An official website of the United States government                

----

end of header

# History

###### You are here: Census.gov ›  History ›  Home Page Archive › 2023 › September 2023

Skip top of page navigation

                - History Main
                - Agency History                    - Director Biographies
                  - Census Facilities
                  - Suitland, MD
                  - Notable Alumni
                - Innovations                    - Data Collection
                  - Technology
                - Programs                    - Agriculture
                  - Demographic
                  - Housing
                  - Economic
                  - Geography
                  - Governments
                - Through the Decades                    - Fast Facts
                  - Overview
                  - Index of Questions
                  - Questionnaires
                  - Census Instructions
                - Genealogy                    - Decennial Census Records
                  - Other Resources
                - Reference                    - Data@Museums
                  - Artifacts
                  - Lesson Plans
                  - Legislation
                  - Maps
                  - Oral Histories
                  - Privacy & Confidentiality
                  - Apportionment
                  - Publications 
                - Home Page Archive                    - 2024
                  - 2023
                  - 2022
                  - 2021
                  - 2020
                  - 2019
                  - 2018
                  - 2017
                  - 2016
                  - 2015
                  - 2014 
                - FAQs                    - Genealogy
                  - Agency History
                  - Demographic
                  - Economic
                  - Governments
                  - Agriculture
                  - Geography
                  - Innovations
                  - Miscellaneous

### 2022

### Also in this Section:

                          - January 2023
                          - February 2023
                          - March 2023
                          - April 2023
                          - May 2023
                          - June 2023
                          - July 2023
                          - August 2023
                          - September 2023
                          - October 2023
                          - November 2023
                          - December 2023

## September 2023

----

### Visit *https://www.census.gov/history* every month for the latest Census History Home Page!

----

### U.S. Census Bureau History: Philo Farnsworth and the Invention of Television

Despite winning a years-long legal battle against RCA Corporation in 1935, Philo Farnsworth (center)—the "undisputed inventorof television"—received little fame or money for the millions of television sets found in nearly every American householdbefore his death in 1971.Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.

On September 3, 1928, 22-year-old inventor Philo T. Farnsworth demonstrated his electronic television to reporters at his San Francisco, CA, laboratory.  It would be decades before widespread television ownership became a reality, with millions of sets sold annually by the 1960s.  Today, nearly every home in the United States—and the majority of homes worldwide—own at least one television, making it one of the most important technological innovations in history.

Philo T. Farnsworth was not the typical inventor and certainly not formally trained to undertake the monumental technological advances needed to develop television and television broadcasting.  When he conceived the idea for television, Farnsworth was still a teenager attending Rigby High School in Jefferson County, ID.  His science teachers were astonished by the television sketches Farnsworth provided to explain his concepts.  After the Farnsworth family moved to Provo, UT, Philo began studying as a "special student" at Brigham Young University while he completed his high school studies.  After his high school graduation, Farnsworth considered enrolling in the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD, but realized his television research and future patents could become property of the U.S. government.  He chose instead to attend Brigham Young University  where he studied electronics and earned a "radiotrician" certification that he used to open a radio repair business in Salt Lake City.  The business failed, but Farnsworth met investors who were intrigued by his plans to transmit movie pictures through the air and provided funding for a California laboratory in 1926.

The concepts Farnsworth sketched on his high school's chalkboard as a teenager began taking shape in his laboratories in Los Angeles and later San Francisco, CA.  After he accidentally blew an earlier television experiment to pieces, he refined the design and filed for the first of more than 300 patents he received in his lifetime on January 7, 1927.  On September 7, 1927, the young inventor used his newly designed image dissector to successfully transmit the image of a single straight line drawn on a glass slide to a receiver in an adjacent room at his laboratory.  "There you are," Farnsworth exclaimed, "Electronic television!" 

