Artifacts of The Past and Today
Artifacts of The Past and Today
The first telegraph was invented by Claude Chappe in 1794. It was a visual system; it used a flag.
based on the alphabet and relied on a line of sight for communication. Subsequently, this telegraph was
replaced by the electric telegraph. In 1809 a new telegraph was invented in Bavaria by Samuel
Soemmering. Soemmering used 35 cables with gold electrodes in water. The communication ended at a
distance of 2,000 feet, and was detected by the amount of gas generated by electrolysis. In 1828, Harrison
Dyar invented the first telegraph in the US, which sent electric sparks through a strip of paper.
chemically treated to engrave points and dashes. But the foundations for large-scale evolution of the
Electronic communications were established in 1825, with the creation of the electromagnet.
by William Sturgeon. Sturgeon demonstrates the power of the electromagnet by lifting 9 pounds (about
4 kg.) with a piece of iron weighing only 7 ounces (about 200 gr.) wrapped in wires, through which current was flowing
from a battery. However, the true power of the electromagnet is its role in the creation of countless
inventions in the future. In 1830, an American, Joseph Henry, demonstrated the potential of Sturgeon's electromagnet.
for long-distance communications, sending an electronic communication over a mile of
a cable that activated an electromagnet, which made a bell ring. However, it was Samuel Morse who...
successfully developed the electromagnet and improved Joseph Henry's invention. Morse made sketches of an 'imán
magnetized based on the work of Henry. He invented a telegraph system that
It was put into practice and achieved commercial success. While working as
art and design professor at New York University, Samuel Morse demonstrated that signals
could be transmitted by wire. It used current pulses to divert an electromagnet, which
I moved a marker to produce written codes on a strip of paper - Morse code - A year
Next, the device was modified to incorporate dots and dashes. He made a demonstration.
published in 1838, but it was not until five years later that Congress funded it with 30,000 dollars
to build an experimental telegraph line from Washington to Baltimore, at a distance of 40
miles. Six years later, members of Congress witnessed the sending and receiving of
messages through part of the telegraphic line. Morse and his collaborators obtained funds
private entities to expand their line to Philadelphia and New York, and the telegraph began to be used in
small businesses. In 1861, Western Union built its first telegraphic line.
transcontinental along the railway tracks. In 1881, the telegraphic postal system arrived at
the rural areas for economic reasons, and merged with Western Union in 1943. The Morse code
originally printed on a tape. However, in the US, the operation was developed in code.
telegraph
Claude Chappe