailey was an American patent attorney who, with Anthony Pollok, helped prepare Alexander Graham Bell's patents for the telephone and related inventions.-Biography:...
, helped prepare Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham Bell was an eminent scientist, inventor, engineer and innovator who is credited with inventing the first practical telephone....
's patent
Patent
A patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....
s for the telephone
Telephone
The telephone , colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that transmits and receives sounds, usually the human voice. Telephones are a point-to-point communication system whose most basic function is to allow two people separated by large distances to talk to each other...
and related inventions.
Biography
Anthony Pollock was born in Magyarorszag, HungaryHungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
about 1828-1829 He graduated from the Ecole Centrale of Paris and was Chevalier of the Legion of Honor of France
Légion d'honneur
The Legion of Honour, or in full the National Order of the Legion of Honour is a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the Consulat which succeeded to the First Republic, on 19 May 1802...
. Pollok immigrated to the United States about 1884 where he built a successful law practice and enjoyed the opulent lifestyle of a prosperous Washington, D,C. lawyer. Pollok's office was a half block from the Patent Office. He was vice-president of the International Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property and testified twice before the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the U.S. Senate.
When Alexander Graham Bell began work on the telephone, Pollok was a partner with patent lawyer Marcellus Bailey in the law firm of Pollok & Bailey. Bell's patron and future father-in-law Gardiner Hubbard paid Pollok and Bailey to work on Bell's patent applications and patents. The well-connected Anthony Pollok was also one of Hubbard's associates in promoting the "U.S. Postal Telegraph Bill" that would have bought all the telegraph lines from Western Union
Western Union
The Western Union Company is a financial services and communications company based in the United States. Its North American headquarters is in Englewood, Colorado. Up until 2006, Western Union was the best-known U.S...
to make the telegraph industry a government monopoly, similar to the telegraph monopolies employed by several European countries. The proposed bill
Bill (proposed law)
A bill is a proposed law under consideration by a legislature. A bill does not become law until it is passed by the legislature and, in most cases, approved by the executive. Once a bill has been enacted into law, it is called an act or a statute....
(law) did not pass its vote.
After Bell's patent application for the telephone was approved on February 29, 1876, Pollok invited Bell to his home to celebrate. Bell wrote to his father:
- "Mr. Pollok has the most palatial residence of any that I have ever seen. It is certainly the finest and best appointed of any in Washington. None of the rooms are less than fifteen feet high. The porticoPorticoA portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls...
is also about fifteen feet high - supported by massive polished Aberdeen-granite pillars. Mr. Pollok has been introducing me to some of the elite of Washington. Yesterday we called upon Mrs. Bancroft (wife of the historian)... Today we called on Prof. HenryJoseph HenryJoseph Henry was an American scientist who served as the first Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, as well as a founding member of the National Institute for the Promotion of Science, a precursor of the Smithsonian Institution. During his lifetime, he was highly regarded...
of the Smithsonian - and on Saturday Mr. Pollok gives a party in my honor - and I expect to meet Sir Edward ThorntonEdward Thornton (diplomat)Sir Edward Thornton KCB was a prominent British diplomat, who held posts in Latin America, Turkey, Russia, and served for fourteen years as Minister to the United States.-Early career:...
and members of the other foreign Embassies."
The Alexander Graham Bell Papers collection at the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
contains letters from Bell to Pollok and Bailey regarding Bell's patents for the telephone.
Pollok and his wife Marie (born about 1840) were passengers on the steamship SS La Bourgogne
SS La Bourgogne
SS La Bourgogne was built in 1885 by Forges & Chantiers de la Mediteranee, La Seyne for the Compagnie Generale Transatlantique . She was a 7,395 gross ton vessel, length 494.4ft x beam 52.2ft, two funnels, four masts, iron and steel construction, single screw and a speed of 17 knots. There was...
when it sank after collision with the ship Cromartyshire on July 4, 1898.,
After their death, his heirs established the "Anthony Pollok Memorial Prize" that was offered for the best device for saving lives in case of disaster at sea.
See also
- Alexander Graham BellAlexander Graham BellAlexander Graham Bell was an eminent scientist, inventor, engineer and innovator who is credited with inventing the first practical telephone....
- Marcellus BaileyMarcellus BaileyMarcellus Bailey was an American patent attorney who, with Anthony Pollok, helped prepare Alexander Graham Bell's patents for the telephone and related inventions.-Biography:...
- Elisha Gray and Alexander Bell telephone controversy