DK - The American Civil War

Communications

The telegraph system revolutionized command and control procedures during the Civil War. Both the

Union and the Confederacy made increasing use of this new technology, but the North was able to

harness it most effectively. A signaling system using flags and lamps was also used on the battlefield.

THE UNION TIGHTENS ITS GRIP 1863

and Jefferson Davis both used the

telegraph extensively to keep in close

communication with the commanders

of their principal field armies, and their

commanders, in turn, developed ciphers

and codes to transmit and receive

messages in secret. Both sides developed

wiretapping and code-cracking

capabilities during the war, but the

information gleaned from these methods

rarely created decisive military results.

BEFORE

In previous wars, commanders had relied
on messages being hand-delivered. By the
outbreak of the Civil War, civilian telegraph
services could send messages by wire.

PREWAR TELEGRAPHY
Using special codes to send messages over
long distances, the telegraph was not a new
technology in 1861, having existed since the
1840s. More than 50,000 miles (80,467km) of
wire were already in place when war broke out,
with 1,400 stations employing 10,000 people.
The famous Pony Express, which was set up
in April 1860 to provide a fast mail service
between the East and West coasts, was put
out of business by a transcontinental
telegraph line that was completed in fall 1861.
Like the railroad, nearly all telegraph
infrastructure and investment was located
in the Northern states, with only about 10
percent delegated to the South. However, what
did exist there was immediately put to use.

THE PONY EXPRESS

Repairs to the line
A telegraph company employee carries out the vital task
of repairing the lines. This was dangerous work, often
performed under fire from the enemy or in areas where
enemy guerrilla fighters operated.

F

ollowing in the wake of the Union

and Confederate armies were the

telegraph services, putting up the

poles and wires needed for sending

messages to and from the front. The

telegraph system allowed commanders-

in-chief based far from the battlefield to

exercise direct control over operational

and even tactical events, and to keep

abreast of important developments as

they arose. Presidents Abraham Lincoln

In October 1861, the Lincoln

administration established the U.S.

Military Telegraph Service (U.S.M.T.S).

The federal telegraph service

The U.S.M.T.S. was initially reliant on

civilian companies, with the government

placing it under the control of the

Quartermaster Corps. The service was

operated by civilian personnel, most of

whom were employees of the major

Telegraph operator

Both sides in the war used telegraphy to send

or “wire” messages over long distances. Most

operators were civilians, and the messages relayed

everything from train dispatches to battle plans.