Telegraph Register

Description (Brief):

Made by D & H Precision Tool Company and used by Western Union, this telegraph register features two ink pens to mark the paper tape. This object shows that telegraph registers continued in use well into the 20th Century. Telegraph registers are electrically-activated printers that receive Morse code messages. The message travels as a series of electrical pulses through a wire. The pulses energize the register’s electromagnets which move a lever-arm holding a pen or stylus. A clockwork mechanism pulls a strip of paper across the pen or stylus, recording the message. Short pulses draw or emboss a dot, slightly longer pulses a dash. The sequence of dots and dashes represent letters and numbers.