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0:02

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0:06

the app today.

0:15

Wow. Lucky. You, Chris.

0:18

That old West costume is amazing.

0:21

Give me a little spin. Come

0:23

a long way from the pattern you showed me month to

0:25

go. Well, I rushed to get it done for

0:27

today's interview. I was trying to get into

0:29

the eighteen hundreds mood to

0:31

to make our guest comfortable. Honestly, I

0:33

think of the best costumes you've done. Wow.

0:35

You really think so? Mhmm. The

0:38

waistcoat was such a challenge

0:40

I spent all night working on the lining.

0:42

That way. Thank

0:45

you, Linda. You know, it's so

0:47

great to have a fellow costume enthusiast at

0:49

work. Even if you just do it for your little cosplay

0:52

hobby versus my professional work

0:54

at the Skarsdale dinner seat or costume

0:56

shop? Sure. But for the record, my

0:58

Etsy shop is blowing Now

1:00

about the jingling, I

1:03

hate to say it, but it's gonna be bad

1:05

for audio. No spurs? But

1:07

they're so cool. I know.

1:10

Off, please. Okay.

1:12

But I'm keeping the cowboy hat. Might

1:15

be hard to wear that with your headphones on.

1:19

Fine. I'm losing the cowboy

1:21

hat, but is a decision I made

1:24

myself. I know it is.

1:27

Okay. Let's start the intro. Our guest

1:29

is gonna be here soon. Oh, you

1:31

know she's not a cowboy. Right?

1:33

She's a telegraph operator? Yeah.

1:35

I know who she is. So you're not gonna ask her

1:38

about high noon shootouts. Right? Or

1:40

daughter passed or Parnell

1:42

for gold in the nineteenth century was

1:45

way more complicated than that. I

1:47

know. There were train robberies too.

1:49

And of course, starch colors were

1:51

on the horizon. That was huge. Oh,

1:53

and bloomers. Obviously bloomers.

1:56

Yes. Alright. Let's

1:58

get started. Who can say

2:00

they were there for the very start

2:02

of modern communication? Today's

2:04

guest can. On an Nebraska

2:07

prairie, a lonely telegraph operator

2:09

helped connect the nation. We're

2:11

talking all about the birth of

2:13

the information revolution. From

2:20

I'm Chris Parnell, and this is

2:22

This job is history. Each

2:25

week, I interview actual people

2:27

from the actual past who've worked

2:29

some of the strangest, most unexc

2:31

expected jobs in history. From

2:33

senator to Barbara Surchin, we

2:36

bring the past alive, literally.

2:40

On this week's episode, woman

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4:15

Welcome

4:23

to this job is history. I'm

4:26

here with miss Susan Chapman of Lincoln

4:28

Nebraska from eighteen

4:29

seventy. She's a telegraph operator

4:32

with a Western Union. Susan, welcome.

4:34

It's a real treat to be here. So is

4:36

this interview going to be dispatched to

4:38

more code. Is that what the lady and the

4:40

other booth is doing? Oh,

4:42

Linda is my producer.

4:43

Hi, Susan. I'm so excited

4:46

you're here Wondery. You're a real pioneer in the

4:48

field of telecommunications.

4:50

Oh, poppycock. I'm not sure about

4:52

that, but thank you, miss.

4:53

And I love your dress. It's

4:55

such a great silhouette. Is that aliko?

4:58

Oh, I suppose it is. It's my

5:00

Sunday dress. Well, I'll start my only

5:02

dress. The roofing on

5:04

the skirt is really impressive.

5:06

Well, I started. I can't

5:08

ever recollect meeting a man who was so

5:10

fascinated by ruffles. Are you

5:12

sure this is an interview about my job?

5:14

Oh, well, it's just a little craft I've been

5:16

helping Linda with. But back to

5:18

you, Susan, So you operate

5:21

the telegraph office in Lincoln, Nebraska.

5:23

It must be nice to live out on the

5:25

prairie. So peaceful, so simple.

5:27

Simple? What's simple about getting a

5:29

message from Lincoln to Chicago in one

5:31

minute flat? Okay.

5:33

Alright. How about we start

5:35

over with the basics? Susan,

5:38

what is a telegraph operator?

5:40

Kind of a boring question to start, but okay.

5:43

Oh, I get it. Chris doesn't understand

5:45

the technology. I understand technology.

