Samuel F.B. Morse Establishes Himself in Washington in Early 1844 to Prepare for his First Test of the Telegraph Message From DC to Baltimore

A letter last sold more than 30 years ago

In 1832 Samuel FB Morse, a professor of painting and sculpture at the New York University, became interested in the possibility of electric telegraphy and made sketches of ideas for such a system. In 1835 he devised a system dots and dashes to represent letters and numbers. This was Morse Code. In 1837 he was granted a patent on an electromagnetic telegraph. Morse’s original transmitter incorporated a device called a portarule, which employed molded type with built-in dots and dashes. The type could be moved through a mechanism in such a manner that the dots and dashes would make and break the contact between the battery and the wire to the receiver. The receiver, or register, embossed the dots and dashes on an unwinding strip of paper that passed under a stylus. The stylus was actuated by an electromagnet turned on and off by the signals from the transmitter. Thus did the telegraph work.

The first demonstration of the system by Morse was conducted for his friends at his workplace in 1837. There were other demonstrations in the years to come.

In 1838, Morse formed a company around his telegraph invention. His business objective was to patent and demonstrate electronic telegraph service, and sell the invention to the United States Government, which would then construct a telegraph network operated by the incumbent communications network, the Post Office. They began lobbying Congress to finance the concept.

In 1842 Members of Congress witnessed the sending and receiving of messages over part of the telegraph line between two committee rooms. Congress was interested, and Hon. John P. Kennedy introduced an “Act to Test The Practicability of Establishing a System of Electro-Magnetic Telegraphs by The United States”, and which appropriated $30,000 to Morse under the direction of the Secretary of the Treasury to build an experimental network.

In March 1843, Congress acted to authorize the telegraph and provide funds to build it. It passed an “Act to Test The Practicability of Establishing a System of Electro-Magnetic Telegraphs by The United States”, which provided, “Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the sum of thirty thousand dollars be, and is hereby, appropriated out of any moneys in the treasury not otherwise appropriated, for testing the capacity and usefulness of the system of electro-magnetic telegraphs invented by Samuel F. B. Morse, of New York, for the use of the Government of the United States, by constructing a line of said electro-magnetic telegraphs, under the superintendence of Professor Samuel F. B. Morse, of such length, and between such points, as shall fully test its practicability and utility and that the same shall be expended, under the direction of the Secretary of the Treasury, upon the application of said Morse…And be it further enacted, that the Secretary of the Treasury be, and he is hereby, authorized to pay, out of the aforesaid thirty thousand dollars, to the said Samuel F. B. Morse, and the persons employed under him, such sums of money as he may deem to be a fair compensation for the services of the said Samuel F. B. Morse, and the persons employed under him, in constructing and in superintending the construction of the said line of telegraphs authorized by this act. Approved March 3, 1843.”

U.S. Postmaster General Charles A. Wickliffe was in overall charge of the line and Morse was made superintendent with operational authority. Wire began to be laid in Baltimore on October 21, 1843.

In his original proposal for the telegraph, Morse had elected to run the cable underground, which necessitated a large amount of lead pipe. He originally contracted with James E. Serrell to deliver the necessary quantity. But by Fall of 1843, as the line progressed, Serrell could not produce pipe quickly enough. Morse revoked the contract and hired Tatham & Bros. of New York, but they too, experienced serious problems. The pipes proved defective in large part and Morse wrote to family and close friends of his fear for the project. FO Smith was the contractor tasked with delivering the pipe. An assistant, Prof. Fiskee, had been left in charge of monitoring the quality and delivery of this while Morse was back and forth between DC, Baltimore and New York, his primary residence.

By December 20, in light of these difficulties and his concern for the process, he hoped to complete in the line in Spring. Morse made the decision to pause for the winter, so he would have the tine to spend the coming weeks handling the delicate negotiations in Washington, his vendors, as well as charting a way forward, all in a short period of time. He wrote to Louis McLane, President of the B&O Railroad, “I have thought it best to discontinue operations along the line for the winter, confining myself to Washington in arranging for the Spring.”

As part of establishing himself in his “winter quarters,” so that the telegraph could move forward, he wrote this very letter to William Jones, the post master in Washington DC, to inform him that he [Morse] was superintendent of the telegraph and required to set up an account to handle the correspondence generated by the telegraph. Autograph letter signed, January 1, 1844, Washington, to Jones. “As I shall be receiving and sending letters daily, relating to the magnetic telegraph of which I am superintendent, I wish to open an account with you as Post Master for such postage and request that you render to me a monthly bill as Superintendent of Magnetic Telegraphs. Letters from me will be endorsed on the face ‘charge SJ Morse, Supt.. Maj. Tel.”

In light of difficulties with the pipe, Morse decided to abandon the underground wire plan and turned to stringing his wire on poles, which would ultimately prove successful. On 24 May 1944, tapping a key in his Washington D.C. terminus, he transmitted the first message over the new line, the now famous words “What hath God wrought.” This inaugurated the telegraph era in the United States, the reign of which was to last more than 100 years.

A fascinating letter, showing Morse as superintendent in the process of setting up operational aspects of the telegraph.