A Tribute to Morse Telegraphy
|
and
|
Resource for Wire and Wireless
Telegraph Key Collectors
and Historians
|
|
by Neal McEwen, K5RW
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k5rw@telegraph-office.com
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Key
Photo Gallery | Wireless
Photo Gallery | On-Line
Key ID
Foreign
Key Photo Gallery | Foreign
Key Photo Gallery Annex | Bibliography
On-Line Museums | FAQ
| Site Map
Copyright © 1996 - 2004, Neal McEwen
Welcome to The Telegraph Office. Whether you are a collector,
historian or have a casual interest in the many facets
of wire and wireless telegraphy, you will find something of
interest here. Many resources
are presented. You should be able find information about an old
telegraph key
or other artifact that you have. If you have a question,
take a minute to read the Telegraph Office FAQ, Frequently
Asked Questions. Then send any questions or suggestions to k5rw@telegraph-office.com.
Last updated and link checked 11 September 2004
Guest Book
References for
Collectors
and Historians
Topics For
Collectors
On-line
Key
and
Wireless Collections -- Domestic
Hiram
Percy Maxim's Key: ARRL founder and original holder of the W1AW
call sign.
Case
of Keys at entrance to museum
Part
of the Lou Moreau Collection at the museum Annex
Another
Part of the Lou Moreau Collection at the museum annex
More
of the Lou Moreau Collection: A visit to the AWA museum annex to
see
the the Moreau collection. Presented by Greg Raven.
Vibroplex
Collector's
Home Page: Models, Dates, Serial Numbers, and more by Randy Cole.
Pete
Malvasi's Museum of Telegraph and Wireless Instruments: a private
collection
of very old wireless keys and related items.
KA2MGE's
Telegraph
Museum: a private collection of telegraph instruments and signs
advertising
telegraph companies and their services.
The
W1TP Cyber Museum: a private collection with lots and lots of
images
of Telegraph Keys plus other information of interest to collectors.
"Sparks
Telegraph Key Review", by Russ Kleinman: an on-line educational
tour
of a private collection.
Pre-1925
wireless artifacts:
A fine collection by John Jenkins.
Western
Historic RADIO
MUSEUM: Commercial and Amateur Wireless Equipment 1910 - 1923,
photo
gallery.
New
England Wireless and
Steam Museum
On-line Key
and
Wireless Collections -- Foreign
Histories of the Key
Makers
The
J. H. Bunnell Company : 100+ Years of making Telegraph
Instruments.
Maker of the sideswiper, Gold Bug, steel lever key and many others.
Charles
Williams, Jr.: The most prolific and influential key maker of the
mid
19th century.
T.
R.
McElroy: maker of the "MAC-KEY" and famous '"teardrop" keys and
bugs
and World's Champion Radio Telegrapher; the man, the legend and the
keys! Photo
of McElroy and staff of WSO / WCC c. 1920.
George
M. Phelps: Besides making beautiful keys, Phelps was a developer of
printing telegraphs and technical director of Western Union in the mid
19th century.
George
M. Phelps: More on Phelps by John Casale, W2NI, from Phelps' home
town.
Thomas
Edison: The teenage telegrapher became a telegraph engineer an
telegraph
instrument maker before becoming the premier inventor of the 19th
century.
The
Eddystone bug story: Only 500 of these unusual British bugs made
--Extract
from Morsum Magnificat:
Landline
Telegraph
History -- American Morse
Old Photos
of Telegraph Operators
and Telegraph
Offices
Wireless Telegraphy
(pre-1920)
Radiotelegraphy
and
Maritime
Radiotelegraphy (post-1920)
Wireless on the RMS
Titanic
- A
description of
the Titanic's Radio Room and Antenna:
- The
"Wireless
Telegraphists" and Their Work: by Dave Gittins
- The
Titanic's first radio contact: The Tenerife Coast Station and
Titanic,
by Jerry Proc, VE3FAB.

- A
Key like used on the Titanic: A reproduction of the Marconi key
made
from photos and measurements of the key from the Titanic's sister ship
Olympic. Made by Don, W2CUV, now a Silent Key.
- Schematic
Diagram of Titanic Wireless Room: Details of the 5 KW rotary
spark transmitter, Marconi triple tuner, magnetic detector, keys and
battery
back up rig with ten inch spark coil. Thanks to Francisco Jose
Dávila
Dorta, EA8EX, wireless historian.
- "SOS,"
"CQD" and the History of Maritime Distress Calls: With a glimpse of
how they were used on the Titanic.
- Anecdote
about
Harold Bride, surviving Marconi wireless operator: Plus more of the
disaster story.
- The
Titanic Story from the radio operators perspective: A 1929 article
from Radio magazine. Told by Bill Breniman, wireless pioneer and
long time president of the Society of Wireless Pioneers.
