Natl Archives -- Linda McCarthy ("From Pigeons to Predators"):
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- Description of Pictures: In "From Pigeons to Predators: How Communications Helped Shaped U.S. History and Espionage," espionage historian Linda McCarthy will highlight the evolution of communications technology from the time of carrier pigeons to modern day unmanned drones. McCarthy will explore intriguing and little known elements of this timely topic using rare period photographs from her private holdings.
The speaker was introduced by Susan Clifton, Public Programs Producer, Center for the National Archives Experience, National Archives and Records Administration.
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- Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
- NALM_060510_003.JPG: Susan Clifton and Linda McCarthy
- NALM_060510_019.JPG: Linda McCarthy
- NALM_060510_098.JPG: Slides were marked "History is a Hoot, Inc, -- All Rights Reserved" so I'm not typing them into the main section.
The Father of American SIGINT: Alfred J. Myer's wigwag system, which relied on flags, lanterns, torches and numeric codes, is considered the first "wireless" communications network.
Keen Lookouts and Little Flags: "Their signal station... commanded a view of every movement. We could not make a maneuver in front or rear that was not instantly revealed by keen lookouts... It was this information, conveyed by little flags upon the mountain top, that no doubt enabled the enemy to concentrate his force against our weakest points..." -- A Richmond Correspondent
Professor Lowe's "Frequent and Accurate Reports": Thaddeus Lowe (1832-1913), American balloonist. Chief Aeronaut of the Balloon Corps (BC) or Aeronaut Department (AD).
"I ascended to the height desired and remained there, keeping the wires hot with information" -- Thaddeus Lowe.
The Flying Telegraph Train: A temporary measure to facilitate message relay across a limited theater of operations, this electrical SIGINT system emphasized expediency over permanency.
The Great War: "In military service, all possible means of communication are used, including the most primitive. However, the best and most rapid are the electrical methods. These include the ordinary wire telegraph, telephone, and wireless or radio apparatus." -- The Principles Underlying Radio Communications, published by the U.S. War Department, 1918
"The ordinary wire telegraph": To help cover a shortage of military telegraphers, hundreds were recruited from private industry, most notably the Bell System and several railroads.
"The wireless or radio apparatus": Radio, with its reliance on waves instead of wires, played a limited role in World War I. Most sets were too large and cumbersome for use in trenches. No compact or portable unit materialized before the end of hostilities.
"The telephone": Telephones were introduced in large numbers, helping to compensate for the technological shortcomings associated with telegraphy and radio.
Can you hear me now?: By the time of the armistice that ended World War I, the Signal Corps had strung nearly 23,000 miles of wire. The practice of wiretapping originated with the flying telegraph lines of the Civil War.
325th Field Signal Battalion: African Americans were recruited for Signal Corps training and duty, ultimately serving with distinction in the 325th Field Signal Battalion.
The "Hello Girls": Sworn into the Army, these 200 women were issued uniforms, dog tags, gas masks, and steel helmets. Veteran's status was granted 60 years after the war ended.
Plan "B": When electrical communication lines were disrupted by combat or sabotage, the Army resorted to more traditional means.
The Wizard War: "This was a secret war, the Wizard War... No such warfare had ever been waged by mortal men." -- British Prime Minister Winston Churchill
An American soldier operates a commo station atop the Eiffel Tower. From here, he could communicate with military bases in Great Britain, Washington, DC and Germany.
Enigma and house it was "bombed": Estimates have the war in Europe shortened by at least two years because British and American cryptanalysts broke Enigma. The ability to read Enigma messages played a major role in Allied victories.
A CIA Enigma: The CIA Museum's three-rotor model is fully functional, thanks to some minor repairs made with materials obtained from a local Radio Shack. By the end of World War II, five-rotor models had been introduced, providing up to 200 quintillion (that's 200 followed by 18 zeros) possible permutations.
Bombes Away: Variations of the Bombe were developed to break Enigma's ciphers.
[I stopped photographing after I saw the copyright "all rights reserved" notice at the bottom of one of the slides.]
- NALM_060510_128.JPG: Linda McCarthy and Alli Jessing
- Bigger photos? To save server space, the full-sized versions of these images have either not been loaded to the server or have been removed from the server. (Only some pages are loaded with full-sized images and those usually get removed after three months.)
I still have them though. If you want me to email them to you, please send an email to guthrie.bruce@gmail.com
and I can email them to you, or, depending on the number of images, just repost the page again will the full-sized images.
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