American Vibroplex Telegraph Key
date: label: date made
content: ca 1925
name: label: maker
content: King & Company
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: Semi-automatic keys (commonly called "bugs") like this "American Vibroplex" automatically produced rapid Morse code dots by using a weighted pendulum to quickly make and break contact in the electrical circuit. The operator would make the dashes manually but could send much faster than with an ordinary key.
label: Description (Brief)
content: There are two labels on this key. Label 1 is stamped: "The Original American Vibroplex Sold & Guaranteed by King & Co.,Cincinnati,O." Label 2 is molded: "This machine is licensed but NOT guaranteed NOR manufactured by J. E. Albright 253 Broadway, New York No. 223 W.U.T.Co."
label: Description (Brief)
content: King & Company produced this key under license from a company that worked with Horace Martin, inventor of the "Vibroplex" semi-automatic key. Albright acted as licensor for Martin and collected a $2 fee from the Western Union operator to permit use of this key. #223 is the license number, not the key serial number. The donor identified this and key 1985.0885.02 as "two 'bugs' my father used as a telegrapher for Western Union and various railroads. ... he was working at that profession in the 1920s".
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: location of prior holder
content: United States: California, Los Angeles
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: Electricity
label: See more items in
content: Telegraph Keys
label: See more items in
content: Communications
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: from Mr. and Mrs. Dan Hobaugh
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1985.0885.01
label: accession number
content: 1985.0885
label: catalog number
content: 1985.0885.01
label: serial number
content: 223
objectType: label: Object Name
content: telegraph key
label: Object Name
content: sending key
label: Object Name
content: wireless key
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: steel (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: plastic (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: cloth (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: rubber (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: copper (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 3 1/4 in x 3 1/2 in x 8 1/2 in; 8.255 cm x 8.89 cm x 21.59 cm