Which came first? · Tricky

Which came first: Alice in Wonderland or the telephone?

Alice in Wonderland came first, in 1865 (published). The telephone followed 11 years later, in 1876 (patented).

  1. First1865

    Alice in Wonderland

    book · published

    Alice in Wonderland came out in 1865 with 42 wood-engraved illustrations by John Tenniel.

    Checked against Wikipedia and Wikidata

  2. Second1876

    The telephone

    invention · patented

    Bell's telephone patent was granted on 7 March 1876; his famous first call came three days later.

    Checked against Wikipedia and Wikidata

All which-came-first pairs · About Older Than You Think · Quiz games

Years from Wikidata, each checked against the item’s English Wikipedia article on 2026-10-18. A year stands for what its label says: a founding, a first patent, a premiere.