Eight months later, Farnsworth invited his investors to his laboratory for their first demonstration of his invention.  They were delighted when Farnsworth broadcast the image of a dollar sign as they imagined the fortune the new technology could earn them.  On September 3, 1928, Farnsworth publicly demonstrated television by broadcasting another image through the air for reporters.  The *San Francisco Chronicle* wrote that the "simplicity" of the invention developed by the "Young Genius" would revolutionize television as it transmitted 20 images per second with each image composed of 8,000 pinpoints of light and viewable on a black and white, 1 1/2 inch square television screen that was slightly larger than a postage stamp.  [By comparison, the most popular televisions sold in the United States today are—measured diagonally—32–65 inches, while the largest sets available measure a staggering 146 to 325 inches!]
David SarnoffNew York City, NYVladimir ZworykinNew York World's FairFort Wayne, IN9 percent65 percent
After the grueling legal battle with RCA and sale of Farnsworth Corporation, Philo Farnsworth continued electronics research and later studied nuclear fusion.  He returned to Utah in 1967 to conduct fusion research at Brigham Young University and established Philo T. Farnsworth Associates.  Government contracts were unable to keep the new company financially afloat, and it went bankrupt in 1970.  Farnsworth died from pneumonia the following year at his home in Holladay, UT.
National Statuary HallWashington, DClife-size bronze statue                        - Philo T. Farnsworth was born in Beaver, UT, in 1906.  Between 1900 and 1910, the town's population grew from  1,701  to  1,899 .  More recently, the 2020 Census found that Beaver, UT, was home to  3,592  people.
                        - The Farnsworth family moved to Rigby, ID, in 1918.  The town is so proud of their connection to the "Father of Television" that a street, middle school, and local museum are named for the inventor.  Even the town's official seal bears the phrase, "The birthplace of TV."  When the  Farnsworth's  were enumerated in Rigby, ID, in 1920, the town had a population of  2,731 .  More recently, the 2020 Census counted  5,038  living in the  Jefferson County  city.
                        - The Census Bureau's censuses and surveys are often the first and most comprehensive tool collecting data on the nation's acceptance of technology.  For example, 5 years after Americans listened to President  Calvin Coolidge's  March 4, 1925, inauguration on their radios, the  1930 Census  included radio ownership data from every household in the United States.  In 1930,  12,048,762  households (40.3 percent) owned a radio.  Introduction of the The Census of Housing in  1940  allowed collection of detailed data about the nation's housing characteristics.  Two years after the 1948 debut of the  Ed Sullivan Show , the 1950 Census reported that  5,030,270  of households owned a television and  40,411,015  owned a radio.  By 1970, nearly as many homes owned a television ( 95 percent ) as owned a radio ( 98.6 percent ).  When Apple Computer introduced its Macintosh personal computer in 1984, the Census Bureau's  Current Population Survey (CPS)  found that  8 percent  of households owned a computer.  In 1992, the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) reported that  73.8 percent  of households owned a microwave oven and  68.8 percent  owned a video cassette recorder.  In 1997, the CPS collected data about internet use finding that  18 percent  of households used the internet.  One year later, SIPP data showed that  36.3 percent  of households owned a cell phone.  More recently, data collected by the American Community Survey (ACS) showed that nearly  103.7 million  households had internet in 2018.  In 2021, the ACS reported that more than  121 million  of the nation's  /data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=B28&d=ACS%201-Year%20Estimates%20Detailed%20Tables&tid=ACSDT1Y2021.B28010">127.5 million  household had one or more computing devices, including nearly  117.6 million  households reporting ownership of a smartphone, tablet, or other portable wireless computer.
                        - Groucho Marx  was a popular radio personality who began hosting the program  You Bet Your Life  for ABC radio in 1947.  Marx became a beloved television star hosting a televised version of  You Bet Your Life  from 1950 to 1957.  Vaudevillian husband-and-wife actors  George Burns  and  Gracie Allen  hosted  The Burns and Allen Show  on radio from 1937 to 1950 before transitioning to an Emmy Award-nominated television series that ran from 1950 to 1958.  Comedians  Bud Abbott  and  Lou Costello  hosted one of the most famous radio comedy programs in the United States in 1940, and 1942–1947.  Television critics consider  The Abbott and Costello  television show that ran from 1952 to 1954 to be one of the greatest television programs of all time.  Other radio actors who found success on television include  Lucille Ball  and  Desi Arnaz ,  Dinah Shore ,  Bob Hope ,  Jack Benny , and Academy Award-winning actor  Hattie McDaniel .
