Samuel Morse
Samuel MorseEarly Life
Samuel Morse: a man, an artist, and an inventor. He knew as a childhood love, he was an
artist. But the thing he did not know was that out of his love of art and curiosity would come
an invention. His invention, now obsolete, was a great weapon of war and means of
communication for everyone. Born April 27, 1791, in Charleston, Mass. Morse was the
oldest son of Rev. Jedidiah Morse and Elizabeth Ann Breese. From early on in his
childhood he had a talent in his art. At the age of eight Morse was taken to Phillips
Academy, where his father was a trustee. He was taken to Phillips Academy, where his
father was a trustee. He was unhappy under their rule, and twice as homesick, so he fled
back to Charleston. He entered Yale at 1805, was called home, and did not graduate till
1810. His classmates at Yale admired his art, and he was unknown for his miniatures in
ivory. After his graduation all he wanted to do was study art. His father opposed the idea.
That was the start of all his work.
Hard work had its rewards. His first achievement was of his first love…. Art! Morse
modeled a figure of Hercules in clay. A professor liked it so much, he told Morse to enter it
in a competition. He won the gold medal. Morse submitted another painting, and it was
among the top nine out of the thousands in the exhibit. He returned to Boston hoping to sell
his art. He went through many years before he came the well-known portrait painter.
Socially Morse was successful, but people visited his studio to see his art, but not buy it.
As a young artist in London, he disdained portrait painting. Portraits are all Americans
would buy. Morse wanted to do more then paint portraits. He wanted to do historical
pictures. There his love for art deflated.
Morse became interested in telegraph in 1832. There was lots of work to do. The work
wasn’t easy, and he did know how long it would be till Congress accepted. Morse had no
money so he couldn’t buy insulated wire. After five years of work, he was ready to
demonstrate the telegraph. He hoped the men who saw it would like it...
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