5:48

That's fine. I have to explain it to

5:50

electric farmers all the time. So

5:52

anyhow, I send and receive messages in

5:54

what's called Morse code. Using

5:56

a telegraph machine. See, there's

5:58

an electrical current running along a

6:00

wire all the way to my telegraph, and

6:02

there's wires fed in the country when

6:05

I tap my transmitter, I interrupt

6:07

the current in a pattern. Someone

6:09

listens on their receiver hundreds miles

6:11

away. Decodes my taps

6:13

and translates the message. Oh,

6:15

it's incredible. I agree. And

6:18

by the way, I understood every

6:20

word you said. Oh, good

6:22

for you, Chris. K. Thank you all.

6:25

So what skills do you need to be

6:27

a telegraph operator? Oh,

6:29

where do I begin? Well,

6:31

I'll tell you what, you need quick reflexes,

6:34

great penmanship, and you have to keep

6:36

up with the latest innovations. Most

6:38

of all, you have to know Morse code like

6:40

its English. I have to admit none of

6:42

those things is on my resume. But

6:45

day to day, what does that look like for you?

6:47

Oh, well, let's see. I I'm sending and

6:49

receiving messages and helping with the

6:51

railroad traffic if there's a change in the

6:53

train schedule. I pass on the information and

6:55

keep everyone safe. 8. And

6:57

when there's When I'm the ticket agent for the railroad

7:00

depot? Fascinating. And so And

7:02

I fixed the telegraph machine when it breaks

7:04

down. No. That's incredibly. Oh, and I

7:06

do very light maintenance up on the

7:08

telegraph poles. If those go

7:10

down, Western Union is sure some.

7:12

Wait. You climb telegraph poles?

7:15

In that wildly impressively

7:17

tailored dress with a bustle and

7:19

everything. We may be on the prairie,

7:21

but we still take pride in our appearance. And

7:23

I'll have you know that this dress saved my

7:25

life. Come on, Susan. I

7:27

know the right piece of clothing can save

7:30

a look like my leopard

7:32

crocs, but alive, really?

7:34

Well, it's true. See, a telegraph operator's

7:37

job can be my dangerous.

7:39

Let me guess. Parnell tunnel

7:41

because telegraph operating would wreak havoc

7:43

on my wrists. Oh, we call that

7:45

glass arm. Mhmm. I didn't

7:47

wanna say anything, but Those delicate

7:50

risks of yours are not well suited

7:52

for this line of work. I've just never seen

7:54

risks so dainty and fragile.

7:56

Like, like that especially on a feller.

7:59

But but no, that's not the kind of

8:01

danger I'm talking about. Remember

8:03

how I just told you about the wires that run

8:05

to my telegraph machine. Yes.

8:07

We use copper wire. It's

8:09

the best metal to conduct electricity.

8:12

Once during a terrible rainstorm, lightening

8:15

struck my little station. While you were at the

8:17

telegraph machine? Yes, sir. I'm

8:19

telling it true. Just like it was, I

8:21

was sending a routine message to my friend,

8:24

Lizette, I don't know if you know where she's at the

8:26

Chicago Western Union when I suddenly

8:28

felt a surge of energy run from

8:30

my fingers all the way through

8:32

my body and out again. Then

8:34

I was thrown to the floor and heard

8:36

the loudest crack at thunder you had ever

8:38

heard right above me. Oh, were

8:40

you seriously hurt? No.

8:43

No. I just had little burns on my ribs.

8:45

Turns out the steel boning in my course,

8:47

it actually conducts electricity.

8:50

Wow. You're unbreakable.

8:52

You know, it's funny. That's what

8:54

the headline said in the Lincoln Gazette.

8:57

They drew a picture of me in the

8:59

paper and everything. When my friend

9:01

Lizette in the Chicago office heard about it,

9:03

she just laughed and laughed,

9:05

started calling me

9:06

lightning.

9:07

That? The best nickname ever.

9:10

Oh, thank you kindly. A lot of

9:12

us gals and telegraph is just come up with

9:14

our own little nicknames all the time.

9:16

For when we transmit messages. They're all

9:18

fanciful like a well bell

9:20

or celeste or

9:22

something really exotic like hortense.

9:25

Oh, I like hortons. Well,

9:27

it does add a sense of mystery. And

9:30

there are some men who have a real

9:32

problem with women in the profession

9:34

Sometimes it's better to just go by a different

9:36

name. I totally get what

9:38

you're saying. I send most of my

9:40

emails through my fake assistant, Trevor.

9:43

People seem to respond to him faster than me.

9:45

I'm so sorry you have to go through that,

9:47

Susan. Oh, thank you

9:49

kindly, Linda. And you know what, you can call

9:51

me lightning. Oh, thank you. Wait.

9:53

Trevor's not real. I that we were

9:55

developing a real friendship. Sorry,

9:58

Chris. So

9:59

Susan or should I call you

10:01

lightning? No. That's

10:04

horribly inappropriate, Christopher. Goodness.

