History of Radio

To understand the history of the radio we need to take a look at those who have been given credit for "fathering" the radio and each of their contributions. 

James Clerk Maxwell: He formulated the classical electromagnetic theory.

Heinrich Hertz: First to prove that you could transmit and receive electric waves wirelessly. We recognize Hertz's work today as the fundamental building block of radio and every frequency measurement is named after him (Hertz).

Guglielmo Marconi: Introduced many of the first uses of wireless telegraphy to European navies.

They say his radio apparatus is considered to be the reason that

 over 700 people survived the Titanic disaster in 1912. 

Edwin Armstrong: Creator of the FM radio, invented the regenerative circuit, the amplifying receiver, and a wave transmitter. His inventions allowed us to be able to recieve, convert, and amplify weak, high-frequency electromagnetic waves.
Reginald Fessenden: Developed a way to combine sound and radio carrier waves.

1885: Hertz proved electricity can be transmitted in electromagnetic waves.

1891: Radios began to appear on ships.

1892-1893: Nikola Tesla transmitted electromagnetic energy.

1896-1897: Marconi established the Wireless Telegraph and Signal Company.

1901: First transAtlantic signal sent by Marconi from Ireland to Canada.

1906: Fessenden transmits a program of speech and music. DeForest produces the Audion that allowed amplification of radio signals.
1910: First radio transmission from an airplane.
1912: Federal regulation of American airwaves begins. People had to be licensed and ships had to have a radio and trained operators.  

Information obtained from: http://transition.fcc.gov/omd/history/radio/documents/short_history.pdf
Video from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kifC0HsYRy4