Page:Brunswick 100 Years of Memories.pdf/177

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THE TELEGRAPH

at 7:30 PM, he had to explain why he missed most of his son's fourth birthday party. The telegram was delivered at noon the following day!

When Samuel F. B. Morse tapped- "What hath God Wrought!" - between Baltimore and Washington on ·May 24, 1844, his message traveled on a wire strung in the right of way of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. That event not only opened a vast new era of communication, it was the genesis of a long-lasting and mutually-profitable partnership between railroads and telegraph companies. Railroads needed improved communication - something more rapid than their own trains, which were, in themselves, the fastest communication medium at the time. With the telegraph companies needing rights of way and operators, each was able to fulfill the other's needs. Soon, just about every railroad station agent became a Morse Code telegrapher capable of sending and receiving messages on the old key and sounder sets. Blair Harrington worked 40 years in B&O towers and stations of the area, including "WB" tower and Brunswick station. When he first started at Weverton in 1948, there were still some messages being transmitted by operators using the key, but a larger portion was being handled by telephone. Teletype machines had also arrived on the scene and were used in larger offices such as "BN" in Brunswick. Brunswick's connection with the Western Union Telegraph Company was "WB" Tower, where operators handled commercial messages for the public in addition to their duties for the railroad. Blair recalls that about age 13, he and other youngsters delivered telegrams for operator Clarence Shewbridge after school, and that the "mill" sent a daily message over the wire. "Urgent" messages would be telephoned to the addressee if possible, with the delivery following later. "WB" also had the sad job of handling those tragic messages in World War II when too many of our young men did not come home. With all the modern equipment now available - computers, microwave transmission, and FAX machines - the telegraph and its operators are mostly pleasant memories. But there is a little story that may give an insight as to what at least one local telegraph operator considered to be important. While this is a true story, it certainly must not be considered as typical of the excellent service usually rendered by B&O people. It seems that in 1951 a daily commuter, trying to get home from Washington on the "early" local, had just missed it by a minute. He immediately telegraphed his wife in Brunswick stating he would be on the "second" local an hour later. Arriving home

S - Blair Harrington W-BRH

WTRI - BRUNSWICK'S RADIO STATION On January 5, 1962 the sum of $4,000 was paid to Brunswick's Mayor and Council by Frank and Janet Manthos and George and Mary Gillespie for a parcel of land on which Brunswick's radio station was to be built. It was located on New York Hill, east of Scheer Stadium, the municipal swimming pool and the new high school. The radio station has changed hands over the years but has continued in operation. Mr. Bert Thornton, one of the prior owners, was always very accommodating when a radiothon was needed to raise money for a good cause. Subsequent and current owners have continued this good-neighbor policy. The station operates with a power of 500 watts at setting 1520 on the AM dial. The program format is primarily "Country and Western." It has been owned and managed by Allen Salisbury since 1986. W-BLC

Do You Know ... That for entertainment the town kids would go down to the canal, ride a distance on a boat, then walk back. There used to be storage buildings along the line, both east and westbound, well away from the tracks. The "gandy" car sat near the shed at the eastbound crossing in Brunswick for years. What the "old main line" is? It's the line from Point of Rocks to Relay. What the "Metropolitan Branch" is? The line from Point of Rocks to Washington, D.C.

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