10:06

You're in league with the devil. Lightning

10:08

is just for us girls. Isn't that right?

10:10

Linda, you know what, I'm gonna call you

10:12

thunderbolt. Fun.

10:16

What's my nickname? Chris,

10:19

I guess. Okay.

10:21

Did you always want to be a telegraph

10:23

operator? Well, I didn't exactly

10:25

dream of marriage in keeping house all

10:27

day. I wanted to venture

10:29

a sense of purpose. No. I totally

10:31

get that. Although I was an

10:33

honor student in home economics, my

10:35

teachers thought I'd be the next Betty Crocker.

10:38

Chris, you know Betty Crocker isn't a real

10:40

person. Right? Well,

10:42

she was an inspiration nonetheless.

10:44

So what were your dreams as a

10:46

young girl? Well, I'll tell you, Chris, I

10:49

didn't know it first, but my father

10:51

was a ticket clerk at the Mount Player Train

10:53

Depot in Baltimore. To make a little

10:55

extra money for the family, he took in a

10:57

border from work. As cunningham,

10:59

he was a telegraph operator at the

11:01

station. Very kind man,

11:03

union veteran. Also one of the

11:05

first telegraph operators in the country.

11:07

Is that right? For some reason,

11:09

I imagine the telegraph industry starting in

11:11

New York City. Well, why

11:13

does everything great have to happen in New

11:16

York? New York. New York. New York.

11:18

The city saw nothing named it

11:20

twice. No, sir. Samuel Moores

11:22

himself sent the first telegraph from

11:24

Washington DC to our little depot in

11:26

Baltimore in eighteen forty four.

11:28

He proved the world that telegraph

11:30

work 8. Did you meet

11:32

the Samuel Morse? The man credited with

11:34

inventing the telegraph? Oh, I

11:36

suppose you'd be the man who took full credit for

11:38

an invention that he improved.

11:40

did not 8? No.

11:43

That was little before my time. But

11:45

our boarder, mister Cunningham, madam,

11:47

he learned telegraphy straight 8 Moores himself.

11:50

Oh, wow. So I

11:52

was always tinkering with things at

11:54

home. I took our only

11:56

clock apart and then put it back

11:58

together. I also tried to make our co love

12:00

and run on dried manure cakes An

12:02

old boy howdy I

12:04

came close. Mother got

12:06

tired of my experiments and sent me

12:08

off to the train station with father

12:10

and mister cutting a ham and all my

12:12

extra manure cakes that I had to carry

12:14

around with me. Can't say I blame her.

12:16

I prefer the smell of biscuits in the

12:18

kitchen over, you know, I do

12:20

agree with you there, Chris, and I

12:22

love going to the station. Mister

12:24

Cunningham, Convin's father, let me

12:26

help out in his telegraph office. It

12:28

wasn't long before I learned Morse

12:30

code and I took to it real

12:32

fast. Just like riding a horse

12:34

or so they say, Father

12:36

never let me ride a horse. Yeah. I've never

12:38

ridden a horse. I find them terrifying.

12:40

Oh, I

12:41

find them very very fine.

12:44

Why is creatures? And

12:46

sensual. Do you? Oh,

12:48

really? It

12:49

sounds like mister Cunningham really saw your

12:52

potential. She sure did. Said I

12:54

had a real head for machinery. And that

12:56

Western Union had hired some women

12:58

to be telegraph operators. And

13:00

after the war, they needed more of us to

13:02

work them. Even started to school to teach

13:04

girls how to be operators. I didn't

13:06

realize how many opportunities the

13:08

telegraph industry opened up for women

13:10

during your time, but What did your

13:12

family say? Last year,

13:14

I finally told my father that I wanted to

13:16

be a telegraph operator. He

13:18

just about blew a gasket. Said

13:20

it degraded my marriage prospects, said

13:22

I was taking a one way train to becoming

13:24

a career troll up. Oh,

13:27

that's awful. Know when my parents wanted me to

13:29

quit mine school, I moved right out

13:31

of their basement and straight to my Nana's

13:33

den. She was the only one of the family who saw

13:35

the real me. Well, that was like

13:37

mister Cunningham. When I told him

13:39

what my father had said, how he

13:41

how he'd called me a a trallop

13:43

and a

13:43

trumpet. And other choice words.

13:45

He gave me a ticket out of 8,

13:48

literally. Well, it sounds like your father

13:50

was an awful awful person. Was

13:52

the ticket to New York City? Oh,

13:55

god. Lord, almighty. What is it with

13:58

you in New York City? No.

