DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE BUREAU OF THE CENSUS SAM. L. ROGERS, DIRECTOR CENSUS OF ELECTRICAL INDUSTRIES: 191~{ TELEGRAPHS AND MUNICIPAL, .ELECTRIC FIRE-ALARM AND POLICE-PATROL SIGNALING SYSTEMS WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 19l~ . CENSUS OF ELECTRICAL INDUSTRIES: 1917. TELEPHONES. ELECTRIC LIGHT AND POWER STATIONS AND STREET AND ELECTRIC RAILWAYS. TELEGRA.PHS AND MUNICIPAL ELECTRIC FIRE-ALARM AND POLICE-PATROL SIGNALING SYSTEMS. (2) -- CONTENTS. TELEGRAPHS. LAND AND OCEAN CABLE TELEGRAPHS. LAND TELEGRAPHs--continued. Page. Scope of the report..................................... _. 9 Weather Bureau-Continued. Page. Equipment and traffic: 1917.................... ............. 9 Glen Haven-North and South Manitou, Mich .......• _..•. , 21 Income account... _........................................ 10 Alpena-Middle Island-Thunder Bay, Mich ........ _•..... , 21 Expense account..... II Grand Marais-Whitefish Point, Minn. _.. _................ _ 21 Balance sheet............................. _..... _.... _....... 11 Beaver Island, Mich •............ "" ............. ,.,.,. _ 21 Employees, salaries and wages ... _....... _... _.... __ . 12 Tatoosh-Port Angeles, Wa.ah............................. 21 Comparative summary: 1902-1907 ... _. _... _. _..... _. __ .. _.. • 12 North Head, Wash ................... _....... : .......•. _ 21 San Francisco-Point Reyes, Calif. ................. _...... 21 LAND TELEGRAPHS. Commercial systems ........ _... ___ ...... _.. _. __ . _. _. .. 13 OCEAN CABLE TELEGRAPHS. Comparative summary ..... _. _., _.... _. _. _................... 13 Central and South American Telegraph Co ................ __ _ 21 Income account.................. _..... ___ . _........... _... 16 Commercial Cable Co ....... _....................... , ...•.. _. 21 Operating expenses ...... _... -........ __ . _. _. _" __ . _. _.. .. .16 Commercial Cable Co. of Cuba ... _.. _. _......... , ...... - ___ •• .; 21 Telephone operations.... 16 Commercial Pacific Cable Co. _. __ ....................... __ . • 21 Railway telegraphs and telephones. _.. -........... :.......... 17 Mexican Telegraph Co ..... _........... _......... __ .. _..... _. 21 Train dispatching by telephone............................. 18 United States & Haiti Telegraph & Cable Co. _., ............ __ 21 Governmen.tal telegraphs and telephones ............. __ . 19 Western Union Telegraph Co .........................,. -.~. _. .,. 21 Panama Canal Zone ........................... ~............. 19 Po:rto Rico .......•.................... ~ .. ~ ....... " •. .. 20 WIRELESS TELEGRAPHS. Washington-Alaska Military Cable and Telegraph System _. 20 Commercial systems .................... _.....•. _.•. "'" __ ., _ 24 Philippine Islands .........•....... " .................. , ~... 20 Weather Bureau. 20 Railway systems ........... _........... _........ _.••..•... _•• ~ • 27 Block Island, R. L-Narragansett, R. 1................... 20 GOVERNMENT WffiELESS. , Norfolk, Va.-Hatteras, N. C............................. 20 Mount Weather-Bluemont, Va .......................... _ 21 Naval stations .. '" ... ". '" '" ..........•..... _............ __ _ 27 Key West-Sand Key, Fla................................. 21 The Arlington station. _. __ . _......... _. _.• __ .......... ___ .. __ 27 MUNICIPAL ELECTRIC FIRE-ALARM AND POLICE-PATROL SIGNALING SYSTEl\fS. Page. Scope of the inquiry....•.................................. _................................... _................................. _ 31 Combined fire-alarm and police-patrol signaling systems ..•.................................. _......... _... ~ .................. __ _ _ 32 Methods of administration ....................•.............................. _................. __ . _.... _........ _.... _........ _. 32 Fire-alarm and police-patrol systeillfl in municipalities: 1917 •.•..........•...................................... _.........•.•• _. _ 32 Municipal electr~c fire-alarm and police-patrol signaling systems, by geographic divisions, states, and municipalities: 1917 .•• _.•..... _ 33 Underground wires ...•....... _...... '......................... _....... ~ .. ' .. '...................... _..... ' .... _................. __ . 51 Electric fire-alarm and police-patrol signaling systems, miles of single wire in subways or conduits in cities of 30,000 inhabitants or more ...•... _•••.... _•..... _...... _.. __ ..•.. _•.................................... _......................... _........ ~ . 52 Electric fire-alarm and police-patrol signaling systems, miles of single wire in subways or conduits, by states .............