RadioBanter - View Single Post - Telegraphic reproduction of baseball games

June 8th 04, 04:44 PM

(GO BEARCATS) wrote in message ...
Come to think of it, those sounders communicated not with a dah-dit,
but with a clacka-clacka.

*THAT'S* is what I heard, not a type writer but I didn't know how to describe
it!!!! That's it.:-)

The B&O Railroad still had a telegraph line in operation between
Cumberland MD and Connellsville PA up until 1985. It wasn't used
seriously for dispatching, but the older operators used it informally.
As long as the line remained up and needed no serious, costly repairs,
the railroad kept it.

That changed in November, 1985, when Wills Creek, swollen by heavy
rains, overflowed its banks. The floods tore down the pole line. That
was the end of the telegraph. To the best of my knowledge, this was
the last mainline telegraph line in the US.

In the late 70s, I took a lousy tape recorder with me into the
interlocking tower in Hyndman PA. I have a few minutes' worth of
poorly recorded audio. The sounder makes an appearance on that tape.

I still have the tape. I ought to turn that into an mp3 file and try
to get it posted to one of those RR-enthusiast Yahoo! groups.

Now even the interlocking towers are gone; Sand Patch for sure, and I
believe Hyndman as well.

Sic transit gloria mundi.