William Sturgeon. Engraving of William Sturgeon (1783-1850), British electrical engineer. Sturgeon invented the first practical electromagnet in 1823 by winding a wire around an insulated horseshoe- shaped iron core. When an electric current passed through the wire, a more concentrated field was obtained than had previously been possible. In 1832 he designed the first electrical motor to be put to a practical use. It featured his invention of the metallic commutator and was used to turn a meat-roasting spit. In 1836 he invented the moving coil galvanometer for measuring electric current. He set up the Annals of Electricity, the first journal of its kind in Britain.