<P> In the 1840s and 1850s several individuals proposed or advocated construction of a telegraph cable across the Atlantic Ocean , including Edward Thornton and Alonzo Jackman . Cyrus West Field and the Atlantic Telegraph Company were behind the construction of the first transatlantic telegraph cable . The project began in 1854 and was completed in 1858 . The cable functioned for only three weeks , but it was the first such project to yield practical results . The first official telegram to pass between two continents was a letter of congratulations from Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom to the President of the United States James Buchanan on August 16 . Signal quality declined rapidly , slowing transmission to an almost unusable speed . The cable was destroyed the following month when Wildman Whitehouse applied excessive voltage to it while trying to achieve faster operation . It has been argued that the faulty manufacture , storage and handling of the 1858 cable would have led to premature failure in any case . The cable 's rapid failure undermined public and investor confidence and delayed efforts to restore a connection . A second attempt was undertaken in 1865 with much - improved material and , following some setbacks , a connection was completed and put into service on July 28 , 1866 . This cable proved more durable . </P>
<P> In the 1840s and 1850s several individuals proposed or advocated construction of a telegraph cable across the Atlantic Ocean , including Edward Thornton and Alonzo Jackman . Cyrus West Field and the Atlantic Telegraph Company were behind the construction of the first transatlantic telegraph cable . The project began in 1854 and was completed in 1858 . The cable functioned for only three weeks , but it was the first such project to yield practical results . The first official telegram to pass between two continents was a letter of congratulations from Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom to the President of the United States James Buchanan on August 16 . Signal quality declined rapidly , slowing transmission to an almost unusable speed . The cable was destroyed the following month when Wildman Whitehouse applied excessive voltage to it while trying to achieve faster operation . It has been argued that the faulty manufacture , storage and handling of the 1858 cable would have led to premature failure in any case . The cable 's rapid failure undermined public and investor confidence and delayed efforts to restore a connection . A second attempt was undertaken in 1865 with much - improved material and , following some setbacks , a connection was completed and put into service on July 28 , 1866 . This cable proved more durable . </P>
who linked the united states and europe with a transatlantic telegraph line
who linked the united states and europe with a transatlantic telegraph line
Cyrus West Field the Atlantic Telegraph Company
Cyrus West Field the Atlantic Telegraph Company