If you are a ham radio operator of a certain age, you probably remember ads for “The Instructograph,” a mechanical device for learning Morse code. [Our Own Devices] has an ancient specimen of the ...

Inside the Supreme Court chamber of the U.S. Capitol on May 24, 1844, Samuel F.B. Morse sat down to make history. The moment was the culmination of more than 12 years of work, and it was only in the ...

It doesn’t always work out this way, but sometimes older is faster. Two Morse code men recently bested a fast-fingered teen “texting” a message via cell phone in a high-profile digital duel that aired ...

“Calling all. This is our last cry before our eternal silence.” With that, in January 1997, the French coast guard transmitted its final message in Morse code. Ships in distress had radioed out dits ...

We talk about Morse code, named after its inventor, Samuel Morse. However, maybe we should call it Vail code after Alfred Vail, who may be its real inventor. Haven’t heard of him? You aren’t alone.