Telegraph Patent Controversy
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PrintSmithsonian Secretary Joseph Henry reports to the Board of Regents to refute charges made by Samuel F. B. Morse in an article in "Shaffner's Telegraph Companion" in 1855. He outlines the early researches in electromagnetism, including his own research in electromagnetic induction. Dr. Leonard Gale, who advised Morse on his first model of an electromagnetic telegraph, was able to correct imperfections in the model because of his knowledge of Henry's principles. The Board of Regents resolves that Morse has not proved any of his accusations against Henry nor disproved any of his own admissions regarding the importance of Henry's discoveries in electromagnetism to his own invention.
Chronology of Smithsonian History
Institutional History Division, Smithsonian Institution Archives, 600 Maryland Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20024-2520, SIHistory@si.edu
March 16, 1857