Telegraph keys are electrical on-off switches used to send messages in Morse code and can spark when the circuit opens. Flame-proof telegraph keys, like this one made by International Radio Telegraph Company, were designed to contain the spark within a sealed chamber. These keys were necessary on early aircraft and in confined spaces such as aboard ships and submarines where the spark might ignite flammable gasses.
Marked on plate: "Flame-proof Key and Winker / Type CA-1213 Serial 48080 / International Radio Telegraph Co." Reference: Clark Collection: Navy Type Numbers, 1918, page 106.
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