Long Distance Messaging Technology before Electronics
Overview:
This exhibit has been set up to provide an overview of how people throughout history have communicated with each other over long distances. Receiving information regarding an enemy’s location or the arrival of a ship was often a matter of life or death in early civilizations. To meet this need, several very creative techniques for sending information have been developed over the years. Some have been better than others, and all have major limitations in comparison with today’s technology, but they were probably considered revolutionary for their time.
By comparing the primitive artifacts of the earliest civilizations with the relatively sophisticated ones of the 19th century, the history of communications technology can be traced. The artifacts are arranged chronologically according to the date of the actual artifact shown.
Artifact #1 Signal Fires (Fryjtorias)
Fryjtorias Signal Fire on the island of Pseira, Crete. (1700 B.C)
Modern day signal fire called Fryktorias located around 2 km from the town of Agios Nikolaos on the island of Pseira, Crete. This particular image was reported by Professor Ph. Betancourt on the highest point of the island (Greece High Definition, 2021). Fryktorias was a system of communication used all over the world from around 1900 BC - 1700 BC.. Signal fires like this one are one of the earliest forms of long-distance communication, and likely date back to 1900 B.C. and prehistory. In the Trojan wars of Greek mythology, a series of signal fires is said to have brought the news that the city of Troy had been taken (Koontz, 2010). Fires were intended to send a simple pre-arranged message (we won; the enemy has landed) over long distances that were still within line-of-sight. Materials at hand such as wood or leaves were likely used for the fires. They were located at selected high points to extend the range. They functioned well as long as weather and visibility cooperated but were limited in the messages that could be transmitted. A simple yes-no was about all the detail that could be included in a signal fire (Mitel Networks Corp, 2021). The later addition of smoke signals provided a small increase in the detail that could be communicated.
Artifact #2: Hand Lanterns
Paul Revere Lantern. (about 1770)
This lantern is one of two lanterns hung in Christ Church in Boston that Paul Revere used on April 18, 1775 to alert that the British were on their way to attack the Provincial Congress’ military supplies stockpiled in Concord, MA (Wood, 2017). Made of Iron and glass, its origins can be traced back to England or Boston and was gifted to the Concord Museum by Cummings E. Davis in 1886 where it is on exhibit today.
This lantern is a picture of the actual lantern associated with Paul Revere’s ride (Wood, 2017). Hand lanterns were common household items during the early Revolutionary War days, and were no doubt used as signaling devices many times. One of the more famous of these times was made famous in the poem “The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere”. According to the story, Revere set up a signaling technique to indicate which route was being used by the advancing British Army (NPS, 2022). Using an old-school technology, he asked a friend to hang one lantern in the tower of a local church (a high point visible from a distance) if the British were coming by a land route. If they were coming by boat, the friend should hang two lanterns (NPS, 2022). This important message became famous and illustrates how the success or failure of long-distance communication can be used to affect historical events.
Artifact #3: Optical telegraph
Optical Telegraph in Saarland, Germany. (1798)
Located on Liter Mountain in Saarland, Germany this Optical telegraph used the semaphore system invented by Claude Chappe in 1791. By spacing out a series of towers that were about 3 to 6 miles apart, the semaphore system was a way to spell out a message by positioning wood structures into a predetermined pattern representing the letters of the alphabet (McGillem, 2020).
The idea of the hand-held flags to spell out a message was taken a bit further with the invention of something called the “optical telegraph”, invented in 1792 by a Frenchman named Claude Chappe (Mitel Networks Corp, 2021). In this invention, a large wooden structure could be controlled from below by moving a set of pulleys and ropes. In this way the arms of the large wooden structure above could be positioned into a predetermined pattern representing a letter of the alphabet. Since the structures were large, they could be seen from a great distance and the spelled-out message could be understood. After its invention, a network of these structures (556 of them) was set up to relay messages across 3000 miles of the French countryside. The system was a marvel of its time and was used by Napoleon in the 19th century. (Schofield, 2013).