Discusses
aspects of the disaster overlooked today.
- TITANIC
Tragedy Spawns Wireless Advancements: A look at the tragedy from
several
viewpoints, by Ray Minichiello, P.E., (W1BC), Chairman, The Guglielmo
Marconi
Foundation, U.S.A., & The U.S. National Marconi Museum.
- Titanic
Inquiry Project:
Transcripts of both the American Senate Hearings, and the British Board
of Trade Inquiry into the sinking of the RMS Titanic. Includes
testimony
of G. Marconi and Titanic wireless operator Harold Bride.
Submarine Cable
Telegraphy
All
American Cables: connecting the Americas.
Postal
Telegraph-Cable Co.: "The Pulse of the World."
Western
Union: telegrams and cablegrams.
Commercial
Cable Co: with map of cable routes.
Topics for Advanced
Collectors
Military Telegraph
History
Telegraphic
Codes
Morse's Magnetic
Telegraph
"The perfect success of professor Morse's Electro Magnetic Telegraph
has excited the
astonishment and admiration of the community. The most incredulous have
been convinced, and occurring at the time they have done, the
experiments
have satisfied the public that the Magnetic Telegraph is not merely a
beautiful
illustration of a philosophical principle, but an agent that may be
made
of practical and every day utility in the business transaction of the
country."
A commentary on Samuel F. B. Morse's Washington to Baltimore
telegraph
line and its ability to report news instantaneously. from Exeter New
Hampshire
News Letter, July 1, 1844.
Telegrams and Radiograms
Using your
Landline
Telegraph
Instruments
Telegraph and Wireless
Inventors
Morse's
Telegraph Register Patent Model , patented May 1, 1849, pa
tent
number 6,420.
Morse's
obituaries: New York Times and Washington Evening Star, April 1872.
Franklin
Pope: 19th century inventor and entrepreneur.
Heroes
of the Telegraph: Biographies of telegraph inventors and
entrepreneurs
written by John Munro, 1891.
Lee
DeForest : Wireless pioneer and Inventor of the triode tube.
Alexander
Graham Bell: Telegraph patent 174,465.
Alexanderson:
he made very high power transmitters with AC machinery.
Edwin H.
Armstrong:
Armstrong (father of regenerative receivers and FM radio) home page;
many fine
photos
of early gear and documents from the Harry Houck collection.
The
wireless experiments of J.C.Bose: He predated Marconi. Well
researched
IEEE paper by Darrel Emerson.
Nostalgia and Telegraphic
Poetry
The
Banana Boat Swing and other Distinctive Fists.
Three
Telegraphic Poems of the 19th century: Besides being a great
electro-physicist,
James C. Maxwell was quite a poet.
Two
Wireless Poems of the early 20th century: Are all wireless
operators
romantics?
Two
Telegraphic Poems: by telegrapher Jerry Newton (1846-1917).
"Reminiscing":
An old time shipboard radio operator looks back to the early days of
wireless.
Code
Ode: A beautiful poem about Morse code and those who love it.
Oldest
Surviving Associated Press Telegrapher: Aubrey Keel, W0AKL, a
walking
encyclopedia of telegraph history.
Worlds
Fastest Telegrapher on a straight key: The story of Harry Turner,
an
extract from Morsum Magnificat.
The
K5RW Wire
and Wireless Telegraph
Key
Collection
and Historical
Library
Read
about the K5RW Collection: a private collection
of telegraph keys and reference material with photos of unusual keys.
Visit
the K5RW Home Page: Who is K5RW?
Keys
Wanted: trying to fill some holes in the collection! Can you help?
Got anything for sale?
Duplicate
List: a few duplicates for trade. Would you like to swap keys?
Here
are some good ones!
Books
Wanted: trying to find new research material.
Help
me ID this Galvanometer: A very attractive and unique British
instrument.
Recent acquisitions with
photos and
detailed documentation:
(NEW) French
spark key with two sets of high current contacts: c. 1908 - 1916.
(NEW) Swiss
PTT "silent key": c. 1920.
Photo
of British Highland regiment with visual signalling equipment, c.
1898.
Ducretet
& Roger spark key: c. 1914-1919, unusual French "oil break"
design.
Atlantic
Cable piece: c. 1879.
Wilson
Royal Canadian Air Force Right Hand / Left Hand bug, c. W.W.II.
Charles
Williams camelback key, c. 1860s.
T.
A. Edison key, c. 1870.
Vibroplex
Junior, c. 1921.
Electrical
Construction Co. S.F. key, c. 1870s.
An
unusual spark key by General Radio, c. 1918.
A
quenched spark gap, c. 1920.
Relay
Key from a U.S. Navy Federal Telegraph arc transmitter, c. 1919.
Historical and Fraternal
Organizations
Related Telecommunications
Resources
Student Information
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