Cilavegna
The Life of Pietro Conti
Pietro Conti, born in 1798 in Cilavegna, desired a varied and adventurous life. This led him to undertake several trips to counter the monotony of his rural hometown. During one of these trips in 1820, he was inspired by an orator and conceived a machine that could keep up with his words. Conti spent much of his time traveling to perfect his idea and often returned to Cilavegna. In 1827 he fell in love with a girl from the village, but her family was not in favor of the relationship. For this reason, the couple decided to run away to Paris, where Conti could present a model of his writing machine to the Société d'encouragement pour l'industrie nationale.
The Invention of the Tachygraph
In France, Conti obtained a cash grant and in 1833 returned to Italy. However, his invention was not successful because the Italian environment of the time was not yet open to technological requests of the period. This led to a decline in his enthusiasm, which, in addition to a lack of financial resources, led to the failure of his discovery. During those years, Conti met Giuseppe Ravizza, who was working in Novara. The two often discussed the construction of the writing keyboard instrument. Conti is best known for the invention of the Tachygraph, a precursor to the typewriter, as well as for his contribution to the birth of stenography. In 1934, the "First Italian Center for Dactylographic Studies" in Padua placed him among the Italian precursors of the invention of the typewriter.
The Return to Cilavegna and Commemoration
After the failure of his invention, Conti returned to Cilavegna, where he spent the rest of his life. On November 11, 1934, a commemorative plaque, the work of Giovanni Battista Alloati, was affixed to the wall of the ancient tower of the castle of Cilavegna to commemorate Conti's key role in the birth of the typewriter.
The Lack of Documentation
Despite the relevance of his inventions, Conti's activity in France is not well documented since his patents were lost due to poor archiving and the events of the Messina earthquake, where some files were kept. However, specific data has been obtained thanks to sources such as Giuseppe Ravizza's diary.
In conclusion, Pietro Conti was an Italian inventor whose work contributed to the birth of the typewriter. Despite the failure of his invention due to the cultural climate of the time, his role in the history of writing cannot be forgotten. The commemorative plaque in Cilavegna is a sign of recognition of his importance in Italian culture.