Artifact #4: Signal horns
Plaster cast of a 17th century engraving of a Stentorophonic tube. (Engraving of the Stentorophonic tube was made in 1800. Date of plaster cast unknown)
This artifact is a plaster cast of a 17th century engraving of a stentorophonic tube used by Alexander the Great to communicate over long distances (KASS, 2020). The cast was created by OTE Group Telecommunications Museum in Greece. As early as 335 B.C., a Bull Horn, also called a stentorophonic tube, was used to use sound to provide a form of long-distance communication. Alexander the Great used this device, which could communicate over 12 miles (Mitel Networks Corp, 2021). Again, the information that could be transmitted was limited, but could be extended a bit if a predetermined code was worked out in advance, like a pattern of horn blasts. The horns themselves were made of copper or brass and were so big and heavy that they had to be suspended from a tripod arrangement (Koontz, 2010). They served the same basic function as drums or signal flares, to send a simple message over a long distance.
Artifact #5: Early electronic telegraph
Morse-Vail Telegraph Key. (1844)
As an improvement Samuel Morse's key, in 1844 Alfred Vail made this artifact which is said to be from the first Baltimore-Washington telegraph line (National Museum of American History, 1844). Made of mostly brass and wood, it is now part of the American Enterprise exhibition located in the National Museum of American History.
Samuel F.B. Morse’s early telegraph key symbolizes a major milestone in long distance communication. This relatively simple device needed only a key like this one, a battery, and wire to send a signal between two stations (History.com Editors, 2019). To be able to use such a signal to actually communicate a real message, Morse set up an alphabetic code that used dots and dashes to spell out words. After these developments during the 1830s, the U.S. Congress funded a test of the telegraph system in 1843, setting up lines between Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, Maryland. Like many other technologies, the telegraph was made possible by earlier technologies. The introduction of the battery by Italian physicist Volta, and Oersted’s proof of how electricity and magnetism are related, were essential elements in the invention of the telegraph (History.com Editors, 2019).
Artifact #6: Smoke Signals
The Smoke Signals. (1905)
The Smoke Signal is an oil painting by Frederic Remington in 1905 and is currently part of the Amon G. Carter Collection at the Amon Carter Museum of American Art, Fort Worth, Texas (Remington, 1905).
Smoke signals were an extension of the signal fire idea, an improvement that allowed a little more detail to be added to the message, and still be visible over long distances (Herman, 2017). A fire was still needed, but then wet leaves or vegetation was added to generate visible smoke. Simple messages could be included by using a blanket to control the rise of the smoke above the fire. Crude signals could be sent, with one puff meaning Attention, two meaning All is well, and three puffs meaning danger (Herman, 2017). The intent of the smoke signal message was like that of signal fires, but more information could be communicated. A modern version of communicating with smoke is the tradition of announcing to the public that a new pope has been selected.
Artifact #7: Heliographs
Heliograph made by R. Fuess. (1910)
Reflected sunlight communications are possible with a signaling device called a heliograph, which was used in the 1800s during the U.S. Indian wars (NPS, 2015). The German heliograph shown above was originally made in Berlin by R. Fuess, and is currently on display at the Museum of Communication in Frankfurt (Major J. D. Harris, 2008). This relatively new design of heliograph consisted of a polished mirror mounted on a tripod. A sighting mechanism allowed the user to direct the sunlight to an observer, and a shutter could be moved to interrupt the light in a pattern of dots and dashes for Morse code. The mechanism is from recent times, but communication using reflected sunlight was used to flash a signal over a long distance as early as 500 B.C. (Mitel Networks Corp, 2021). Polished objects like shields or mirrors could be adjusted to direct sunlight toward an observer a long distance away. Like the signal fire, the information that could be sent was very limited unless some code had been agreed upon earlier. In the Greek-Persian wars, there are records of reflected sunlight messages being used in military operations to coordinate attacks and defenses (Khan, 2020). By a simple code known as the Polybius Checkerboard, individual letters could be communicated, allowing a message to be spelled out by the pattern of flashes (Khan, 2020).
Artifact #8: Messengers, Runners.
