Happy Saturday. When we talked about divers going to the wreck of the Empress of Ireland in nineteen fourteen, I found myself idly wondering exactly what the diving technology was like that they were using at the time, and we have a whole episode on that subject, not the specifics of the dive to the Empress of Ireland or exactly what they would have been using, but on the development of diving technology, from the earliest diving bells up to self contained breathing systems.

Happy Saturday. When we talked about divers going to the wreck of the Empress of Ireland in nineteen fourteen, I found myself idly wondering exactly what the diving technology was like that they were using at the time, and we have a whole episode on that subject, not the specifics of the dive to the Empress of Ireland or exactly what they would have been using, but on the development of diving technology, from the earliest diving bells up to self contained breathing systems.

This originally came out on December second, twenty fifteen. Enjoy Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class, a production of iHeartRadio. Hello, and welcome to the podcast.

This originally came out on December second, twenty fifteen. Enjoy Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class, a production of iHeartRadio. Hello, and welcome to the podcast.

I'm Holly from It's Tracy B.

I'm Holly from It's Tracy B.

Wilson in the No Surprise department. The relationship that humans have had with bodies of water throughout history has pretty much always been one of fascination, and it seems like we have always been trying to find ways to transcend the limits of our pesky air breathing lungs so that we can get some time underwater. You have surely heard innumerable times that approximately seventy percent of the Earth's surfaces water so it makes sense that curious humans would be yearning to scope out the situation in the deep, and while humans were diving on their own for centuries before they started building assistance apparatus to do so. Today we're going to talk a little bit just about the history of the technology, specifically that's evolved over the centuries to give us some FaceTime with the fish without suffocating. We're going to cover inventions designed specifically to enable humans to breathe underwater. While there are plenty of other advancements to diving like fins and wetsuits, etc. We're pretty much focusing on the air here and like things that have enabled us to breathe. And as a heads up going into this one in case you are a real dive historian, I want to be clear that this is by no means an exhaustive history on the matter. If you go to any like even diving fan site and see their discussion of dive history, there is usually a list roughly one kilometer long of like various advancements that have been made through the years, and so we can't really cover all of those without just reading a long list, which would be boring because it has developed incrementally over centuries, and it includes the work of just multitudes, So there's no way to include every single step in the course of one of our podcasts, so we're hitting as many of the key historical moments as possible.

Wilson in the No Surprise department. The relationship that humans have had with bodies of water throughout history has pretty much always been one of fascination, and it seems like we have always been trying to find ways to transcend the limits of our pesky air breathing lungs so that we can get some time underwater. You have surely heard innumerable times that approximately seventy percent of the Earth's surfaces water so it makes sense that curious humans would be yearning to scope out the situation in the deep, and while humans were diving on their own for centuries before they started building assistance apparatus to do so. Today we're going to talk a little bit just about the history of the technology, specifically that's evolved over the centuries to give us some FaceTime with the fish without suffocating. We're going to cover inventions designed specifically to enable humans to breathe underwater. While there are plenty of other advancements to diving like fins and wetsuits, etc. We're pretty much focusing on the air here and like things that have enabled us to breathe. And as a heads up going into this one in case you are a real dive historian, I want to be clear that this is by no means an exhaustive history on the matter. If you go to any like even diving fan site and see their discussion of dive history, there is usually a list roughly one kilometer long of like various advancements that have been made through the years, and so we can't really cover all of those without just reading a long list, which would be boring because it has developed incrementally over centuries, and it includes the work of just multitudes, So there's no way to include every single step in the course of one of our podcasts, so we're hitting as many of the key historical moments as possible.

The first recorded account of some kind of diving technology that was designed to let humans breathe underwater was mentioned by Aristotle in the fourth century BCE in his Book of Problems. I love that name. This was a diving bell, and Aristotle described diving bells by saying, quote, they enable the divers to respire equally well by letting down a cauldron where this does not fill with water but retains the air where it is forced straight down into the water. You're having trouble visualizing that. It's like when you're a kid and you're putting the cup down in the sink, but in a way that's a vacuum, so that you don't or it's not a value, doesn't let the water in, you know what I'm trying to say. So as a note, there is some debate about whether Aristotle actually wrote the Book of Problems, So take that with a grain of salt. Yeah, that's one of those many historical documents that people some people anyways, believe actually was written by someone later and then attributed to Aristotle. So also in the late fourth century BCE, Macedonian king Alexander the Great is on record as having employed a diving bell to explore the seas that was beginning as early as age eleven, according to this sort of legend, So during the Battle of tyr he has said to have used a diving bell to supervise the work of divers that were under his command and were tasked with removing obstacles that would prevent passage into port. And once again there is some debate about the truth of that account.