14:00

Out west, Chris. Mister Cunningham

14:02

had an old army friend out in Lincoln who

14:04

worked for the Union Pacific Railroad

14:07

and recommended me for telegraph operator

14:09

position. It was the adventure I'd always

14:11

wanted. I ran home,

14:13

packed my good sour coat

14:14

dress, and got on

14:17

that train. Wow. I

14:19

was really brave of you, Susan. The

14:21

longest I ever ran away was a day and

14:23

I just went next door and came back for

14:24

dinner. No one even noticed. Oh,

14:27

that's sad, Chris. That's just sad.

14:29

It is. So you're

14:31

clearly adventurous. Where do you

14:33

go from here as a telegraph operator?

14:35

Well, I do love it here, but

14:37

I have ambitions, big

14:39

ambition Once you become a first class

14:41

operator, you can move where you like or even

14:43

head up an office in a big city

14:45

like Chicago or Cleveland,

14:48

and then then there's my side.

14:50

Project see? Oh, side projects? Well,

14:52

I've designed a few gadgets inspired by

14:54

my work here. You know, there are

14:56

women in ventures. I'm not the

14:58

only

14:58

one, you know. True. I bet

15:01

you didn't know, Chris, that one

15:03

woman held twenty eight

15:05

patents on sewing machine innovations

15:07

in the nineteenth century. Oh, you mean

15:09

Helen Blanchard born eighteen seventy three?

15:11

Yeah. I know who she is. She

15:13

invented the zigzag stitch. 0II

15:18

actually didn't know

15:19

that. Let's let's just continue,

15:22

Susan. Alright. Okay. So as

15:24

soon as I started this job, see, I

15:26

could I could see a thousand ways to

15:28

improve our system. Oh, in what

15:30

ways? For starters,

15:32

I made an amplifier for my

15:34

telegraph receiver. So I can walk a few

15:36

feet away and not miss a

15:38

message. Mix going to the pretty and

15:40

taking a lunch break a lot

15:42

less stressful. You know, I knew I needed

15:44

to patent my prototype, but

15:46

it didn't quite go as planned

15:49

because of Whitford Charles. Oh,

15:52

another telegraph 8? Oh,

15:55

no. He was real scallaway, regular

15:57

Don Juan. He's the new train

15:59

conductor who started last

16:00

fall. Like my friend Luzette in Chicago

16:02

told me he's a

16:05

my gosh,

16:07

Susan. Wait, what did you say?

16:09

I can't repeat it in polite company. Well,

16:11

that sounds serious. Okay.

16:15

Susan, hold that thought until we're back

16:17

from break.

16:20

Yeah. What was that? Well, I just said

16:22

okay. Yeah. She was just saying okay.

16:24

That's a lot of beeps for okay. He

16:28

Is he always like this? Oh, yeah.

16:34

Sherry Warren was a young mother looking for

16:36

a fresh start. In the process of a

16:38

divorce, she'd moved out, found a great new

16:40

job, and even found a new boyfriend. Life

16:42

was looking up, But on a mild October

16:44

evening after a long day at work, Sherry

16:46

said goodbye to her coworkers, left the

16:48

office and was never heard from

16:50

again. All eyes quickly turned toward her

16:52

estranged husband. He had a checkered past

16:54

having lured another woman into the mountains

16:56

where he beat her with a tire iron.

16:58

But there was another man that also peaked

17:00

the interest of investigators, 8 new

17:03

boyfriend. He was a former reserve

17:05

police officer with a dark history of

17:07

sexual violence. The

17:09

two men closest to Sherry.

17:11

One swore he loved her, the

17:13

other seemed not to care, but did

17:15

one of them murder her.

17:17

I'm Dave Cauley. In season three of the

17:19

hit True Crime podcast, Cold. I

17:22

dig into what really happened to

17:24

Sherry. Follow Cold on

17:26

Amazon Music or wherever you get your podcasts. You can

17:28

listen early and add free by

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subscribing to wondering plus and Apple podcasts

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or the wondering

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few days

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before Christmas, Janelle Matthews

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There were no

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eyewitnesses, no DNA recovered.

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What if the answer had always

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The groundbreaking True Crime

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Edgerton. I bury more people than you'll

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He's providing information that hadn't even

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18:33

Welcome back.

