88 note piano question

[Wimblees@aol.com]

The concept that the extra notes on the top allow the notes in octave 6 and 7
to sound better makes sense. I guess for the same reasons, the longer
Bosendorfers added the extra notes on the bottom, to allow octave 1 to
resonate better.

Did I miss it, or have I still not seen the answer to the main questions:
When and where did the 88 note piano first come into being, and why 88?  Why
did Steinway make 85 note pianos? Did the musicians ask for 88 notes, or did
the engeneers put them there?