The first recorded account of some kind of diving technology that was designed to let humans breathe underwater was mentioned by Aristotle in the fourth century BCE in his Book of Problems. I love that name. This was a diving bell, and Aristotle described diving bells by saying, quote, they enable the divers to respire equally well by letting down a cauldron where this does not fill with water but retains the air where it is forced straight down into the water. You're having trouble visualizing that. It's like when you're a kid and you're putting the cup down in the sink, but in a way that's a vacuum, so that you don't or it's not a value, doesn't let the water in, you know what I'm trying to say. So as a note, there is some debate about whether Aristotle actually wrote the Book of Problems, So take that with a grain of salt. Yeah, that's one of those many historical documents that people some people anyways, believe actually was written by someone later and then attributed to Aristotle. So also in the late fourth century BCE, Macedonian king Alexander the Great is on record as having employed a diving bell to explore the seas that was beginning as early as age eleven, according to this sort of legend, So during the Battle of tyr he has said to have used a diving bell to supervise the work of divers that were under his command and were tasked with removing obstacles that would prevent passage into port. And once again there is some debate about the truth of that account.

But there are, if you are a lover of visual mediums, some truly spectacular renderings of Alexander the Great submerged in the glass bell and observing the world from his underwater vantage. Some of them almost look creepy. There's one that I ran across where it looks like he is kind of creeping on some lovers in a boat on the surface of the water. And there are others that just sort of look like him merrily sitting in his diving bell, kind of enjoying his view of the world from there.

But there are, if you are a lover of visual mediums, some truly spectacular renderings of Alexander the Great submerged in the glass bell and observing the world from his underwater vantage. Some of them almost look creepy. There's one that I ran across where it looks like he is kind of creeping on some lovers in a boat on the surface of the water. And there are others that just sort of look like him merrily sitting in his diving bell, kind of enjoying his view of the world from there.

I'll see if I can find some pictures of this to put in our show notes. A most basic and classic example of a diving bell is narrow at the top and open at the bottom, so bell shaped like its name describes. As you push the bell straight down into the water, the air is trapped inside of it, so there's basically a bubble inside there in which a human can breathe. That's fine for a limited time before the oxygen is basically used up, and then you have to come back to the surface. And in order for a diving bell to counteract the buoyancy created by that air pocket that enables breathing, it also has to be quite heavy, so an open bottom diving bell also can't go very deep into water. There's a Peruvian vase dating back to around the year two hundred that depicts a human figure and on huge that figure's face is painted something that's been interpreted to signify goggles. The goggle interpretation was arrived at due to the fact that this figure is also holding fish in.

I'll see if I can find some pictures of this to put in our show notes. A most basic and classic example of a diving bell is narrow at the top and open at the bottom, so bell shaped like its name describes. As you push the bell straight down into the water, the air is trapped inside of it, so there's basically a bubble inside there in which a human can breathe. That's fine for a limited time before the oxygen is basically used up, and then you have to come back to the surface. And in order for a diving bell to counteract the buoyancy created by that air pocket that enables breathing, it also has to be quite heavy, so an open bottom diving bell also can't go very deep into water. There's a Peruvian vase dating back to around the year two hundred that depicts a human figure and on huge that figure's face is painted something that's been interpreted to signify goggles. The goggle interpretation was arrived at due to the fact that this figure is also holding fish in.

Each of his hands. Yeah, so it's a pretty cute little vase. So then the next one of the next sort of major steps of where we see some sort of diving event happening in history is around fifteen hundred, Leonardo da Vinci was sketching out ideas for what appeared to be diving apparatus, but it seems that he never actually built one.

Each of his hands. Yeah, so it's a pretty cute little vase. So then the next one of the next sort of major steps of where we see some sort of diving event happening in history is around fifteen hundred, Leonardo da Vinci was sketching out ideas for what appeared to be diving apparatus, but it seems that he never actually built one.