                        - The Census Bureau's  County Business Patterns  series reported that there were  2,450  Television Broadcasting (NAICS 515120) establishments in the United States in 2021.  California led the nation with  391  Television Broadcasting establishments followed by New York ( 300 ) and Florida ( 260 ).  Nationwide, Television Broadcasting establishments employed  143,196  people during the pay period that included March 12, 2021.  New York employed more people in the television broadcasting industry  32,830  than any other state during the March 12, 2021, pay period.
                        - Would you believe that popular ventriloquist  Edgar Bergen  was a radio star years before making his first television appearance?  Bergen and his ventriloquist puppet  Charlie McCarthy  hosted a comedy and variety show on radio from 1936 to 1956.  The duo first appeared on television in 1946 and continued to perform together until 1977 when they made their last television appearance on an episode of  Jim Henson's  The Muppet Show . The period from 1948 to 1959 is often called the "Golden Age of Television" as television's technological advances and brilliant programming encouraged millions of American households to purchase their first television set and gather around the glowing screens every evening to watch "must-see" television series.  Some of the most popular programs and actors of the era included: *Texaco Star Theater* (1948-1956) hosted by Milton Berle; *The Lone Ranger* (1949-1957) starring Clayton Moore and Jay Silverheels;  *I Love Lucy* (1951-1957) starring Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz; *The Honeymooners* (1955-1956) starring Jackie Gleason, Audry Meadows, and Art Carney; the long-running children's program *Captain Kangaroo* (1955–1984) hosted by Robert "Captain Kangaroo" Keeshan; family comedy *Leave it to Beaver* (1957-1963) starring Hugh Beaumont, Barbara Billingsley, Tony Dow, and Jerry Mathers as "the Beaver"; Rod Serling's*Twilight Zone* (1959-1964); and Gunsmoke—the longest-running television western (1955-1975)—starring James Arness with guest appearances from both new and established actors like Ed Asner, Charles Bronson, Bette Davis, Buddy Ebsen, Harrison Ford, Jodie Foster, Ron Howard, Jack Klugman, Martin Landau, Leonard Nimoy, Adam West, and many more!  Between 1950 and 1955, the number of households with at least 1 television set grew from 9 percent to 65 percent.  By 1965, 93 percent of American homes had a television.  The remarkable growth in television ownership was due to the debut of some of the most popular television shows that are still airing as "reruns" or carried by popular streaming content providers today, including: *I Love Lucy* (1951-1957) starring Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball; *The Ed Sullivan Show* (1948-1971); *Gunsmoke* (1952-1961) starring James Arness; *The Andy Griffith Show* (1960-1968) starring Andy Griffith, Ron Howard, and Don Knotts; *Bonanza* (1959-1973) featuring Lorne Greene and Michael Landon; the *Flintstones* (1960-1966) animated series created by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera; Elizabeth Montgomery, Dick York, and Agnes Moorehead in *Bewitched* (1964-1972); Walt Disney's*Wonderful World of Disney* (1969-1979); *All in the Family* starring Carroll O'Connor and Jean Stapleton; and one of the most popular television programs in history—*M*A*S*H* (1972-1983)—starring Alan Alda, Wayne Rogers, McLean Stevenson, Loretta Switt, Mike Farrell, Harry Morgan, and a host of other famous and soon-to-be famous Hollywood stars.  The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS) inducted Philo Farnsworth into its Hall of Fame in 2013.  The ATAS established the Hall of Fame for "persons who have made outstanding contributions in the arts, sciences or management of television, based upon either cumulative contributions and achievements or a singular contribution or achievement." The Hall of Fame's first inductees in 1984 included Lucille Ball, Milton Berle, and Edward R. Murrow.  Others actors, directors, screenwriters, media executives, and media personalities honored for their extraordinary contributions to American television include: legendary news anchor Walter Cronkite (1985); beloved animator Walt Disney (1986); talk show hosts and comedians Johnny Carson and Bob Hope (1987); husband and wife vaudeville, radio, television and movie stars George Burns and Gracie Allen (1988); television producer David L. Wolper (1988); groundbreaking journalist Barbara Walters (1989); composer Leonard Bernstein (1990); sportscaster Howard Cosell; daytime talk show host Oprah Winfrey (1993); and documentary film maker Ken Burns.  After Zenith Corporation closed its Melrose Park, IL, factory in 1998, declared bankruptcy in 1999, and sold its assets to Korean company LG Electronics that same year, most major brands of televisions or their components have been manufactured overseas.  Hundreds of American companies still manufacture equipment and provide support for our love of television.  For example, in 2021, the Census Bureau's County Business Patterns series reported that there were 483 Audio and Video Equipment Manufacturing (NAICS 3343) establishments in the United States; 861 Cable and Other Subscription Programming establishments (NAICS 515210); 1,705 Consumer Electronics Repair and Maintenance (NAICS 811211) establishments; and 22,800 Electronics and Appliance Retail Establishments (NAICS 44314).