18:39

We're here with Susan Chapman from eighteen

18:41

seventy. Who's talking to us about her work

18:43

is a telegraph operator. So

18:45

Susan, you're going to tell us about her

18:47

story of betrayal? Adventure and

18:50

betrayal. Excellent. Take

18:52

us back. I

18:54

had just started my post

18:56

in Lincoln Only been there for a

18:58

couple of weeks, but I managed to

19:00

decorate my small office to make it feel a

19:02

little holier. On this

19:04

particular night, I was sitting in my cozy

19:06

little room getting ready to start my late

19:08

shift. 8 Chubbock,

19:10

that's the station master, came by to

19:12

check-in on me before heading

19:14

home. You're going to be okay here by yourself,

19:16

miss Susan? Windsor high tonight. Well,

19:18

I'm sure nothing exciting will

19:20

happen. It's been pretty quiet since I

19:23

started. And thank missus Chubbock, biscuits,

19:25

will you? Sure will.

19:27

I sat at my desk and did some

19:29

light paperwork. I listened to the telegraph chatter

19:32

and the winds howling outside. And

19:34

then suddenly, I heard my call sign over

19:36

the line. A last minute changed to

19:38

the train schedule, and it was a

19:41

number nineteen. Now, there's two

19:43

kinds. The number thirty one messages are

19:45

easy. The train stops and the

19:47

conductor signs for it. But a

19:49

nineteen The train doesn't stop.

19:51

How exactly do you pass a message to a

19:53

moving train? It sounds really

19:56

dangerous. It's terrifying. See,

19:58

you put the message on a long hoop,

20:00

pole, and stand by the speeding

20:03

train. The brakeman grabs it from your hands

20:05

and swoops it away. I've

20:07

never done one myself day or night. I

20:09

was so nervous. I grabbed an

20:11

old hayburner lantern, wrapped my

20:13

shawl around me, and walked toward the tracks

20:15

with my hoop. It was

20:18

quiet. Nothing but grass around me

20:20

softly moving with the wind. I

20:22

put myself few feet away from

20:24

the tracks. I just had to hope the

20:26

train man would see my lantern.

20:28

Then I heard the faintest

20:31

whistle. I'd stretch the hoop out right

20:33

next to the tracks. My whole

20:35

body trembled. The train was

20:37

coming toward me with its headlight

20:39

shining in my

20:39

eyes. This much on the job stress is terrible

20:42

for your nervous system. I

20:44

agree.

20:44

I would clip right in and there.

20:46

You a nerve a steel

20:48

lightning. No. I was terrified,

20:51

but I kept my arm out and closed

20:53

my eyes. And

20:55

wouldn't you know it? The break I

20:57

missed the hoop. This

20:59

was a disaster. Without the

21:01

order, the train could crash. People

21:03

could get hurt or die.

21:05

But then I heard the train slowing

21:08

down. It came to a

21:10

stop. I saw the graceful silhouette

21:12

of the conductor's swinging himself

21:14

down from the

21:15

locomotive. He came right toward

21:18

me.

21:18

My goodness. He was easy on

21:21

the eyes. Tall, dark,

21:24

and well pretty much just tall.

21:26

That's all I could see. Then he

21:28

reached out in the light of that

21:30

heyburner lantern took the order from

21:32

my shaking hands and

21:33

said. Don't stand so close to

21:36

the train. I mean, and hold the light

21:38

up next time so Willard can see

21:40

the hoop. Okay.

21:44

Susan. My name is Susan. Oh,

21:46

conductor. What what was he wearing? Oh,

21:49

I bet he had an open face wall from pocket watch. A

21:51

thousand percent.

21:52

What? I I don't

21:55

know. A navy suit I suppose

21:58

with You know, that little hat there that I don't

22:00

know anyhow. He laying

22:02

down to me and said Whitford Charles.

22:04

I'm the new conductor on the Wednesday

22:06

train from Chicago. I come

22:08

in one o'clock, and I'm known to

22:11

stop for messages. And

22:13

I will be

22:15

here. The because

22:17

this is where I work

22:19

and messages are messages

22:21

are my job. But but

22:23

8 so he almost killed you with

22:26

his train I know, romantic,

22:28

isn't it? And just like that,

22:31

Wednesdays were the best day of the

22:33

week. Every time

22:35

would for Charles would pass by. He

22:37

would smile at me from the cab of the

22:39

train. Soon, we were leaving

22:41

little notes for each other too. We

22:43

just about buried our souls. My

22:47

dear, mister Charles. It has

22:49

been six days since our last

22:52

correspondence. When shall I see you

22:53

again? Just confirming that

22:56

Wednesdays are good for me. My

22:58

dear miss Chapman, your kind words

23:00

and very good penmanship boid

23:02

me through several train delays. Wednesdays

23:05

are good for me

23:07

too. I told you, that's when I

23:09

go

23:09

through. My dear, mister

23:11

Charles, I will wait for

23:14

you because,

23:15

well, I'm not really allowed to leave

23:18

my office. My dear miss

23:20

Susan. If I may call you Susan,

23:23

the pie you let me Wednesday last was

23:25

excellent. The lattice work

23:27

was impeccable. If I do not

23:29

return, it means only

23:31

that my shift has been changed.

