In 1905, Switzerlands Dr. Alfred Buchi patented an exhaust-driven, intercooled supercharger (shown here in intricate detail). At the time, Buchi was the head engineer of the Sulzer Brothers Research and Development firm (and maybe as a reward, they gave him a gold pocket watch and some Cognac).
In 1915, Buchi developed a prototype turbocharger designed for diesel engines. The idea didnt set the world on fire back in the day, but it did years later. If Buchis life had been a Hollywood movie, he would have obsessed over the failure of his invention, drank gut-rotting whiskey during his waking hours, sold bad pencil sketches to tourists, and concluded his descent into madness by mailing a piece of his ear to a sweetheart.
But the industrial world eventually woke up and learned that turbos went with diesels like steak and eggs Chances are that the diesel (or special ed) bus you rode to school was turbocharged. Early applications of turbos found their way onto aircraft seeking higher altitude performance. The commercial and industrial diesel applications are where turbochargers gained most of their acceptance before and after World War II.