Breadboard radio circuit, 1940's

Herbert M. Watson, Herbert E. Welch, George S. Eby.  Understanding Radio.  Second Edition.  NY:  McGraw-Hill Book Co., Inc., 1940, 1951.

Apparently, in the early days of electronics, engineers would drive nails into actual wooden breadboards as a foundation for creating electronic circuits.  Hence the name.

As one expert concludes:

"The Breadboard is the Master Link between a schematic and the finished product. If it works on the Breadboard, 99.9 % of the time, it will work when you assemble it to it's final end product."