Despite accounts going centuries back in the historical record, it wasn't until the sixth teenth century that a successful diving bell submersion was conclusively documented. In the fifteen thirties, Italy's Lake Nemi was explored in a diving bell designed by Gullielmo de Lorrena as part of an operation to salvage barges that dated back to the time of Caligula.

Despite accounts going centuries back in the historical record, it wasn't until the sixth teenth century that a successful diving bell submersion was conclusively documented. In the fifteen thirties, Italy's Lake Nemi was explored in a diving bell designed by Gullielmo de Lorrena as part of an operation to salvage barges that dated back to the time of Caligula.

And in a write up in Scientific American that was done in nineteen oh nine, there was an account of this fifteen thirty five Lake Nemi dive, and it describes the apparatus in the following way. Master Guriamo de Lorena made a contrivance by which he entered the water and made himself descend to the bottom of the lake, and there he remained an hour more or less just as he wished, until the cold drove him up again. With this contrivance of his one can work sawing cutting corking up tying ropes. One can also operate with hammers, chisels, pinchers, and other such tools, though one can use but little force because of the hindrance of the water.

And in a write up in Scientific American that was done in nineteen oh nine, there was an account of this fifteen thirty five Lake Nemi dive, and it describes the apparatus in the following way. Master Guriamo de Lorena made a contrivance by which he entered the water and made himself descend to the bottom of the lake, and there he remained an hour more or less just as he wished, until the cold drove him up again. With this contrivance of his one can work sawing cutting corking up tying ropes. One can also operate with hammers, chisels, pinchers, and other such tools, though one can use but little force because of the hindrance of the water.

So apparently this version of a diving bell left the wearer with a lot of range of motion, so it suggested that it was smaller a personal sized diving bell, rather than one that could potentially accommodate multiple people inside of it or more thoroughly cover the diver's body.

So apparently this version of a diving bell left the wearer with a lot of range of motion, so it suggested that it was smaller a personal sized diving bell, rather than one that could potentially accommodate multiple people inside of it or more thoroughly cover the diver's body.

There's also a Chinese text that was written in fifteen eighty seven entitled The Exploitation of the Works of Nature, and this featured some interesting illustrations of people that are walking on the seafloor and they're tethered by ropes to ships above, and they have tubes that are basically going from their mouths all the way up to the surface, presumably to breathe through. I keep thinking about these books that I love by this woman named Marie Brennan, and they're called The Natural History of Dragons, and they're kind of like a faux regency feeling fantasy series about this widowed lady who studies dragons, and there's a whole arc involving another guy that's doing research in a diving bell and how heavy the bell is and how cumbersome and how tricky it is to get it in and out, and how much it ways in the ship and what it inconvenience that causes.

There's also a Chinese text that was written in fifteen eighty seven entitled The Exploitation of the Works of Nature, and this featured some interesting illustrations of people that are walking on the seafloor and they're tethered by ropes to ships above, and they have tubes that are basically going from their mouths all the way up to the surface, presumably to breathe through. I keep thinking about these books that I love by this woman named Marie Brennan, and they're called The Natural History of Dragons, and they're kind of like a faux regency feeling fantasy series about this widowed lady who studies dragons, and there's a whole arc involving another guy that's doing research in a diving bell and how heavy the bell is and how cumbersome and how tricky it is to get it in and out, and how much it ways in the ship and what it inconvenience that causes.

Uh, that's what I've been thinking about the whole time we've been talking.

Uh, that's what I've been thinking about the whole time we've been talking.

Yeah, I mean, it's one of those things like we talk about it, and yes, they dropped it in the water, but like if it tipped it all get to one side, they basically had to pull the whole incredibly heavy thing up and start over.

Yeah, I mean, it's one of those things like we talk about it, and yes, they dropped it in the water, but like if it tipped it all get to one side, they basically had to pull the whole incredibly heavy thing up and start over.

So before we get to an advancement in this technology that was made by a name very familiar to the podcast, let's pause for a word from one of our fabulous sponsors. In our recent episode on Sir Isaac Newton, we mentioned Sir Edmund Halley, and it turns out that Halle also figures into the human desire to explore underwater. In sixteen ninety one, Halle completely changed things by adding a system that could replenish the air in the diving bell. It's almost always the case in the world of invention. However, he was likely aware of and building on the work of Danis Papa who in sixteen eighty nine came up with a plan to pump fresh air into the diving bell. Remember how he said before the break that he would run out of oxygen, so this would get fresh air in there.

