Charles Wheatstone

Biography

Charles Wheatstone (1802–1875) was an inventive physicist whose Wheatstone bridge became a fundamental tool for measuring electrical resistance and whose clues to vision produced the stereoscope. His fascination with electricity also led him to stretch the first public electric telegraph between Euston and Camden, laying down the infrastructure that would soon sweep the nation.

For decades he served as Professor of Experimental Philosophy at King's College, where he inspired students with demonstrations of vibrating strings, musical telegraphs, and the latest telegraphic apparatus; his writings and patents helped standardize a burgeoning industry. He was buried at Kensal Green Cemetery.