-
1858
Sir William Herschel requires signatures and fingerprints on civil contracts -
1891
Juan Vucetich initiated the fingerprinting of criminals -
1892
Sir Francis Galton publishes the first book on fingerprints -
1901
Sir Edward Henry develops the first system for classifying fingerprints -
1905
U.S. military adopts the use of fingerprints. Soon after police agencies start to use fingerprints -
1908
The first official fingerprint card was developed -
1911
Fingerprints are accepted by U.S. courts as a reliable means of identification -
1911
The Illinois State Supreme Court upheld the admissibility of fingerprint evidence concluding that fingerprints are a reliable form of identification -
1917
First palm print identification is made in Nevada -
1924
Formation of ID Division of FBI -
1980
First computer data base of fingerprints was developed, which came to be know as the Automated Fingerprint Identification System