Bronze statue of Pheidippides, Soldier of Marathon. (1917)
This bronze statue, created in 1917, depicts an ancient messenger named Pheidippides, who reportedly ran 26.2 miles to Athens to bring news of victory in a battle at Marathon, then dropped dead of exhaustion (Karnazes, 2016). A gift from Mrs. George S. Scott, the statue is a mechanical copy of the original marble statue made by Jean Pierre Cortot representing Pheidippides (Redwood Library, n.d.). Runners or messengers were another form of long distance communication. As compared with signal fires and hand signals, messengers were a more direct and immediate way to communicate over long distances. Speed was limited, not as fast as a carrier pigeon or signal fire, but more detailed information could be delivered. Also, the messenger could be sent without much earlier preparation, depending instead on the ability of the messenger to find his way.
Artifact #9: Carrier pigeons
Pigeons being used in the First World War (1918)
This unique artifact is of a carrier pigeon being released from a port-hole on August 9th, 1918. THis method was popular among the Tank Corps as a way to deliver messages on the battlefield during World War I (Pigeons in the Tank Corps, 1918).
Artifact 10: Peerless pilot, homing pigeon
Peerless Pilot (1919)
This spunky little artifact is titled Peerless pilot, homing pigeon. This rare black and white photo was taken on friday, July 18 1919 at Naval Air Station Anacostia. Peerless Pilot was only 15 months old and had already been credited with delivering 196 messages (NHHC, 1919).
Carrier pigeons represented a major advance in communication technology, overcoming some of the limitations of early forms. Homing pigeons were carried in cages to distant locations. Brief messages attached to their legs could then be delivered as they were released to return to their home base. Any information that could be written into a small note could be delivered quickly. Although because of the nature of homing pigeons, this was pretty much a one-way communication link, it has been useful since early times (Gandhi, 2020). In 500 B.C., Cyrus the Great set up a network of homing pigeons to carry essential messages, and Julius Caesar used them for battle updates when conquering Gaul in 51 B.C. (Gandhi, 2020). More recently, pigeons were used extensively during World War I and World War II to send messages from tanks on the battlefield and on ships in case of a U-boat attack (Dash, 2012).
Artifact #11: Military signal guns
Blinker Tube Gun Type Signal Light. (1945)
Used mainly for nighttime communications around 1945, this artifact is a gun type signal light called a Blinker Tube. The Blinker Tube was one of many communication tools available to ships during World War II and much more portable and discreet than the large ship mounted searchlights. This particular Blinker Tube is made out of wood and metal and is part of the Headquarters Artifact Collection at the Naval History and Heritage Command (Naval History and Heritage Command, n.d.).
The military blinker tube used for ship-to-ship communications in WWII consisted of a light mounted inside a short tube. The tube shielded the light so that it could be easily seen from only one direction. The tube was pointed toward the receiver, and a trigger pull turned on the light to form dots and dashes (Naval History and Heritage Command, n.d.). Detailed messages could be sent quickly in Morse code and were visible over long distances. The blinker tubes were first developed by the British Royal Navy in the late 19th century but were used extensively in WWII for communications when radio silence was necessary. This capability became very important during the Battle of the Atlantic, when ships needed to communicate with each other to avoid submarine attacks. This technology, like many others, combines existing elements of other means of communication to suit a specific need. Even within the few communication artifacts mentioned in this exhibit, the contributions of signal fires, lanterns, heliographs, and morse code are easily seen in these military signal lamps.
Artifact #12: Semaphore Flags
Sea. Signalman first class Franklin B. Perry using Semaphore flags. (1974)
This black and white photo was taken in April 1974 aboard the USS Manley which was located in the Mediterranean Sea. Signalman first class Franklin B. Perry is sending out a semaphore message (Naval History & Heritage Command, 1974).
Flags on the mastheads of early sailing ships at sea were a long-distance way to tell the country of origin, or maybe friend or foe. Hand-held flags could also be seen at a distance, and by the 15th century a code system was set up so the positioning of the flags could indicate letters of the alphabet. If the code was known by both the sender and the receiver, a detailed message could be spelled out within line of sight. A telescope used by the receiver extended the distance (Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia, 2011).
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