Who was responsible for the invention of the telegraph?

The telegraph, a groundbreaking technology for long-distance communication, is primarily credited to Samuel Morse. He, along with his collaborator Alfred Vail, developed the Morse code, a standardized method of encoding letters and numbers into a series of dots and dashes. This code became integral to how messages were transmitted over telegraph wires, facilitating rapid communication over long distances for the first time in history.

Morse's work began in the early 1830s, and by 1844, he successfully demonstrated the telegraph by sending the message "What hath God wrought" from Washington, D.C., to Baltimore, marking a significant moment in communication technology. This invention laid the groundwork for future innovations in communication, particularly in the use of electrical signals to convey information quickly.

The other individuals mentioned made significant contributions in their respective fields—William Sturgeon is known for his work in electromagnetism, Thomas Edison for his numerous inventions including the phonograph and the electric light bulb, and Alexander Graham Bell for inventing the telephone. However, none of them was responsible for the invention of the telegraph itself, which solidifies Samuel Morse's role in this particular technological advancement.