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Who invented the telegraph?

Samuel F. B. Morse (1791–1872) is generally credited with making the first practical telegraph in 1837. Although many researchers had worked on similar projects prior to Morse, his was the first instrument that could successfully send messages across wires utilizing electricity. Morse was originally a portrait painter in Boston, Massachusetts, when he became interested in devising a telegraphing device in 1832. He began experimenting with electrical methods of signaling with the technical assistance of chemistry professor Leonard Gale (1800–1883) and financial support from Alfred Vail (1807–1859). He developed a machine that utilizes an electric circuit and one overhead wire, while employing the Earth as the other conductor to complete the circuit. An electromagnet inside the receiver can be activated by alternately making and then breaking the circuit, producing distinctive clicks and resulting...

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