Despite the very long list of his achievements, remarkably no biography of George Squier has previously been published. This work fills that gap and provides a new understanding of how these two important technologies became integral to the U.S. Army. Click on the book cover above to buy the book.

For children, radio will bring intellectual background to the poorest nursery, which before was only available to the rich.

General Squier

Whenever we make a phone call or find ourselves in an environment filled with background music, these ever-present elements in our life are thanks to Major General George Owen Squier (pronounced square); for he invented telephone signal multiplexing, which permits multiple transmissions on a single line, and devised the system that could provide piped-in music on demand to any location, including elevators.

Squier's career spanned the Spanish American War and World War I. Because of him, the two most important technological developments of his era, the airplane and the radio, became integral parts of America's military arsenal.

After completing only the eighth grade and working for two years, Squier entered West Point. After graduating from West Point with advanced study at Baltimore’s Johns Hopkins University, he became the army’s first Ph.D. Squier established the army’s first signals school at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and later the army’s radio research laboratory at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey.

Appointed chief signal officer in 1917, Squier oversaw all army communications and aviation in World War I. Squier is credited for institutionalizing research in the army.

His sweeping military career for the United States Army included overseeing the effort to provide the United States, as well as its allies, with American-manufactured airplanes and engines during WWI, while simultaneously organizing engineers, scientists and corporations to develop and supply the American forces going off to war with the most modern communications equipment yet designed.

As the military attaché to Great Britain during the first years of WWI, Squier developed a clear understanding of the technologically driven war. His privileged access to the dangerous front line in France afforded him a realistic view of the war. He was quick to realize the importance of modern communication systems in fighting such a war. Upon becoming Chief Signal Officer of the United States Army he oversaw the advancement of wireless technology and, within that sphere, the use of radiotelephony for command and control of military air assets. Because of this alone, Squier saved countless souls serving the United States and its allies during WWI.

Squier was responsible for the purchase of the first airplanes by the US Army in 1909, making him essentially the founder of what would become today's modern Air Force.

Squier wrote and edited many books and articles on the subject of radio and electricity. A prolific inventor, he and Dartmouth professor Albert Cushing Crehore developed a magneto-optical streak camera "The Polarizing Photo-chronograph" in 1896 to measure the speed of projectiles both inside a cannon and directly after they left the cannon barrel. This was one of the earliest photonic programs. They also worked to develop synchronous AC telegraphic systems. His biggest contribution was that of telephone carrier multiplexing in 1910 for which he was elected to the National Academy of Science in 1919.

In 1922 he created Wired Radio, a service which piped music to businesses and subscribers over wires. Liking how 'Kodak' was a made up name, in 1934, he decided later to change the service's name to 'Muzak'.

In 1943, the U.S. Navy named troopship USS General G. O. Squier (AP-130) in his honor. It was the lead ship of its class, which was known as General G. O. Squier class of transport ships. Squier's grandfather was a Revolutionary War veteran.

He died in March 1934 of pneumonia.