So before we get to an advancement in this technology that was made by a name very familiar to the podcast, let's pause for a word from one of our fabulous sponsors. In our recent episode on Sir Isaac Newton, we mentioned Sir Edmund Halley, and it turns out that Halle also figures into the human desire to explore underwater. In sixteen ninety one, Halle completely changed things by adding a system that could replenish the air in the diving bell. It's almost always the case in the world of invention. However, he was likely aware of and building on the work of Danis Papa who in sixteen eighty nine came up with a plan to pump fresh air into the diving bell. Remember how he said before the break that he would run out of oxygen, so this would get fresh air in there.

Yep. And we've talked many times about how most big breakthroughs in science and technology are building on the work of others, so this is a very similar situation. And pepez proposed method featured the use of a bellow system that would pump air into a bell at a constant pressure. But when Halle devised his system, he used a different method, likely to differentiate himself from Pepina and avoid any claims of plagiarism.

Yep. And we've talked many times about how most big breakthroughs in science and technology are building on the work of others, so this is a very similar situation. And pepez proposed method featured the use of a bellow system that would pump air into a bell at a constant pressure. But when Halle devised his system, he used a different method, likely to differentiate himself from Pepina and avoid any claims of plagiarism.

Halley's diving bell was made of wood encoated with lead. It covered sixty cubic feet, so that's one point seven cubic meters of volume, and it had a glass top so that divers would have light while they were in there. There was also a valve on the bell attached to a barrel that could supply additional air.

Halley's diving bell was made of wood encoated with lead. It covered sixty cubic feet, so that's one point seven cubic meters of volume, and it had a glass top so that divers would have light while they were in there. There was also a valve on the bell attached to a barrel that could supply additional air.

And the barrel was suspended in the water by a rope and it could be pulled up to the surface so they could rea fill it with fresh air and then drop it back into the water, sinking thanks to a weighted bottom, and Halle's design was the first that enabled the equalization of pressure inside the bell and outside the bell because of the valve system that was used to supply this air, and it sometimes even referred to as the precursor to the modern diving bell. Because of this, Halle also ed in today's smaller bell shaped apparatus that could be worn like a helmet, although its intent was for the diver to be able to sort of get out from the diving bell, not to be a separate means to go underwater independently. And in a section of Halle's seventeen fourteen to seventeen sixteen work titled Philosophical Transactions, there is a section that is called it's a long title the Art of Living underwater or a discourse concerning the means of furnishing air to the bottom of the sea in any ordinary depths. And in this section of this work he detailed the data that he actually gathered over years of experimenting with diving bells, and he explains how his particular technology works.

And the barrel was suspended in the water by a rope and it could be pulled up to the surface so they could rea fill it with fresh air and then drop it back into the water, sinking thanks to a weighted bottom, and Halle's design was the first that enabled the equalization of pressure inside the bell and outside the bell because of the valve system that was used to supply this air, and it sometimes even referred to as the precursor to the modern diving bell. Because of this, Halle also ed in today's smaller bell shaped apparatus that could be worn like a helmet, although its intent was for the diver to be able to sort of get out from the diving bell, not to be a separate means to go underwater independently. And in a section of Halle's seventeen fourteen to seventeen sixteen work titled Philosophical Transactions, there is a section that is called it's a long title the Art of Living underwater or a discourse concerning the means of furnishing air to the bottom of the sea in any ordinary depths. And in this section of this work he detailed the data that he actually gathered over years of experimenting with diving bells, and he explains how his particular technology works.

One thing he mentions in this writing is the information gleaned from his testing but a gallon of air is used up and no longer suitable for respiration after about a minute. And quote though it's elasticity be but little altered, yet in passing the lungs it loses its vivifying spirit.

One thing he mentions in this writing is the information gleaned from his testing but a gallon of air is used up and no longer suitable for respiration after about a minute. And quote though it's elasticity be but little altered, yet in passing the lungs it loses its vivifying spirit.