23:33

It's really not my call.

23:36

The lost art of the letter. It's

23:38

so romantic. People just

23:40

don't write like that anymore.

23:42

I know. Today, it's all eggplant

23:44

emoji. There's and peach emoji.

23:46

Do that.

23:47

Susan, please go

23:51

on. I took extra care with

23:53

my hair on Wednesdays in anticipation of

23:55

Whitford's arrival. Finally,

23:57

one Wednesday, he actually poked

23:59

his head into my little office

24:02

Oh, my heart was going fast as an

24:05

express message to Lara me for a

24:07

dollar a word. So

24:09

this is your office, miss

24:11

Susan? Sure is. Do

24:13

you do you wanna

24:15

see my telegraph key or

24:18

some some batteries or Maybe

24:20

some of my inventions. Oh,

24:22

inventions.

24:22

His eyes lit

24:24

up. I brought him

24:27

over to my amplifier prototype, It

24:29

looks like a funnel made of wire

24:31

and

24:31

leather. Nothing special, but he

24:33

seemed to be mighty interested and took

24:35

a closer

24:36

look. Well, isn't that some

24:39

pumpkins? Oh, you have

24:41

such a way of talking. It's

24:43

just little something I design,

24:45

nothing fancy, really. I mean, I don't even know what

24:47

I'm doing It just, you know, it makes the

24:49

messages sound louder. So when

24:51

I'm across the

24:51

station, I can still hear the call. You

24:54

know, something of an inventor

24:57

myself. You are? I mean, who well,

24:59

that's fine. That's that's wonderful.

25:01

And just like that, I saw our

25:04

future together a couple of inventors

25:06

in love traveling in the

25:08

country, changing the world, and

25:10

probably getting featured in scientific

25:12

american. Anyhow, right after

25:14

that visit, I didn't see Whitford for a whole

25:17

month until one day. I heard

25:19

him calling my name. Susan.

25:22

I jumped out of my chair and

25:24

ran to meet him on the platform.

25:27

Whitford met me halfway. Picked

25:29

me up and spun me around and around and around.

25:32

We did it. We did it,

25:34

Susan.

25:35

Great. Can't do it.

25:38

Wait. Wait. What did we do?

25:40

Western Union loves our

25:42

amplifier. They love the invention

25:44

and they're gonna buy it.

25:45

That's amazing. 8.

25:50

Our

25:50

amplifier. Yes. I

25:51

I went ahead and applied for the

25:54

patent. Here it is. I thought I was

25:56

dreaming, but not a good one. You know the

25:58

kind when you're scared and terrified and you

26:00

feel sick to your stomach and just wanna

26:02

punch a man in a face for

26:04

big such a jerk. It was

26:06

a patent to my amplifier.

26:09

Alright. And the top of it said,

26:11

wait for Charles Why does this

26:13

say patent holder Whitford

26:15

Charles? Well, darling, I assume

26:18

that's what you wanted. That's

26:20

patent paperwork is way too

26:22

complicated for a sweet girl like you

26:24

and Western Union needed someone they

26:26

could trust like a

26:28

man. Day

26:28

day. Yeah. We're gonna make a fortune, and

26:31

you'll be the woman behind the

26:33

man all the way. Oh,

26:35

hell no. That is just not

26:37

right. Oh, man. So

26:39

mad. What did you do? What did

26:42

you do? To wreck his train

26:43

schedule. Put blood on his hands. Oh, I like

26:45

the way your mind works But

26:48

no, ma'am. I I've got a code

26:50

of ethics Even though my heart was breaking in about four

26:52

different ways, I I kept it real

26:54

professional like, oh, what's

26:57

that? I think I hear

26:59

my call

26:59

sign. I should

27:02

go.

27:02

I don't hear it, but you

27:04

got it,

27:05

darling. Oh, gosh.

27:05

I'm glad I met you. See you

27:08

next Wednesday. So that's

27:10

it? You let him steal your

27:12

invention? Now, Chris. You had

27:14

to get up pretty early in the morning

27:16

and to put one over on old

27:19

lightning slinger. I got a patent for that

27:21

amplifier months before. You know, those

27:23

applications are actually a piece of

27:25

kit. Good. Oh, I was about to go

27:27

back in time and ring

27:29

that guy's I could do it, you know. I know how

27:31

to use the time machine. You know,

27:33

what for Charles may or may not

27:35

have been the sad victim of

27:37

some vicious Upon the line

27:39

about his locomotive.

