Short answers, pulled from the story.
The hairpin-shaped instrument known as the dulcian developed in the first half of the 16th century. It remained in use until the 17th century despite sharing many characteristics with its successor.
Martin Hotteterre is the man most likely responsible for developing the true bassoon around 1650s. He conceived the bassoon in four sections: bell, bass joint, boot and wing joint.
The modern bassoon exists in two distinct primary forms, the Buffet or French system and the Heckel or German system. Most of the world plays the Heckel system, while the Buffet system is primarily played in France, Belgium, and parts of Latin America.
W.A. Mozart utilized all aspects of the bassoon's expressiveness with his Bassoon Concerto in B-flat major. His work is often considered one of the most important pieces in all of the bassoon's repertoire.
The bassoon first began appearing in the 1920s when Garvin Bushell began incorporating the instrument in his performances. Specific calls for its use occurred later in Paul Whiteman's group and recordings by artists such as Yusef Lateef and Chick Corea during the 1960s.