Just kind of a poetic way to describe stale air. Don't keep breathing that you're going to pass out. Yeah, it's not going to work out well. In seventeen eighty eight, there was another major advancement in diving technology and this is made by John Smeaton when he invented the diving air pump and Smeaton's pump required four men to operate it. They were up on the surface and it ran air through lines that attached to the top of the bell. And Smeeton's pump more closely resembled the concepts that were a big part of Denny Papa's work than the way that Hallie eventually set up the air supply. And this English engineer also redesigned the bell itself into a box shape and he christened his a diving box, or rather a diving check rather than a diving bell.

Just kind of a poetic way to describe stale air. Don't keep breathing that you're going to pass out. Yeah, it's not going to work out well. In seventeen eighty eight, there was another major advancement in diving technology and this is made by John Smeaton when he invented the diving air pump and Smeaton's pump required four men to operate it. They were up on the surface and it ran air through lines that attached to the top of the bell. And Smeeton's pump more closely resembled the concepts that were a big part of Denny Papa's work than the way that Hallie eventually set up the air supply. And this English engineer also redesigned the bell itself into a box shape and he christened his a diving box, or rather a diving check rather than a diving bell.

One thing we should mention here, and it really goes for advancement in any field is that none of these new technologies were instantly adopted. In fact, even though Smeeten's pumps really advanced the field of diving, Halle's diving bells stayed in use until the eighteen hundreds.

One thing we should mention here, and it really goes for advancement in any field is that none of these new technologies were instantly adopted. In fact, even though Smeeten's pumps really advanced the field of diving, Halle's diving bells stayed in use until the eighteen hundreds.

An English inventor named William James designed a suit in eighteen twenty five that had a coil of metal tubing that wrapped around the diver's weight. The idea was that air that was pumped into this tubing while they were on the surface could provide a diver with an hour's worth of underwater time, although there is no clear evidence, like we don't have a data right up the way that Halle did some of his that this suit was ever actually tested.

An English inventor named William James designed a suit in eighteen twenty five that had a coil of metal tubing that wrapped around the diver's weight. The idea was that air that was pumped into this tubing while they were on the surface could provide a diver with an hour's worth of underwater time, although there is no clear evidence, like we don't have a data right up the way that Halle did some of his that this suit was ever actually tested.

The following decade, inventor Augustus Zeeba invented what's considered to be the first diving dress. It's designed built on the work of John and Charles Dean, who had invented a smoke apparatus to enable firemen to breathe and move freely in burning buildings. The Deans also adapted their invention into a diving helmet designed to sit on the diver's shoulders that would be fastened there with straps to a waste belt. The Dean's patent diving dress was completed in eighteen twenty eight. It was a good functioning design, but if the diver couldn't stay upright underwater, the helmet would fill with water. As an aside, John and Charles Dean also publish what is believed to be the first diving manual in eighteen thirty six. Augustus Diiba's design, which came out in eighteen thirty nine, sealed the helmet to a diving suit to eliminate the problem of water rushing in if the diver tipped over or fell.

The following decade, inventor Augustus Zeeba invented what's considered to be the first diving dress. It's designed built on the work of John and Charles Dean, who had invented a smoke apparatus to enable firemen to breathe and move freely in burning buildings. The Deans also adapted their invention into a diving helmet designed to sit on the diver's shoulders that would be fastened there with straps to a waste belt. The Dean's patent diving dress was completed in eighteen twenty eight. It was a good functioning design, but if the diver couldn't stay upright underwater, the helmet would fill with water. As an aside, John and Charles Dean also publish what is believed to be the first diving manual in eighteen thirty six. Augustus Diiba's design, which came out in eighteen thirty nine, sealed the helmet to a diving suit to eliminate the problem of water rushing in if the diver tipped over or fell.

Yeah, and keeping in mind that when you're walking, if you've ever walked underwater, you know that the seafloor is not exactly the most stable and constant of situations to be stepping on. So it is a very real possibility that divers would shift side to side or lose their balance. In eighteen sixty the French team of Benoi Ukerole and Augost de Nirouse came up with a suite design that featured a compressed air reservoir in addition to an air supply line. The idea was that for brief jaunts, the diver could actually disconnect himself from that regular supply line and rely solely on the compressed air reservoir that he carried on his back.

Yeah, and keeping in mind that when you're walking, if you've ever walked underwater, you know that the seafloor is not exactly the most stable and constant of situations to be stepping on. So it is a very real possibility that divers would shift side to side or lose their balance. In eighteen sixty the French team of Benoi Ukerole and Augost de Nirouse came up with a suite design that featured a compressed air reservoir in addition to an air supply line. The idea was that for brief jaunts, the diver could actually disconnect himself from that regular supply line and rely solely on the compressed air reservoir that he carried on his back.

