Alta Telegraph Company
Encyclopedia
The Alta Telegraph Company was a telegraph company which operated in the mid-19th century within the state of California
prior to the construction of the Transcontinental Telegraph
. It was incorporated in the early 1850s. Its first line was constructed during 1854, stretching from Sacramento
to Marysville
and extending up into the foothills of the adjacent Sierra Nevada
mountains. In subsequent years, a line was constructed between Sacramento and Benicia
. From Benicia, a branch line was extended to Vallejo
and the US Navy yard at Mare Island
.
between Benicia and Martinez
, and a connecting line constructed from Martinez to Oakland
over the Berkeley Hills
. It was this line which gave rise to the name "Telegraph Road" for the thoroughfare which the line followed down the western slope of the hills, which later became Telegraph Avenue
in Oakland and Berkeley
.
to San Francisco
, but the cable failed to work. An alternate route was used, extending around the southern end of the bay via San Jose
. This route, however, was already used by the competing California State Telegraph Company under a special act of the State of California. The California State Telegraph Company successfully sued the Alta Telegraph Company for infringing on what they considered a monopoly grant. The suit was upheld by the California Supreme Court.
.
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
prior to the construction of the Transcontinental Telegraph
First Transcontinental Telegraph
The First Transcontinental Telegraph was a milestone in electrical engineering and in the formation of the United States of America. It served as the only method of near-instantaneous communication between the east and west coasts during the 1860s....
. It was incorporated in the early 1850s. Its first line was constructed during 1854, stretching from Sacramento
Sacramento, California
Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
to Marysville
Marysville, California
Marysville is the county seat of Yuba County, California, United States. The population was 12,072 at the 2010 census, down from 12,268 at the 2000 census. It is included in the Yuba City Metropolitan Statistical Area, often referred to as the Yuba-Sutter Area after the two counties, Yuba and...
and extending up into the foothills of the adjacent Sierra Nevada
Sierra Nevada (US)
The Sierra Nevada is a mountain range in the U.S. states of California and Nevada, between the California Central Valley and the Basin and Range Province. The Sierra runs north-to-south, and is approximately across east-to-west...
mountains. In subsequent years, a line was constructed between Sacramento and Benicia
Benicia, California
Benicia is a waterside city in Solano County, California, United States. It was the first city in California to be founded by Anglo-Americans, and served as the state capital for nearly thirteen months from 1853 to 1854. The population was 26,997 at the 2010 census. The city is located in the San...
. From Benicia, a branch line was extended to Vallejo
Vallejo, California
Vallejo is the largest city in Solano County, California, United States. The population was 115,942 at the 2010 census. It is located in the San Francisco Bay Area on the northeastern shore of San Pablo Bay...
and the US Navy yard at Mare Island
Mare Island
Mare Island is a peninsula in the United States alongside the city of Vallejo, California, about northeast of San Francisco. The Napa River forms its eastern side as it enters the Carquinez Strait juncture with the east side of San Pablo Bay. Mare Island is considered a peninsula because no full...
.
Telegraph Road
In April 1859, a cable was run across the Carquinez StraitCarquinez Strait
The Carquinez Strait is a narrow tidal strait in northern California. It is part of the tidal estuary of the Sacramento and the San Joaquin rivers as they drain into the San Francisco Bay...
between Benicia and Martinez
Martinez, California
Martinez is a city and the county seat of Contra Costa County, California, United States. The population was 35,824 at the 2010 census. The downtown is notable for its large number of preserved old buildings...
, and a connecting line constructed from Martinez to Oakland
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
over the Berkeley Hills
Berkeley Hills
The Berkeley Hills are a range of the Pacific Coast Ranges that overlook the northeast side of the valley that surrounds San Francisco Bay. They were previously called the "Contra Costa Range/Hills" , but with the establishment of Berkeley and the University of California, the current usage was...
. It was this line which gave rise to the name "Telegraph Road" for the thoroughfare which the line followed down the western slope of the hills, which later became Telegraph Avenue
Telegraph Avenue
Telegraph Avenue is a street that begins, at its southernmost point, in the midst of the historic downtown district of Oakland, California, USA, and ends, at its northernmost point, at the southern edge of the University of California campus in Berkeley, California...
in Oakland and Berkeley
Berkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
.
Lawsuit
From Oakland, the Alta Telegraph Company laid a cable under San Francisco BaySan Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay is a shallow, productive estuary through which water draining from approximately forty percent of California, flowing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers from the Sierra Nevada mountains, enters the Pacific Ocean...
to San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, but the cable failed to work. An alternate route was used, extending around the southern end of the bay via San Jose
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
. This route, however, was already used by the competing California State Telegraph Company under a special act of the State of California. The California State Telegraph Company successfully sued the Alta Telegraph Company for infringing on what they considered a monopoly grant. The suit was upheld by the California Supreme Court.
Mergers
Soon after the lawsuit, the Alta Telegraph Company decided to merge into the California State Telegraph Company, which itself was eventually incorporated into the nationwide Western UnionWestern Union
The Western Union Company is a financial services and communications company based in the United States. Its North American headquarters is in Englewood, Colorado. Up until 2006, Western Union was the best-known U.S...
.