Impact of the Telegraph during the Civil War

The inventor Samuel Morse begins experimenting with telegraphy in 1838 with messages sent over two miles of line. From there, financial backing from Maine congressman Francis Smith enables Morse and his partner, Arthur Vail, to string 44 miles of transmission lines between DC and Baltimore. On May 24, 1844 they amaze onlookers in the capital by successfully sending a famous four word message, “What hath God wrought.”

Morse’s feat establishes the potential for the telegraph, and, over the next fifteen years, three companies emerge to dominate the new industry:

Major Telegraph Companies

Each company has its own set of lines, mounted on poles, often along railroad routes. They also have trained telegraph operators in place to send and receive messages. The distance from one relay station to the next typically runs up to 30-50 miles.

Once the Civil War breaks out, military strategists recognize the power of the telegraph to deliver instantaneous communications between field commanders and headquarters.

The Union leads the way here, with the U.S. War Department calling upon Thomas A. Scott, then general superintendent of the Pennsylvania Railroad, to set up a centralized telegraph operation in Washington. Scott recruits four men, led by one David Strouse, who together form the first United States Military Telegraph Corps (USMT).

With engineering support from the new Telegraph Construction Corps, Union commanders build lines at their headquarters to receive military orders from DC and report back on outcomes.

In January 1862, the “flow” of these communications is altered by Edwin Stanton when he becomes Secretary of War. Instead of arriving first at the Military Department, he insists that all transmissions come directly to him. This is ostensibly to insure civilian rule; but it is actually to guarantee the ever suspicious Stanton of personal control over the content, and a path to capturing the ear of President Lincoln.

Although Western Union and the American Company support their new USMT client throughout the war, they also remain independent, continuing to service their commercial customers and pay the salaries of the operators.

The USMT Corps achieves remarkable scale, building some 15,000 miles of line, processing 6.5 million messages, and employing 1200 operators between 1861 and 1865. For some, the duty proves hazardous, with 200 wounded, killed or captured.

Battlefield commanders are consistent in their praise for the USMT, including, most notably, U.S. Grant and William Sherman who cite their role in coordinating the crucial Overland and March to the Sea campaigns in 1864 and 1865.

Meanwhile the Confederates are never able to keep up with the Union for various reasons. The Southern Telegraph Company balks at working with the military; many of its operators move north once the fighting begins; and needed telegraphy components and supplies dry up as military losses mount.

In the end, the telegraph plays an important role in the conflict. While not the decisive factor, it provides one more strategic advantage for the Union victory.