Do you ever wonder what people did to communicate with a friend, relative or significant other in another part of the world before cell phones and other modern technology? Nowadays, you can just press a few buttons on your smartphones and be instantly connected with another person in a different state, country or side of the world. Well, communication hasn’t always been this simple. Before the invention of the telegraph in the 1838’s, it was very difficult to communicate over long distances. Using electricity to communicate over distance was later developed to have rapid and more advanced communication. However, the invention of the telegraph wasn’t easy. There were several advancements/inventions that needed to be made to contribute to the development of the telegraph including the voltaic cell, battery and electromagnetism. After its invention, the telegraph was able to produce more efficient and rapid communication over long distances. The telegraph also advanced the growth of different businesses and the economy. For example, railroads were expanded and the cost of communication was more economical and efficient between different firms.
Thomas Edison created a universal stock ticker that enabled four messages to be sent on one wire using the new technology of the telegraph. Samuel Morse, Thomas Henry and Alfred Vail created the first electric telegraph system that created rapid communication across long distances. However, it could only send pulses of electricity instead of using letters or speaking. Eventually Morse developed a sort of code known as Morse Code which assigned a specific sequence of pulses to each letter and number. This type of communication was very useful at one point in history, but would not be effective if it involved any sort of analog telegraph or signal. An analog signal is a signal that does not allow you to differentiate a signal once you receive it. This would completely inhibit the use of Morse Code because one sequence of pulses could not be differentiated from another. There are a few people today that can still understand and communicate through Morse Code, but I think we all can agree that current methods of communication are a huge blessing.
The telegraph met its demise when newer, more efficient technologies were created. New inventions of the radio, telephone, television, cell phone and smartphone were developed one after the other to continue the advancement of mass communication technology. Each technology contributed greatly to the way we communicate today as a society and we will have to see what future advancements await our future generations and how they will communicate in upcoming years.