The Atlantic Telegraph [Paperback]

W.H. Russell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2005

After several unsuccessful attempts, on July 27, 1866 the great transatlantic telegraph cable was hauled ashore in Heart’s Content, Newfoundland. After several botched attempts, the continents of Europe and America were joined. At a length of 1686 nautical miles, no less a vessel than the Great Eastern was used to transport the vast length of coiled wire across the wild and inhospitable Atlantic ocean, transforming in an unprecedented way the manner in which news could travel about the globe. This is the contemporary account of one of Victorian Britain’s greatest engineering feats, linking the New World with the Old and heralding the days of mass-communication.

Editorial Reviews

Book Description

This work of 1866, illustrated by Robert Dudley, is the official account of the 1865 expedition on board the Great Eastern to lay a cable along the Atlantic Ocean floor between Valentia, Ireland, and Foilhummerum Bay, Newfoundland, and will appeal to anyone with an interest in the history of technology. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

About the Author

William Howard Russell (1820-1907) started his career in journalism in 1841 with the Times, covering the Irish general election. Most of his journalistic life was spent with the Times, largely as a war correspondent. In 1854 he was sent to cover the Crimean War and his uncompromising reports helped bring about the fall of the Aberdeen Ministry. In 1860 Russell founded the Army and Navy Gazette as well as continuing to work for the Times covering important occasions like the American Civil War and the Franco-Prussian conflict. In 1895 he was knighted and in 1902 was created Commander of the Royal Victorian Order, as well as receiving orders from France, Prussia, Turkey, Austria, Greece and Portugal.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Nonsuch Publishing (September 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1845880749
• ISBN-13: 978-1845880743
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.8 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,409,473 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars New reprint of the classic 1865 book on the Atlantic Telegraph, March 23, 2006

By 

Bill B "CableGuy" (Long Island, New York USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Atlantic Telegraph (Paperback)

Written in 1865 by the war correspondent of the Times (London), William H. Russell, this book tells the story of the 1865 attempt to lay the Atlantic Cable from the Great Eastern, Brunel's mammoth ship converted to cable laying for the purpose. After relating the details of the failed attempts to lay the cable in 1857/58, the book describes and illustrates the expedition of 1865. While it, too, ended in failure, it showed that the ship was capable of completing the task, and the cable was successfully laid the following year.

The original edition of this book is hard to find and priced beyond the means of most readers, and the 1975 reprint had only black and white illustrations, losing the depth and tone of the original tinted lithographs. Nonsuch Publishing/Trafalgar Square are to be commended for issuing this handsome reprint; while the illustrations are reduced in size from the originals, they are printed in high resolution on glossy paper, allowing the reader to appreciate the skill of the artist, Robert Dudley.

Russell's well-paced telling of the story and the availability of the full-colour illustrations for the first time in 140 years make this a book well worth owning.