 |
"Much useless talk has been indulged among many operators . . . The operator who is found talking about the weather, Broadway amusements, or like frivolous concerns, over the Line, will have early notice that his services can be dispensed with." - Circular to the Operators of the New York and Boston Magnetic Telegraph Association, 1848
Life on the Line
People inhabited the telegraph network and lived their lives around it. A crucial part of the technology lay in the hands and minds of the operators who tapped out and received the messages. Connected by a vast expanse of wires, they invented their own language and customs, an often boisterous work culture of speed competitions, flirtations, and practical jokes. Most, like the itinerant Texan Ma Kiley, toiled in obscurity. A few, most famously Thomas Edison, went on to careers of great distinction. |
|
