Facts
True or False: The telegraph came before the telephone.
True
Who invented the telegraph
Samuel Morse
What is Morse code?
This code, made of dots and dashes
Who is Abraham Lincoln?
President who used the telegraph daily during the Civil War
Who is Samuel Morse?
This inventor helped develop the telegraph and morse code
What invention eventually replaced the telegraph?
the telephone
In what decade was the telegraph first used?
1844
What are wires?
The telegraph sends electrical signals
What is the telegraph?
This invention helped the Union coordinate troops and win battles by sending messages almost instantly.
What is by horse or mail?
Before the telegraph, messages had to travel this way, often taking days or weeks.
What kind of wire was laid under the ocean to send messages?
fiber optic cables
What was Samuel Morse’s job before inventing the telegraph?
painter
What is a circuit?
When the telegraph key is pressed it completes an electrical signal
What is the U.S. Military Telegraph Corps?
The Union created this military unit to operate telegraph lines and keep messages secure.
What is a telegraph key?
Telegraph signals were sent by tapping this device.
How fast could telegraph messages travel?
Almost instantly
What major company helped expand telegraph lines?
Western Union
What is a sounder?
At the receiving end of a telegraph line, this device clicks to represent dots and dashes.
What is real-time battlefield communication?
This advantage of the telegraph gave the Union a major edge by allowing faster communication than the Confederacy.
What happened in 1844?
This year saw the completion of the first successful telegraph line between Washington, D.C., and Baltimore.
What kind of code do we still use based on Morse Code?
aviation, amateur radio
What did Samuel Morse also invent besides the machine?
telegraph machine
What are a dot and a dash?
These two simple sounds a short one and a long one that represent letters
What is the War Department telegraph office?
Lincoln often visited this building in Washington, D.C., to read telegraph updates during the war.
What are telegraph lines or resources?
The Confederacy struggled to use the telegraph effectively because they lacked this critical infrastructure.