Cooke and Wheatstone 5-needle telegraph, 1837
Large 5-needle Cooke and Wheatstone telegraph, designed by William Cooke and Charles Wheatstone, England, 1837
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The British pair William Cooke and Charles Wheatstone were behind the world's first practical telegraph system, which was demonstrated in 1837. Any two of the five needles in this instrument would swing to point to letters of the alphabet.