If you've ever seen the original illustrations Virguals Burns twenty thousand leagues under the sea, the dive helmet in them was based on these men's design.

If you've ever seen the original illustrations Virguals Burns twenty thousand leagues under the sea, the dive helmet in them was based on these men's design.

In eighteen seventy eight, a man named Henry flus ushered in a new era of diving technology when he patented a self contained underwater breathing unit. Flues's rebreather included a rubber mask it is super creepy looking if you see pictures of it, a breathing bag and a copper oxygen tank, and a scrubber that would clean and refresh the air.

In eighteen seventy eight, a man named Henry flus ushered in a new era of diving technology when he patented a self contained underwater breathing unit. Flues's rebreather included a rubber mask it is super creepy looking if you see pictures of it, a breathing bag and a copper oxygen tank, and a scrubber that would clean and refresh the air.

The FLU system was closed, so the used air was run through a link of rope yarn that had been soaked in caustic potash, which is also known as potassium hydroxide, to remove the carbon dioxide and make the air breathable again.

The FLU system was closed, so the used air was run through a link of rope yarn that had been soaked in caustic potash, which is also known as potassium hydroxide, to remove the carbon dioxide and make the air breathable again.

A captain in the French Navy named eve La Prier paid a visit to an industrial expo at Paris's Grand Palais in nineteen twenty five, and this was a pivotal moment because he saw a diver in a demonstration there. And while this diver was showing off a torch that could cut iron underwater, that was not what fascinated Prier. He was in fact drawn to the man's breathing apparatus, and this was simply a rubber tube was held in the diver's mouth and it ran up to the surface and connected to a pump outside the water. But he also wore goggles on his eyes and a rubber clip on his nose. That particular piece of diving technology was invented in the nineteen teens by a man named Maurice Bernez, and it's unusual because it let the diver wear a simple bathing suit and experience some freedom of movement. All of the other diving setups that eve le Priere had seen up to that point in his navy career had been these really heavy helmets and these lead soled boots that would really hinder your ability to move, or you would have minimal functions under the water. But even with the Expo tank diver's incredible ability to move, however, he wished he was still tethered by that hose to his air supply, and so Prierra was inspired to combine that freedom that he noticed from the heavy helmet and boots with a way to carry air independent, completely independent of a supply line.

A captain in the French Navy named eve La Prier paid a visit to an industrial expo at Paris's Grand Palais in nineteen twenty five, and this was a pivotal moment because he saw a diver in a demonstration there. And while this diver was showing off a torch that could cut iron underwater, that was not what fascinated Prier. He was in fact drawn to the man's breathing apparatus, and this was simply a rubber tube was held in the diver's mouth and it ran up to the surface and connected to a pump outside the water. But he also wore goggles on his eyes and a rubber clip on his nose. That particular piece of diving technology was invented in the nineteen teens by a man named Maurice Bernez, and it's unusual because it let the diver wear a simple bathing suit and experience some freedom of movement. All of the other diving setups that eve le Priere had seen up to that point in his navy career had been these really heavy helmets and these lead soled boots that would really hinder your ability to move, or you would have minimal functions under the water. But even with the Expo tank diver's incredible ability to move, however, he wished he was still tethered by that hose to his air supply, and so Prierra was inspired to combine that freedom that he noticed from the heavy helmet and boots with a way to carry air independent, completely independent of a supply line.

