Episode 1 of 2

First Commercial Telegraph

When: 1838
Where: Great Western Railway
Part of: Event of 1839: The world's first commercial electric telegraph line comes into operation, along

Cooke and Wheatstone installed the first commercial telegraph in 1838 on the Great Western Railway, running from Paddington to West Drayton.

This 13-mile line was the first commercial telegraph in the world. Initially, the Great Western Railway insisted on exclusive use, refusing Cooke permission to open public telegraph offices, limiting the system's reach to railway operations only.

Sources

Cooke and Wheatstone telegraph Wikipedia, revision of 2025-05-24

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