Where Did Wire cable Come From?

Copyright (c) 2010 Michael Atma

Every day we use hundreds of different products for all sorts of purposes, and give no thought to where they came from and how they were developed. Wire cable is no exception. Our modern communication systems would collapse in an instant without it, and yet we take it for granted, and, unless we are in the wire cable industry, know absolutely nothing about its history. 

There is a perception that companies either developed the technology themselves, or improved on what was already there. Most individuals, however are astonished to find out that wire-cable's humble beginnings took place as early as the eighteenth century - and even though it was experimental and not readily accessible, scientists were still using it to transmit signals with varying distance success.  So what were the defining moments in the history of wire cable? The following is a brief summary of the most notable: ;

=> 1795 (Don Francisco Salva) - first recorded account of the use of paper as an insulating material - Salva wrapped each wire in paper, coated it with pitch, tied them all together then wrapped the whole cable in more paper to prevent the lateral escape of electricity. The result was the laying of a 26-mile long telegraph cable between Madrid and Aranjuez which actually transmitted signals.

=> 1809 (S.T. Von Sommering) - managed to transmit messages through a 1000ft length of multi-core cable made by coating each copper wire with gum lac, covering with silk thread, then bunching the wires together and again coating with gum lac. This system was used to eventually transmit messages up to 10,000 ft between transmitter and receiver.

=> 1832 (Baron Von Schilling's electromagnetic telegraph) - toured the Far East and the Continent for several years from 1832 using a model of the telegraph to demonstrate its capabilities. In 1836, the Russian Emperor Nicholas, comprehending the more practical applications of the telegraph, approved and appointed the commissioning of a line between St Petersberg and Peteroff. It was part submarine cable laid along the bottom of a canal and part above ground with the wires suspended from posts. It was so successful that the Russians planned to lay the first submarine cable along the Gulf of Finland (unfortunately Von Schilling died in 1837 so this didn't occur).

=> 1837 (Cooke and Wheatstone) - received the first patent for the development of insulated wires and cables - Illustrated the process (or system) by digging a trench 2 miles long and burying the cable-wire in it. The copper wires were laid in long wooden baulks painted with a preservative tar compound and buried in the trench, which was then filled with pitch. Wheatstone, stationed at Euston, sent a message to Cooke at Camden Town, and was ecstatic when he received an immediate reply.

This was the Age of Invention, and many more exciting developments followed. The work of these tenacious and dedicated engineers and scientists laid the groundwork for the wire cable we use today, and for the success of many who help us apply the benefits of the technology, unheralded and mostly unappreciated.


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