But first he very politely contacted Maurice Freney, the inventor of a system that he had seen at the Grand Pels demonstration, and he asked for permission to use that system as a starting point for his own idea. And so once he got that permission, he devised the system that had a mouthpiece that attached to a bottle of compressed air, which was a Michelin invention designed to inflate car tires. Yeah, I loved this story because I love that one he got permission from another inventor to kind of take off on his ideas too, that he was so resourceful and a genius that he adapted a tire inflation system to use as the air supply for divers, and even la Prier further refined the design until he was confident enough to debut it publicly, and he again credited his predecessor. It was known as the Ferne la Prier device. It still had the mouthpiece and the compressed air, but he had also added these leather straps that kept the air canister on the diver's back. Eventually, Laprier moved the canister around the chest so that it wouldn't bang into things about people knowing about it, as anyone who has ever walked behind anyone at a convention wearing fairy wings can attest to be important. In nineteen thirty three, La Prier presented this new version of his apparatus under his name exclusively, rather than the hyphenated name that his previous work had had before. And next up, a very very famous name enters the picture in one that is quite dear to me personally. But before we get there, we're going to pause for a word from one of our sponsors, eve Lea. Prierre continued to refine his underwater breathing devices, and then in June of nineteen thirty nine he had a visit from a naval lieutenant named Jacques Cousteau, and the two men shared not only a naval background, but also just a love of diving, and they really hit it off. Several years later, in nineteen forty two, Custeau once again visited La Prier this time with his wife Simone and fellow diver Frederick Dubac. Cousteau had been working on a diving device of his own and showed it to La Prier. The elder diver offered him some feedback, suggesting that Custeau altered the face mask designed. Specifically, Coustau's version at the time only had a breathing hose to the mouth, but La Prier thought the design would be safer if the mask covered the wearer's entire face. Yeah, Priyear, we had talked about him having a tube to the mouth, but it really did have like a this funky little apparatus around your face, so it was really really secure, and he felt like Cousteau's might be a little unsafe because it wasn't quite.

But first he very politely contacted Maurice Freney, the inventor of a system that he had seen at the Grand Pels demonstration, and he asked for permission to use that system as a starting point for his own idea. And so once he got that permission, he devised the system that had a mouthpiece that attached to a bottle of compressed air, which was a Michelin invention designed to inflate car tires. Yeah, I loved this story because I love that one he got permission from another inventor to kind of take off on his ideas too, that he was so resourceful and a genius that he adapted a tire inflation system to use as the air supply for divers, and even la Prier further refined the design until he was confident enough to debut it publicly, and he again credited his predecessor. It was known as the Ferne la Prier device. It still had the mouthpiece and the compressed air, but he had also added these leather straps that kept the air canister on the diver's back. Eventually, Laprier moved the canister around the chest so that it wouldn't bang into things about people knowing about it, as anyone who has ever walked behind anyone at a convention wearing fairy wings can attest to be important. In nineteen thirty three, La Prier presented this new version of his apparatus under his name exclusively, rather than the hyphenated name that his previous work had had before. And next up, a very very famous name enters the picture in one that is quite dear to me personally. But before we get there, we're going to pause for a word from one of our sponsors, eve Lea. Prierre continued to refine his underwater breathing devices, and then in June of nineteen thirty nine he had a visit from a naval lieutenant named Jacques Cousteau, and the two men shared not only a naval background, but also just a love of diving, and they really hit it off. Several years later, in nineteen forty two, Custeau once again visited La Prier this time with his wife Simone and fellow diver Frederick Dubac. Cousteau had been working on a diving device of his own and showed it to La Prier. The elder diver offered him some feedback, suggesting that Custeau altered the face mask designed. Specifically, Coustau's version at the time only had a breathing hose to the mouth, but La Prier thought the design would be safer if the mask covered the wearer's entire face. Yeah, Priyear, we had talked about him having a tube to the mouth, but it really did have like a this funky little apparatus around your face, so it was really really secure, and he felt like Cousteau's might be a little unsafe because it wasn't quite.

As anchored around the whole head. And Jacques Cousteau partnered shortly thereafter with Emio Gagne, who was a senior engineer at a company called air Liquid that manufactured industrial gases, and Cousteau's father in law, who also worked for air Liquid, arranged this introduction of Cousteau and Gagne, and when Cousteau and this man met, the engineer had actually been working on a valve system already that would enable cars to use natural gas instead of petrol, so once again there's some borrowing from the automotive industry.

As anchored around the whole head. And Jacques Cousteau partnered shortly thereafter with Emio Gagne, who was a senior engineer at a company called air Liquid that manufactured industrial gases, and Cousteau's father in law, who also worked for air Liquid, arranged this introduction of Cousteau and Gagne, and when Cousteau and this man met, the engineer had actually been working on a valve system already that would enable cars to use natural gas instead of petrol, so once again there's some borrowing from the automotive industry.

Jacques needed a similar valve for his diving design, but one that would carry compressed air to the diver's lungs through a breathing tube, and Gagniell designed a valve that allowed the diver to control the flow of air by only delivering a stream of it when the mouthpiece that contained the valve was sucked on. This design reduced the pressure of the air so that the intake would be suitable for a human, and then a rubber men brain released the air when the diver sucked.

