Not completely unlike today’s digital technology, there were both official and slang styles of “telegraphese” used to efficiently abbreviate words or characters into a telegram. This was in part due to telegraphs being decoded by an electronic receiver, rather than by hand.Ĭompanies typically charged by the word, with a maximum of 10 or 15 allowed. Telegrams reached their peak during the 1920s and 30s, when it actually cost less to send a telegram than it did to place a long-distance phone call. In 1961 Western Union built the first transcontinental telegraph line, cementing its place as the primary company for telegram service. Several of these consolidated to form Western Union in 1851. By 1850 there were 20 telegraph companies in the US. Samuel Morse, the inventor, used his new code to send a message to his partner Alfred Vail. Almost overnight telegrams changed the way the world communicated. The first telegram was sent from Washington to Baltimore on May 26, 1844.
But it made me wonder what happened to a service that, though extremely popular at one time, is clearly outdated today. Getting the special message delivered by courier is something I’ll never forget. Seeing so many different types and ages of telegrams made me think back to a time in the 1980s when my aunt sent me a telegram for my birthday. One of the most interesting to me has been the large number of telegrams in the collection. Learn more about the Western Union Telegram to Helen Keller above on AFB Helen Keller Archive Online.ĭocuments in the AFB Helen Keller Archive include letters, notes, newspaper articles, programs, and more.
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