Telephones were invented in the mid-19th century, with the most recognized milestone being Alexander Graham Bell's patent granted on March 7, 1876. Bell is credited with the first U.S. patent for the invention of the telephone and he made the first intelligible telephone call on March 10, 1876. However, other inventors like Antonio Meucci had earlier developed telephone-like devices, with Meucci constructing a voice-communication apparatus around 1854 and demonstrating an electric voice-operated device in New York that year. The telephone as a widespread communication device evolved rapidly after Bell's invention, with the first telephone line constructed around 1877-78 and telephone exchanges soon following.