Telegraph Sounder and Resonator
name: label: maker
content: J. H. Bunnell & Co.
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: Telegraph sounders convert electrical pulses into audible sounds and are used to receive Morse code messages. The message travels as a series of electrical pulses through a wire. Short pulses make a dot, slightly longer pulses make a dash. The sequence of dots and dashes represent letters and numbers. The pulses energize the sounder’s electromagnets which move a lever-arm. The arm makes a loud “click” when it strikes a crossbar and the operator translates the pattern of sounds into the original language. A resonator like this was used to amplify the sound, making it easier for an operator to hear his or her own sounder when working in a room filled with these devices. This resonator is the only one in the collection holding two sounders.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: Electricity
label: See more items in
content: Communications
label: See more items in
content: Telegraph Sounders
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: from Western Union Corporation
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: EM.332779
label: accession number
content: 294351
label: collector/donor number
content: 100-764
label: catalog number
content: 332779
objectType: label: Object Name
content: telegraph resonator
label: Object Name
content: telegraph receiver
label: Object Name
content: telegraph sounder
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: wood (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: plastic (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: metal (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 5 in x 7 in x 7 1/2 in; 12.7 cm x 17.78 cm x 19.05 cm
label: Measurements
content: each sounder: 3 1/2 in x 3 in x 5 1/2 in; 8.89 cm x 7.62 cm x 13.97 cm