Morse tape recorder with tape drum, late 19th century.

Samuel Morse (1791-1872) was an American artist and inventor, who in 1832 conceived the idea of the magnetic telegraph. He later exhibited his idea to Congres and was awarded $30,000 to build an experimental telegraph line between Washington and Baltimore in the United States. He sent the first telegraphic mesage in 1844. He also evolved a code for use with his telegraph, using a dot and dash system to represent the letters in the English alphabet and the ten digits, which became known as Morse code and was widely adopted.