On 5/27/08 12:28 PM, in article , "Scott
Dorsey" wrote:

COLIN LAMB wrote:
I never thought about this until the matter came up in the HQ-145 thread,
but what was the process of sending messages over the telegraph lines?

Suppose I was in a small town in Oregon and wanted to send a message to a
small town in Nebraska? Is the message "broadcast", or does it go to a
clearinghouse? Can anyone on the "wire" listen in? Are there relays?

My small town in Oregon was Eugene, and I worked for what was then Pacific
Tel and Tel, in the Toll Testroom. We cared for all the long distance
hardware and circuits.

in the mid 50s we were encouraged to use the telegraph "order wires" for
inter-city maintenance communications, as the voice circuits were revenue
producing and they were in short supply. From Eugene I could instantly
"talk" with any or all major towns between Seattle and LA. The circuit was
a party line, where all offices heard everything and could break-in. Within
a couple years, it was replaced by a voice orderwire, with loudspeakers in
each of the offices so the people could hear the shout-down calls.




I have been a ham for almost 50 years and I have no clue. There must be
some OT who are just waiting to tell me, or know a good website.

Go to your local library immediately and get a copy of _The Victorian
Internet_ by Tom Standage. You will love it.
--scott