Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom sent the first official telegram across the sea to President James Buchanan of the United States in 1858. However, the temporary cable quickly deteriorated and failed.
On this day, July 27th, in 1866, the first permanent transatlantic telegraph cable was completed, and it was put into service by the next day.
Transatlantic cables sped up communication between the two continents. Previous messages had to be sent by ship, but the cables allowed communication to be sent within a matter of minutes. Because of the technology’s great aid in business, multiple cables were added soon after.