# Telegraph The electric **telegraph** sent coded electrical signals over wire, separating communication from transportation for the first time. Samuel Morse's line between Washington and Baltimore carried "What hath God wrought" on **May 24, 1844**; the transcontinental line was completed on **October 24, 1861**; and a lasting transatlantic cable followed in 1866. The telegraph created the wire service: five New York dailies formed the [[Associated Press]] in 1846 to share the cost of telegraphing war news. It also created the first communications monopoly, Western Union, a recurring case in [[Tim Wu]]'s account of how open media become owned ones. > [!note] Stub > Minimum-viable page created to support the [[Media Timeline]]. Expand with the technology's development, its owners, and its political uses. ## See also - [[Media Timeline]] - [[Associated Press]] - [[Radio]]