History of Electronic Communication

The history of electronic communication began in 1729 when Stephen Grey discovered that electricity could be transmitted over large distances using insulated metal wires. Since then the development of it has continued and become more rapid as time has gone on, helping shape the world as we see it today. From the first telegraph to the modern day fibre optic and satellite communications we have today, this website explains the development of electronic communication.

Timeline of Events:

• 1729
• • Stephen Grey discovered that electricity could be transmitted over large distances using wires as long as they were insulated.
• 1800
• • The electric battery was invented by Volta, but at this time there was still no practical use for it.
• 1834
• • Charles Wheatstone experimented with the rate of transmission of electricity along 1/2 mile of insulated (suspended) copper wire.
• 1837
• • Charles Wheatstone and William Cooke acquire a patent for a 5 needle telegraph.
  • Samuel Morse also showcased his telegraph.
• 1838
• • Samuel Morse demonstrated a new and improved telegraph which used Morse Code.
• 1844
• • Charles Wheatstone did submarine telegraph experiments in Swansea bay.
• 1850
• • First successful submarine telegraph cable laid between England and France by John Watkins Brett's.
• 1851
• • A total of 51 telegraph companies are now in operation.
• 1852
• • A Manchester cotton mill merchant, John Pender, became directory of the English and Irish Magnetic Telegraph Company.
• 1854
• • It is proven by John Tyndall that light can be sent through a curved stream of water and therefore bent.
• 1860
• • The Morse Inker was invented to allow messages sent in Morse Code to be recorded
• 1866
• • The first successful transatlantic cable was laid using a special ship designed by Brunel.
• 1870
• • Brunel's ship also laid the Bombay Porthcurno line.
• 1872
• • Pender merged all of his many telegraph companies to create The Eastern Telegraph Company; it was the first global company of its kind.
• 1876
• • Alexander Graham Bell acquires a patent for the electric telephone.
• 1900
• • The Eastern Telegraph Company has approximately 150,000kmⁱ of submarine cables in its network.
  • Porthcurno telegraph station now is connected to India, South Africa, Australia and the Americasⁱⁱ.
• 1901
• • Marconi is the first to successfully wirelessly communicate between Cornwall and Newfoundland.
• 1914
• • Wireless and wired telegraphy were used for communication in WWI, the Porthcurno telegraph station was used to censor and transmit information for the war effort.
• 1924
• • Marconi is the first to telephone Australia using radio waves; he later gets contracts from the Post Office to setup wireless telegraphy circuits to other countries as well as Australia
• 1925
• • A new system is setup to automatically relay Telegraph messages.
• 1929
• • The Eastern Telegraph Company is merged with the Wireless Telegraph Company to form The Imperial and International Communications Company as a result of a government order.
• 1934
• • Imperial and International Communications was renamed Cable and Wireless Limited.
• 1935
• • The world's first around the world telephone call using radio and cable happens.
• 1940
• • The first police FM radio communication is setup in Hartford.
• 1944
• • A telephone submarine cable is laid across the English Channel.
• 1950
• • The telegraph becomes obsolete as the telephone takes over.
  • Cable & Wireless is nationalised and becomes part of the Post Office.
• 1956
• • The first transatlantic telephone cable is laid making it easier for the UK to call overseas.
• 1957
• • The USSR launches the world's first artificial satellite Sputnik 1, it transmitted low frequency radio frequencies.
• 1960
• • The Ruby Laser is invented which is considered to be the first successful optical light laser.
• 1962
• • NASA launches its first artificial satellite Telstar.
  • First non-public then later public television images are transmitted via Telstar between Europe and the USA.
• 1964
• • The "Post Office Tower" is built in London to handle ever increasing telephone communications.
• 1966
• • Cable & Wireless built their first earth satellite to assist with the Apollo moon landings.
• 1972
• • Bob Kahn and Vint Cerf invented TCP
• 1973
• • Robert Metcalfe invents Ethernet to wire local computers together.
• 1975
• • The development of their first commercial fibre optic communication system was finished.
• 1988
• • TAT-8 was setup and was the first transatlantic optical fibre cable.
• 1991
• • Tim Burners-Lee invents the World Wide Web.
• 1994
• • The W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) is setup to help set web standards.
• 2001
• • Wikipedia is created by Jimmy Wales
• 2006
• • Using fourth generation fibre optic technology it was possible to send data at a rate of 14TB/s compared to the 6MB/s that was possible with the first generation.
• 2012 and a bit beyond
• • HTML5 and CSS3 are being developed to improve the capabilities of websites.