27:41

No one messes with

27:43

Susan Chapman. So what happened

27:45

with your invention? Well, I

27:47

wrote to Western Union and they are interested in my

27:50

amplifier, and I'm looking to present

27:52

it at the first women's pavilion.

27:54

In the Centennial ex position in New York

27:56

City in eighteen seventy six. New York

27:59

City. I knew it. It's

28:01

just that one time, Chris.

28:03

Oh, I almost forgot. I brought my telegraph

28:06

machine to show you. Would you like to see

28:08

it? What? Yes. Oh,

28:10

well, alright. Here it is.

28:13

Now, this beauty is obviously a single

28:15

circuit telegraph. Rumor has

28:17

it another telegraph operator named I

28:19

I don't know if I it

28:21

is in something. That he was working on one that can

28:23

send four messages at a time. Can

28:26

you imagine? Oh, it's so

28:28

cute. It looks like an old

28:30

timing stapler. You know, Susan,

28:32

I tried to learn Morse code in fourth grade. It it's

28:34

shortened long sounds. Right? Yes.

28:36

The machine can transmit up

28:39

sound that sounds like a long or short

28:41

beep by pressing this lever here.

28:43

The long pulses we call dashes

28:45

and the short dots. Here,

28:47

try this pattern on it.

28:53

Got it.

28:56

How did

28:57

I do? I'm my goodness.

29:00

Chris, that was

29:02

incredibly inappropriate. Oh, I'm

29:04

so sorry. Don't

29:06

be. It was delightfully shocking.

29:08

Linda, can we just bleep that out?

29:10

Let's cut it in post.

29:12

I'm worried if it'll say

29:14

something even dirtier.

29:27

We're back with Telegraph operators

29:29

8 Chapman. Okay, Susan.

29:31

Let's get into what's happened to

29:33

your

29:33

job. My line is open. Lay

29:36

it on me, Chris. You'll be happy to

29:38

hear that telegrams lasted

29:40

into the twenty first century.

29:42

Oh, Germany crickets. That's

29:44

wonderful. This is state of the

29:46

art machinery. I can't imagine things

29:48

getting much better than this. Well,

29:50

it actually gets a lot

29:52

better. But the telegraph made it

29:54

all happen. Our communication machines,

29:56

recording devices, and players literally

29:58

would not exist today without it.

30:01

Okay. So first, there was

30:03

wireless telegraph. No wires.

30:05

That's right. In your lifetime, you're

30:07

going to discover that sound moves in waves

30:09

through the air. They'll transmit

30:11

messages that way. They're called

30:13

radio waves. Radio 8.

30:16

Amazing. Sounds like it's right out of one of

30:18

those new Juul's firm stories.

30:20

And then come something called the

30:22

Teletype. That translates the

30:24

Morse code into words for you and prints

30:26

them on a roll of paper. Oh,

30:29

thank goodness. Between you and me, the

30:31

long handwriting is exhausting.

30:33

And then came the telephone.

30:35

Alright. I get the

30:37

telepar but what's phone. It's

30:40

a device that allows people to

30:42

speak directly to each other

30:44

across long distances. You

30:46

die Simline using a special number, it rings them, they pick

30:48

up, and then you talk. With

30:50

no operator. Well, engineers

30:52

eventually discovered how to take the

30:54

middle person out. You can even make calls with

30:56

a portable device in your pocket.

30:59

With radio waves. Well, we

31:01

send and receive messages now

31:03

through satellites in space. In

31:06

space, this is getting crazy.

31:08

Yeah. They're floating above us. They send

31:10

and receive information to and

31:12

from Earth. Linda,

31:15

I I think you better check on

31:17

Chris here. Right? I don't know what he

31:19

put in his coffee this

31:20

morning, but it was stronger than milk. He's

31:22

actually right. Technology started moving really fast

31:25

once the telegraph hit. Like Chris

31:27

said, all our modes of

31:29

communication started with your work?

31:31

Well, so much has changed.

31:33

Just in my generation,

31:35

I I suppose I can believe that

31:37

we'd have thousands of telegram receivers

31:40

and transmitters in the sky.

31:43

Yeah. That's that's right. But

31:45

even more came out of your work as a telegraph

31:48

operator. Your profession also helped

31:50

change the game for women in the workplace. It

31:52

required skill, an experience

31:54

that was respected by men and

31:56

women. I wouldn't exactly say

31:59

we're risk stected. We don't get paid as much as

32:01

men. Yeah. That's

32:03

sadly still a thing. And not

32:05

a lot of us had the chance to get

32:07

promoted. That too. Okay.

