National Day on Writing Timeline

3000 BC

First written language

The Sumerians of the Akkadian empire developed a writing system based on pressing marks into wet clay using a stylus. Many of these clay tablets survived. ​

1865​

The first typewriter

Rasmus Malling-Hansen invented the first commercially sold typewriter. Soon, typed correspondence became the standard for every type of writing except personal correspondence. Typing became an invaluable skill. ​

​1971

First e-mail written

Ray Tomlinson, a computer engineer at MIT, sent an email to a computer sitting right next to him. He doesn't remember exactly what he wrote.