Laying the Atlantic Telegraph Cable, 1866

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JG7791

Landing the Shore End of the Atlantic Cable (1866) by Robert Charles Dudley (British, 1826-1909). Foilhummerum Bay, Valentia, Ireland, at the point where the cable reaches shore. One of the 19th century's great technological achievements was to lay a telegraphic cable beneath the Atlantic, allowing messages to speed back and forth between North America and Europe in minutes, rather than ten or twelve days by steamer. An initially successful attempt in 1858, led by Cyrus W. Field and financed by the Atlantic Telegraph Company, failed after three weeks. Two working cables were finally laid in July and September 1866, the result of repeated efforts by the indefatigable Field, a cadre of engineers, technicians, and sailors, two groups of financial backers, and significant help from the British and United States navies. The cable Dudley documented the process in a series of watercolors and oils. The cable ran from Telegraph Field, Foilhommerum Bay, Valentia Island in western Ireland to Heart's Content in eastern Newfoundland.

Metropolitan Museum of Art / Science Source