Russian–American Telegraph
Failed 1860s attempt to link North America and Russia by telegraph.
The Russian–American Telegraph—also called the Western Union Telegraph Expedition or the Collins Overland Telegraph—was a project by the Western Union Telegraph Company, active from 1865 to 1867, aiming to build a telegraph line connecting San Francisco, California, to Moscow, Russia. The route, costing $3 million (about $63.1 million today), was planned to run from California through Oregon, Washington Territory, the Colony of British Columbia, and Russian America, then under the Bering Sea and across the Eurasian continent to Moscow, where existing lines would link to the rest of Europe. It was conceived as a far longer but more feasible alternative to laying deep underwater cables across the Atlantic, since it only needed a short underwater crossing at the Bering Strait between North America and Siberia. However, laying cable across Siberia proved harder than expected. Meanwhile, Cyrus West Field’s transatlantic cable succeeded, and the trans-Russian effort was abandoned in 1867. A Canadian government historic plaque notes that construction stopped that year at Fort Stager, where the Kispyap and Skeena rivers meet, and that the section from New Westminster to the Cariboo was purchased by the Canadian Government in 1880. Despite the project’s financial failure, many consider parts of it a success due to the benefits its exploration brought to the regions it crossed. No entity has since attempted a communications cable across the Bering Sea; all westbound submarine cables from North America take more southerly routes across longer stretches of the North Pacific, connecting to Asia in Japan and then to the mainland.
By 1861, Western Union had linked the eastern United States by telegraph all the way to San Francisco. The remaining challenge was to connect North America with the rest of the world. Two telegraph pioneers worked on this: Cyrus West Field, who aimed to lay an undersea cable west-to-east across the Atlantic, and Perry Collins, who proposed a west-to-east overland link from North America’s west coast across the Bering Strait and Siberia to Moscow. Field’s Atlantic Telegraph Company laid the first transatlantic cable in 1858, but it broke after three weeks and could not be repaired. Meanwhile, Collins visited Russia and saw that it was making good progress extending its telegraph lines eastward from Moscow across Siberia. After returning to the Un
- started
- 1865
- ended
- 1867
- cost
- $3,000,000 (equivalent to $63.1 million today)
- company
- Western Union Telegraph Company
- proposed_by
- Perry Collins
- supervised_by
- Colonel Charles Bulkley
Lore & Background
By 1861 the Western Union Telegraph Company had linked the eastern United States by electric telegraph all the way to San Francisco. The challenge then remained to connect North America with the rest of the world. Working to meet that challenge were two telegraph pioneers: Cyrus West Field, seeking to lay an undersea telegraph cable across the Atlantic, and Perry Collins, proposing an overland route from the west coast of North America across the Bering Strait and Siberia to Moscow. Collins visited Russia and noted its progress extending telegraph lines eastwards from Moscow over Siberia, then approached Hiram Sibley, head of Western Union, with the idea. On July 1, 1864, President Abraham Lincoln granted Western Union a right of way from San Francisco to the British Columbia border and assigned the steamship Saginaw from the US Navy. The Colony of British Columbia gave the project its full and enthusiastic support, allowing materials to be brought in free of duties and tolls.
Reader's Guide
The Russian–American Telegraph is significant as a major 19th-century infrastructure project that ultimately failed economically but left lasting benefits. The route through British Columbia left behind a usable telegraph system from New Westminster to Quesnel, later extended to the Cariboo Gold Rush town of Barkerville, and a trail through largely uncharted wilderness. In Russian America, telegraph stations had been built, thousands of poles cut and distributed, and over 45 miles of line completed before work ceased in July 1867. The expedition also left behind a vast store of supplies used by some First Nations inhabitants. Despite the project's economic failure, many regard aspects of the effort a success due to the exploration benefits brought to the regions traversed. To date, no entities have attempted a communications cable across the Bering Sea, with all extant submarine cables following more southerly routes across the North Pacific Ocean.
Did You Know?
- The project was also known as the Western Union Telegraph Expedition and the Collins Overland Telegraph.
- The first message carried by the line when it reached New Westminster in spring 1865 was of the April 15 assassination of Abraham Lincoln.
- Construction in British Columbia was halted on February 27, 1867, after learning of the successful transatlantic cable.
- The section from New Westminster to the Cariboo was bought by the Canadian Government in 1880.
More in Russian colonization of North America 1-24
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