How Samuel Morse Invented the Telegraph and Created His Alphabet

182 years ago, on May 24, 1844, Samuel Morse sent the first public message via electric telegraph from Washington to Baltimore. This event became a turning point in the history of communications.

Predecessors and Early Developments

It is a mistake to consider Morse the first inventor of the telegraph. Before him, there was an optical telegraph that transmitted messages by light over distances up to four kilometers. In 1830, Russian inventor Pavel Shilling created the first electric telegraph, laying a cable about two kilometers long in St. Petersburg.

• Shilling's system was complex and required six signal amplifiers on the first route.
• In 1832, German scientists Gauss and Weber developed their own version of the telegraph.
• In 1837, British inventors Wheatstone and Cooke also presented their inventions.

Creation of the Alphabet and Early Successes

Morse improved Weber's system, transmitting letters over a distance of 518 meters in 1837. Although the text was unreadable, this inspired him to create a code together with businessman Alfred Vail. In early 1838, he demonstrated the telegraph's operation at the Franklin Institute.

The inventor faced a lack of support in the US, England, and Russia. It took five years for him to secure a $30,000 subsidy from a congressman to build the line between Baltimore and Washington.

The problem of signal attenuation over 40 kilometers was solved by Vail through the use of relay amplifiers. On May 24, 1844, the line was completed, and Morse successfully sent the first message.

Legal Disputes and Legacy

Over the next ten years, Morse defended his rights in court, receiving a patent only in 1854. The invention was quickly adapted by newspapers, banks, and railroads, leading to the appearance of telegraph lines worldwide.

Samuel Morse died in 1872, but his code remained relevant. Morse code formed the basis of semaphore alphabet, which was taught in maritime academies until 2011.