Father Landell
History & chronology
”In the world nothing is impossible, if the person has faith, hope and charity”
– Roberto Landell de Moura
1826
Dr. Robert Landell emigrated to Brazil with his wife in 1826. He was from Berwickshire, Scotland. Dr. Robert Landell was the grandfather of Roberto Landell de Moura.
1861
Roberto Landell de Moura was born in this house in Porto Alegre city, state of Rio Grande do Sul in the south of Brazil, on January 21st 1861. Son of Ignacio Jose Ferreira de Moura, from Rio Grande city, and Marianna Landell de Moura, Dr. Robert Landell’s daughter.
1877
Father Landell moved to Rio de Janeiro in 1877 for technical and scientific studies at “Escola Politecnica” School, today the Philosophy and Social Science Institute (IFCS/UFRJ). Unable to pay tuition, however, he took a job as a store clerk. As per one of Landell’s manuscripts at the age of 16 he wrote ” I made some chemistry compositions, such as cavity extraction. I built a telephone. I did autopsy of a cat, and studied the influence that it could have in the atmospheric electricity”.
1878 - 1886
Father Landell’s educational trajectory took him to study in Rome, Italy, with 17years old. He studied at Pio Latino Americano College and graduated in Theology, becoming a priest in November 28th, 1886. During his time in Italy, he studied Physics and Chemistry at the Gregorian University. Such education gave him the research base for his inventions, especially the wireless communication at distance whereas in a later stage, was recognized as the principles of the radio transmission.
This is Father’s Landell ordination registration issued by ” Pio Latino Americano” school. Below where the school was located. in 1905, it was renamed Pontifical Pius Latin American College. The school is currently located at Via Aurelia Antica, 408, in Rome.
1891
Landell de Moura family in 1891, Porto Alegre, Brazil. Photo was taken at the Father Landell’s parents house. He is standing on the further right of the photo and his brother Guilherme on the further left, both wearing liturgical vestments. Their parents are sitting in the center of the photo: Ignacio Jose Ferreira de Moura and Marianna Landell de Moura.
1899 - 1st Public demonstration of Wireless Telephony in the presence of the press and personalities.
July 16th 1899 the Brazilian newspaper ” O Estado de São Paulo” published Father Landell experiment of wireless telephony with equipments invented and built by himself. Many authorities and the press were invited. Transmission was made in São Paulo city, Brazil, from the Santana School (transmitter), at the time called “Colegio das Irmas de Sao Jose”, to the “Bandeiras” bridge (receptor). As per records, Father Landell said” play the national anthem”. Another 5 newspapers published the experiment, Correio Paulistano, O Commercio de São Paulo, Jornal do Comercio (RJ) e A Imprensa (RJ) e Jornal do Brasil (RJ). The experiment was a successful!
This is the transmitter. The tube is from where he would talk the “microphone”. Below the School location.
1900 - 2nd Public demonstration of Wireless Telephony in the presence of the press and personalities.
In June 3rd 1900, the Brazilian newspaper Jornal do Commercio (RJ) reports Landell made a public wireless demonstration at a distance of about 8km (~5miles) a part, in a straight line between Paulista avenue to Santa Ana School, in São Paulo, Brazil. The newspaper also reported the presence of a Great Britain government representative, the Sao Paulo’s consul, Percy Charles Parmenter Lupton and his family.
In the picture is Paulista avenue in the year 1900 when Father Landell made this public demonstration of wireless telephony.
1901 - 1st Patent
Landell’s 1st patent registered with the Brazilian government in March 9th 1901 for the “phonetic equipment for distance transmission, wire and wireless, across the space, earth and water”. Patent No 3.279
In July, same year, Father Landell moved to the U.S.A. taking up residence in Manhattan, New York, to register his Patents. He set up a modest workshop to build his inventions and survived with very few resources and loans.
1902 - American Newspapers published his invention of the wireless Telephony.
The newspaper the New York Herald published an interview with Father Landell in October 12th 1902, in the USA, on his inventions with the title ” Talking over a gap of miles along a ray of light”. Under the picture taken, was written “Rev. Father Landell de Moura – Inventor of the Wireless Telephone apparatus”. The reporter asked him ” what is the distance the apparatus can reach?” father Landell replied ” Practically the infinity”. In the occasion others American newspapers such as The St. Paul Globe, The St. Louis Republic and The Kansas City Star published the article. In Brazil, there were repercussion of these publications.
1904 - 3 Patents registered in the USA.
3 patents were registered in The United Patent Office:
- Wave Transmitter (radio waves, the precursor of the radio). Patent No 771.917. October 11th 1904
- Wireless Telephone. Patent No 775.337. November 22nd 1904.
- Wireless Telegraph. Patent No775.846. November 22nd 1904.
1907
As per one of many Landell’s Manuscripts, the ” Caderno A” under the tittle ” O Perianto” Landell thoroughly describes his research about the invisible electoluminescent light radiation i.e. the human and animal Aura. This research was done 3 decades earlier the Russian couple Semyon and Valentina Kirlian discovered this phenomenon in 1939, by which it passed to be called Kirlian effect thereafter. However, in the year 2000, under the acknowledgment of Landell’s research decades before in the field, the name was changed to Bioelectrography.
1928
Father Landell passed away in June 30th 1928, with 67 years old, in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. His remains are at the Rosario Church , downtown Porto Alegre city.
Father Landell dedicated his life to the Church, studies, research and inventions. He was one of the precursors of the wireless communication. He was a Catholic priest and the pioneer of the radiotelephony. With few resources, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, he built ingenious machines in Brazil, which were still unheard of. He faced many challenges, being caught in the middle of the debate between religion x science. Even so, he continued his research, not only in wireless communication, and studied several subjects, as can be seen in his manuscripts.