Jacques needed a similar valve for his diving design, but one that would carry compressed air to the diver's lungs through a breathing tube, and Gagniell designed a valve that allowed the diver to control the flow of air by only delivering a stream of it when the mouthpiece that contained the valve was sucked on. This design reduced the pressure of the air so that the intake would be suitable for a human, and then a rubber men brain released the air when the diver sucked.

In, and after months of testing, Cousteau and Gagnon named their device the Aquaalung and began to market it, and Laprier's system, which had a continuous airflow system, was quickly dropped in favor of the Cousteau Gagneo setup and its demand valve.

In, and after months of testing, Cousteau and Gagnon named their device the Aquaalung and began to market it, and Laprier's system, which had a continuous airflow system, was quickly dropped in favor of the Cousteau Gagneo setup and its demand valve.

The Aquaalung was offered commercially in France in nineteen forty six and then in Great Britain in nineteen fifty, in Canada in nineteen fifty one, and in the United States in nineteen fifty two. It became the first commercially successful scuba device.

The Aquaalung was offered commercially in France in nineteen forty six and then in Great Britain in nineteen fifty, in Canada in nineteen fifty one, and in the United States in nineteen fifty two. It became the first commercially successful scuba device.

Laprier harbored some concerns about the demand valve that Cousteau and his partner had worked on. He was really concerned that if a diver lost consciousness underwater, he would drown because again the diver had to suck on that little valve to get the airflow, whereas Laprier's full face mask had this continuous flow, so it meant that even if a diver passed out out, the mask wouldn't fall out and they would still be getting an oxygen supply.

Laprier harbored some concerns about the demand valve that Cousteau and his partner had worked on. He was really concerned that if a diver lost consciousness underwater, he would drown because again the diver had to suck on that little valve to get the airflow, whereas Laprier's full face mask had this continuous flow, so it meant that even if a diver passed out out, the mask wouldn't fall out and they would still be getting an oxygen supply.

Just the same. La prier and adapted his own system to offer diver regulated airflow. It was too late. Custeau's system became the standard, and the two former navymen who had once gotten along so beautifully wound up losing touch because Custeau became famous both for his dive equipment and for his underwater films. And we should also point out that depending on which dive historian you ask or just dive aficionado, the person actually credited as the first scuba diver differs. The word which actually stands for self contained underwater breathing apparatus was not actually coined until the nineteen fifties, and that was when Christian James Lamberston came up with a new name for the rebreather system that he had been working on for the US Navy during World War Two.

Just the same. La prier and adapted his own system to offer diver regulated airflow. It was too late. Custeau's system became the standard, and the two former navymen who had once gotten along so beautifully wound up losing touch because Custeau became famous both for his dive equipment and for his underwater films. And we should also point out that depending on which dive historian you ask or just dive aficionado, the person actually credited as the first scuba diver differs. The word which actually stands for self contained underwater breathing apparatus was not actually coined until the nineteen fifties, and that was when Christian James Lamberston came up with a new name for the rebreather system that he had been working on for the US Navy during World War Two.

Just the same the name has been retroactively applied to numerous systems, and it is often associated with and sometimes I scidentally credited to Custeau.

Just the same the name has been retroactively applied to numerous systems, and it is often associated with and sometimes I scidentally credited to Custeau.

Thanks so much for joining us on this Saturday. Since this episode is out of the archive, if you heard an email address or a Facebook RL or something similar over the course of the show, that could be obsolete now. Our current email address is History Podcast at iHeartRadio dot com. You can find us all over social media at missed Indistory, and you can subscribe to our show on Apple podcasts, Google Podcasts, the iHeartRadio app, and wherever else you listen to podcasts. Stuff you Missed in History Class is a production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.

Thanks so much for joining us on this Saturday. Since this episode is out of the archive, if you heard an email address or a Facebook RL or something similar over the course of the show, that could be obsolete now. Our current email address is History Podcast at iHeartRadio dot com. You can find us all over social media at missed Indistory, and you can subscribe to our show on Apple podcasts, Google Podcasts, the iHeartRadio app, and wherever else you listen to podcasts. Stuff you Missed in History Class is a production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.