•. '.' .. ___ . _ 53 Fire alarms, fire loss, aSsessed valuation, and insurance ....................................................... _... _..... __ . _. __ • 53 Number of fire alarms) assessed valuation of property, property loss by fires, and insurance paid, in municipalities having a population of 30,000 inhabitants or more: 1917, 1912, and 1907 ... ~ .........•.•...•.......•...•. _.•...•...•.•...•........ 7"" _ ••• -_"'.'_ 54 APPENDIX. page. Schedule used in securing statistics of telegraphs ....... _. _. _............................ _.•.............. _.............. -... _. - 59 Schedule used in securing statistics of municipal electric fire-alarm and police-patrol signaling systems ....... _........... _.. , .....•• 60 Instructions to special agents .............. __ ...........................•. '" ........ , ..•..... "" .............. ~ . .. ..... .• 60 (3) LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE, BUREAU OF THE CENSUS, Washington, D. G., May 1,1919. 8m: I transmit herewith the report on the census of telegraphs and municipal electric fire-alarm and police­ patrol signaling systems for 1917. This report is a part of that on Electrical Industries which in its entirety covers telephones, electric light and power stations and street and electric railways, and the report presented herewith. This is the third report on these industries that has been taken in conformity with the requirelnents of the act of Congress of June 7, 1906. The work of obtaining the data for the report was done by clerks detailed from the permanent force of the bureau and by correspondence, and the statistics were secured during the year 1918 and relate in general to the year ending December 31, 1917. The statistics were collected and the report prepared under the supervis~on of Eugene F. Hartley, chief statistician for manufactures. Acknowledgment is also made of the services of Mr. William. A. Countryman and Mr. George F. Fuller, who assisted in the preparation of the text and analytical tables. Respectfully, SAM. L. ROGERS, Director oj the Census. Hon. WILLIAM C. REDFIELD, Secretary of Gommerce. (5) TELEGRAPHS (7) TELEGRAPHS. LAND AND OCEAN CABLE TELEGRAPHS. Scope of the report.-The statistics of the fifth wages are shown, these data being all for which com­ census of telegraphs are presented ill this report, and plete segregation were made between land a:p.d ocean relate to the calendar year 1917. They cover the systems. operations of the land ~nd wireless commercial com­ The schedule used in securing data for this report panies in continental United States, and of the cable is reproduced on page 59. Owing to the small companies or systems incorporated in the United number of telegraph companies, it was not found States. ' necessary to issue special instructions to the agents The incidental commercial telephone operations of engaged in securing statistics of telegraphs. General all commercial telegraph companies are included in the instrucVions to special agents covering 1~he canvass statistics, but no figures are given for the traffic of of all electrical industries in 1917, ar~ reprinted in the newspaper or press associations conducted over appendix to this report, page 60. private or leased wires. Equipment and traffic: 1917.-Table 1 shows data for The figures for railway telegraphs are solely for l~nd and ocean systems, both combined and sepa­ Class I roads (those having annual operating revenues rately, for 1917, giving the number of systems, miles of $1,000,000 or more) and relate only to ownership, of pole line, wire mileage, number of offices, and and operations by pole and wire mileage, with special number of messages by kind. statements concerning train dispatching by telephone. These railway statistics are not given in any of the Table 1 LAND AND OCEAN elLBLE TELEGRAPHS. commercial tables nor in the commercial summaries. All the commercial systems in the country are Total. !land Ocean. owned by incorporated companies. The statistics .of Number of companies or systems ........... _ 128 21 7 Miles of pole line aggregate ..•... , .•. "." •.. 241,128 :141,012 116 governmental lines shown in separate tables include Owned, totaLJ ........•..... , ....•.. , ... , 192,413 Jl92,413 .•....••.. On reporting company's right of way. 484 484 """"" land, cable, and wireless systems wherever located, On highway •.•.•..•..•••...•........ 24,384 24,384 """"" On railway right of way •............ 167,545 167,545 ••.•••••.. whether ill Alaska or in other noncontiguous United Leased, total. •••....•........•. , .......• 48,715 48,599 116 Onless01"sright of way ..........•.. 3,457 3,457 ••.••.•... States territory. These statistics are fragmentary, On highway. """'" ...•........... 2,252 2,136 116 On railway right of way ........•••.. 43,006 43,006 •••••. , •.. however, although an attempt has been made to show Miles of single Wire, aggregate ..•............ 1,890,245 1,888,793 1,452 1,809,482 1,808,325 1,157 complete commercial