Thanks to a petition drive initiated by Utah school children, Philo T. Farnsworth was honored with a statue in the U.S. Capitol Building's National Statuary Hall on May 2, 1990.Inscribed on the statue's base are the words, "Father of Television."Photo courtesy of the Architect of the Capitol.Did you know?The 1970 Census was the first in which the Ad Council produced radio and television public service announcements as part of the population count's promotional campaign.The national television networks and 725 local stations received advertising kits containing film, slides, scripts, and fact sheets emphasizing the census slogan, "We can't know where we're going if we don't know where we are."View larger imageTV DataThe U.S. Census Bureau collected data about television ownership for the first time in 1950.Of the more than 42 million households that completed the 1950 Census of Housing /www.census.gov/history/pdf/1950_housing_questionnaire.pdf">questionnaire, more than 40.4 million owned a radio, 35.9 million had a kitchen sink, and 33.7 million had mechanical refrigeration.  Just 5 million reported owning a television.  Nearly 4.4 million households with television sets were urban whereas only 154,000 farms owned a set.In 1960, respondents could report owning two or more sets.  That year, more than 46 million of the nation's 53 million occupied housing units had at least one television.  Television had grown so popular that more households owned a television than an automobile (41.6 million), telephone (41.6 million), clothes washing machine (39 million), or air conditioning (6.6 million).In 1970, 60.6 million (95.5 percent) of the nation's 68.7 million housing units indicated they owned at least one television on their census questionnaire.  By comparison, 24.2 million households had air conditioning, 26.5 million had a clothes dryer, and 59.7 million had indoor plumbing.Censuses from 1980 and later did not ask about television ownership, but other surveys still inquired about households' technology ownership.  For example, the Census Bureau's Survey of Income and Program Participation finds that more households own a television (98.4 percent or more) than a landline telephone.Data from the American Community Survey showed that in 2021, television ownership was still more common than owning a computer or smartphone.Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.View larger imageFor the RecordFranklin D. Roosevelt was the first U.S. president to appear on television.  His pre-recorded broadcast was part of the 1939 New York World's Fair's opening ceremony sponsored by David Sarnoff's RCA Corporation and shown on televisions at the fair and televisions scattered around New York City, NY, on April 30, 1939.On October 5, 1947, president Harry S. Truman appeared in the first broadcast from the White House in which he urged Americans to conserve food for post-World War II Europe.  Truman installed the first television in the White House in 1947.  His January 20, 1949, inauguration ceremony was the first to be televised nationwide.On January 19, 1955, President Dwight D. Eisenhower invited television cameras to record a White House press conference for the first time.  He also appeared in the very first recorded color television broadcast on May 22, 1958.On January 25, 1961, President John F. Kennedy hosted the first White House press conference broadcast live on television.Other technological firsts at the White House include installation of indoor plumbing by Andrew Jackson in 1833; the first White House telephone by Rutherford B. Hayes on May 10, 1877; and electric lights during Benjamin Harrison's administration.Calvin Coolidge was the first president to address the nation by radio on December 6, 1923; George H.W. Bush sent the first presidential emails in 1992; William J. Clinton launched the first White House webpage in 1994; and Barack Obama began regularly using social media in 2009.**Visit *https://www.census.gov/history* every month for the latest Census History Home Page!**~~~~[an error occurred while processing this directive]  This symbol  indicates a link to a non-government web site.  Our linking to these sites does not constitute an endorsement of any products, services or the information found on them. Once you link to another site you are subject to the policies of the new site.CONNECT WITH US**********- Information Quality
- Data Linkage Infrastructure
- Data Protection and Privacy Policy
- Accessibility
- FOIA
- Inspector General
- No FEAR Act
- U.S. Department of Commerce
- USA.gov

Measuring America's People, Places, and Economy
✕Is this page helpful?YesNo✕NO THANKS255 characters maximum255 characters maximum reached✕Thank you for your feedback.Comments or suggestions?   Source: U.S. Census Bureau | Census History Staff |  Last Revised: December 14, 2023