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Lot 64

AMERICAN CIVIL WAR POCKET SPY TELEGRAPH SET.
Signed "L.G. Tillotson & Co., 3 Dey St. New York," c. 1864.

21 September 2015, 13:00 EDT
New York

US$3,000 - US$5,000

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AMERICAN CIVIL WAR POCKET SPY TELEGRAPH SET.

Signed "L.G. Tillotson & Co., 3 Dey St. New York," c. 1864.
Complete telegraph sending and receiving system, coils mounted horizontally, lever and key, housed in original 5 x 2.25" hard rubber case with diced pattern on four small metal feet.

A very rare pocket-sized complete telegraph sending and receiving set. Used by Union spies during the US Civil war to tap into and listen to Confederate telegraph messages. To do so, a Union Spy would throw a bare wire over any Confederate Army's un-insulated telegraph wires, and attach it to a grounded bayonet to complete the circuit. The Union Spy could also use the telegraph key to send false information to the enemy.

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