32:09

Fair point. But your

32:11

industry did open doors for women

32:13

in science, medicine, even politics.

32:15

These little changes added up over time,

32:17

which is just how innovation works.

32:20

Right? I do like that I'm

32:22

helping women of the future

32:23

She's right. I proudly let

32:25

Linda be the boss of me. Well, you

32:27

don't let me be the boss of you,

32:29

Chris. I just I just

32:31

am your boss.

32:32

Oh, well, I know father wouldn't like all

32:35

this, but to me it's

32:37

just wonderful.

32:39

Who knows? Maybe we'll even get the vote

32:42

in the next few years. Actually

32:45

No. Susan, don't

32:47

lose that optimism. It's

32:49

just a matter of time. And now

32:53

is the

32:57

portion of our show. Where

32:59

I ask you five lightning round

33:02

questions. First

33:02

question, what is the biggest misconception

33:05

about your job? Well, funny you should

33:07

say lightning, Chris, because being

33:09

struck by lightning isn't as terrifying

33:11

as you might think. It's quite

33:13

titillating. What was the best compliment you

33:15

ever received? Oh, patent

33:19

number 4532 for the

33:21

telegraph arm amplifier.

33:23

What was your biggest regret?

33:26

Definitely baking a pie for Whitford

33:28

Charles. That's a big regret. I can't

33:30

take that back. That was a waste of

33:31

apples. He didn't say that again. What

33:33

traits would you say make a good telegraph

33:37

operator. Speed, good

33:39

spelling, and knowing how to keep town

33:41

gossip to yourself, and that's

33:43

not easy. So many scandals on

33:45

the wire. Cool. And

33:47

lastly, if you could be remembered

33:49

for just one thing, what would

33:51

it be? Well, that's easy. Climbing a telegraph

33:53

poll in thirty seconds flat in a

33:55

Corsaic dress and petticoat. That's

33:57

truly impressive. I'm sure you

33:59

still hold the record. Come

34:03

again? Thank

34:07

you, Chris. Susan Chapman. You're

34:09

an inspiration for everyone in the tech

34:11

world. Thank you for leaving your telegraph

34:13

office and joining us on this

34:15

job as history. It's been

34:18

a pleasure, Chris.

34:20

Mostly. Mostly? I'm sorry if we

34:22

did anything to make it less than fun. A

34:25

thunderbolt Are you wait. I don't think you're doing

34:27

anything right now. Is there a

34:29

a

34:29

tea, a parlor, or Oh.

34:32

Oh, like, heaven, we

34:34

wanna Go out before you go back

34:37

home. Yes, you know. Yeah.

34:38

You gotta get back in the

34:39

chamber. Don't maybe go back in there. I'm sorry. Maybe we can

34:42

just come back with you. Hang out. No.

34:46

Thanks. The

34:49

invention of

34:52

the telegraph definitely change the world. But every

34:54

individual who worked on it?

34:56

Well, they changed the world too. Were

34:58

they jumping onto a train from a

35:00

galloping horse? No,

35:02

but the women of telegraphy were

35:04

brave, adventurous, risk takers

35:06

nonetheless. Susan is more

35:08

than a talented Morse

35:10

code transmitter. She's a pioneer. And as for me,

35:12

I'm pretty excited to have finally seen a real

35:14

buttonhole from eighteen seventy. It

35:16

was hand sketch.

35:18

Amazing. Right? So

35:20

cool. And did you notice the lace around her collar? Oh, I did.

35:22

I I think that was part of her chama's

35:27

Hey,

35:34

Prime members. You can listen to

35:36

this job as history early in ad

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free on Amazon Music.

35:40

Download the Amazon Music app today,

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or you can listen ad free Wondery

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35:46

by completing a short survey at dot

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com slash survey. From

35:54

wondering, this is

35:56

This job is history, and this

35:58

is woman on a wire. Written by

36:01

Sochi Dorsing, Mikayla Blythe and Julia Prescott. I'm your

36:03

host, Chris Parnell. Our

36:05

producer was played by Elise

36:08

Morales. Susan Chapman, the

36:10

telegraph operator, was played by Mary

36:12

Burdson. Sound

36:14

design is by Ryan Potesta. Our engineers are

36:16

Austin Lim and James

36:18

Quezada. Additional audio assistance

36:20

by Adrian happier.

36:22

Emma Reynolds is our associate

36:24

producer. Our managing producer is Ryan

36:26

Moore. Chenue Aboto is our

36:28

coordinating producer. Matthew

36:30

Wise is our senior producer, our

36:32

executive producers are Sochi

36:34

Dorsey, Stephanie Gens and

36:36

Marshall Louie for wondering.