- MS 902/3/1/1-3;D Letters (3) to Spencer Fullerton Baird, 1865-1866 [Regarding the expedition] 7 leaves, holograph (Xerox)
Bannister, correspondence
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- ReferenceGB 15 Henry Bannister/Correspondence
- Dates of Creation11865-1866
- Name of Creator
- Physical Description3 letters
Scope and Content
Administrative / Biographical History
The Western Union Telegraph Expedition, 1865-1867 (Robert Kennicott) aimed survey a route for, and to construct, a telegraph line between the United States and Europe by way of British and Russian America, Bering Strait, and Siberia. The expedition was organized on a quasi-military basis under the general command of Charles Bulkley (who served as engineer-in-chief), and divided into four divisions. In 1867, news that North Atlantic Telegraph Company had successfully laid a cable from Newfoundland to Ireland the previous year caused the company to abandon its enterprise. Nevertheless, the scientific and geographical results of the expedition, especially in Alaska, were of great value.
Arrangement
Chronological
Alternative Form Available
These are copies
Location of Originals
Original letters are to be found in the National History Library, Smithsonian Institute, Washington USA (1982)