Joseph John O'Connell

Joseph John O'Connell (1861 – 1959), 1st, was an electrical engineer and inventor.

He worked for the Chicago Telephone Company (which began as the Chicago Bell Telephone, Co. in 1878 [1]) in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

He had many inventions including the circuit breaker and the coin return.

Reference to some additional inventions are mentioned in Angus Hibbard's autobiography, Hello- Goodbye [2] including an electric lamp as a signal in a burglar-alarm operated by the telephone company in 1886.

[3] O'Connell's inventions include: Grandson, Joseph John O'Connell 3rd, was a sculptor, print maker, photographer, artist-in-residence and teacher at CSB/SJU from 1962 to 1995.

Plaque reads: "Joseph J. O'Connell Telephone pioneer, inventor, & engineer. Made substantial contributions to the early days of the telephone industry in Chicago. Mr. O'Connell retired from Illinois Bell in 1930 after 52 years of service. He lived on this site from the early 1860s until his death in 1959 at age 98. This plaque is gratefully dedicated to his memory by Illinois Bell."