The Electric Telegraph Inventor: Details On Samuel Morse Revealed For Kids

Samuel Morse won a lawsuit that gave him the right to be known as the inventor of the telegraph.

The electric telegraph was the primary method to transmit messages using radio waves or wire for more than 100 years. This term was used from the end of the 18th century to describe the French optical semaphore system or flag signals.

The earliest methods of communication over a distance were smoke or drums. Flags and torches were used as visual signals for communication over a short distance.

The British laid 400 mi (643.7 km) of telegraph wires in India in 1856. This was developed by inventor Willi O'Shaughnessyssy and connected Madras, Peshawar, Agra, Bombay, and Calcutta.

The quadruplex telegraph that could send four messages simultaneously over the same wire was developed by Thomas Edison in 1874. This was the greatest invention in telegraphic history.

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Electric Telegraph Meaning And Invention History

The telegraph is a system or device that can be used to transmit information in the form of a coded signal over a distance. Although it can be used to describe many forms of communication, it most often refers to the electric telegraph, which was developed in the middle of the 19th century.

Given below is the brief history of this communication system:

1800: The voltaic cell was invented by Alessandrao Volta of Italy, making it possible to power devices on low voltages and high current.

1820: Hans Christian Ørsted of Denmark discovered that a wire carrying an electric current could turn or deflect a magnetic needle.

1825: William Sturgeon of Britain invented an electromagnet; this could increase the magnetic force of an electric current.

1831: The work done by Joseph Henry of the United States and Michael Faraday of Britain made it possible to design electromagnetic devices that could be used.

1832: Samuel Morse, a professor at the University of New York, was fascinated with the idea of electric telegraphy and started drawing sketches of a system that he thought could be developed.

1835: Morse developed a code of dots and dashes that could be used in place of letters and numbers for electric telegraphy.

1837: Morse got a patent for his electromagnetic telegraph and demonstrated it for the first time.

1843: Morse received financial aid from the government to build a telegraph system covering 35 mi (56.3 km). The distance between Washington D.C. and Baltimore, Md.

William Cooke and Professor Sir Charles Wheatstone also invented the telegraph in 1837. This could be used over a 13 mi (20.9 km) area and was operated by the Great Western Railway. However, this was a multi-wire device. Also, the device developed by Morse was cheaper.

Did you know that in 1871, Alexander Graham Bell also tried to build a device that could transmit more than one message over the same telegraph line at the same time? However, he started working on a way to transmit the human voice over wires instead and invented the telephone.

Samuel Morse Contribution To Electric Telegraph

Samuel Finley Breese Morse was a renowned portrait painter before turning his attention to the invention. He developed and created the single-wire telegraph system and Morse code.

While traveling by ship from Europe in 1832, Morse had an interesting conversation with Charles Thomas Jackson of Boston on electromagnetism. After reviewing several experiments with Jackson, he set about developing his telegraph concept.

The telegraph, first invented in 1774, consisted of 26 wires and was very bulky. Working with Leonard Gale and Alfred Vail, Morse developed an electrical telegraph machine that used only a single wire.

Did you know that the original Morse telegraph is a part of the National Museum Of American History collection at the Smithsonian Institution?

Morse Code And Its Working

Did you know that Morse code is not a language? It is a system used to encode an existing language such as French or German.

The International Morse Code is the most widely used and recognized of all the forms. It uses the English alphabet. A dot is pronounced as a DIT sound when speaking Morse Code, and a dash is DAH.

The use of radio waves to send telegraph signals is known as wireless telegraphy or radiotelegraphy. This system is most often used on ships.

The person sending the message taps on a switch known as a telegraph key that turns the transmitter on and off as required for the dots and dashes of Morse Code. These taps generate pulses of radio waves.

The person on the receiving end can hear these pulses as beeps translated into Morse Code and read as a coherent message.

In addition to ships, the Morse system is still popular today with amateur radio operators worldwide. It can also be used to send distress signals using flashlights or other devices. Morse code was also an invaluable means of communication during World War One.

Telegraph messages are usually delivered to the person it is addressed to via a telegram service. These telegrams are sent from one location using interconnected telegraph systems. For example, a person wishing to send would visit their local telegraph office. Messages are charged per word.

The message is then transmitted over the telegraph lines to the nearest telegraph office of the addressee. It would then be written down and delivered. This method of communication is faster than standard mail and can be sent over long distances.

The telegraph helped the stock market immensely as price information was instantly available everywhere. Hence, traders were able to get better prices. It also helped newspapers with better coverage as reporters were able to quickly send details of ongoing major political events quickly over the transmission wires of the telegraph.

Which inventor invented the electric telegraph and a code to use with it?

Morse, the great inventor, was born on April 27, 1791, in Charlestown, Massachusetts, to Jedidiah Morse and Elizabeth Ann Finley Breese. He studied at Yale college.

The telegraph system developed by Morse comprised an automatic sender with a plate of long and short metal bars. These bars represented the dots and dashes of letters and numbers used in the Morse code.

A pointer attached to a battery and sending wire was slid across the bars to send a message. The receiver on the other end used a pen-like instrument with an electromagnet to make an impression on a paper tape.

This tape was wound on a motor. These dents or impressions on paper could then be deciphered and read as a normal message.

Morse sent the first message on May 24, 1844. The message read, 'What hath God wrought?' Sent over a telegraph line from Washington D.C. to Baltimore, this is a verse from the Bible taken from Numbers 23:23. Ezra Cornell, the founder of western union, built this first line in America.

In 1951, the Morse electric telegraph system was adopted as the measure for European telegraphy. The only country in Europe to use the Wheatstone telegraph was the U.K.

Queen Victoria and U.S. President James Buchanan exchanged telegraphic messages on August 16, 1858, using the first transatlantic cable that connected North America to Ireland.

The period from the 19th century to the mid 20th century could be known as the telegraph era. From the first message from Washington, this machine enjoyed much commercial success. However, with the development of modern devices such as the fax machine that helps in the automatic transmission of messages, the telegraph is still used in certain areas.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created many interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for the electric telegraph inventor: cool facts on Samuel Morse for kids, then why not take a look at the California state flag fact or what diseases do koala bears carry.