1857 to August 16, 1858

WASHINGTON, Virginia

Economy, Migration/Transportation

Following the success of a New York-Newfoundland telegraph line, philanthropist Cyrus Field convinced the governments of American and Great Britain to fund a transatlantic line. It would take 2,500 miles of cable to complete the job, and construction was interrupted often by errors. Cables snapped, ships wrecked, and money was running out. Meanwhile, the American South was watching the progress...