John Watkins board

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John Watkins board

John Watkins Brett (born June 10, 1805 in Bristol , † December 3, 1863 in London ) was a British telegraph engineer and laid the first functional telegraph cable through the English Channel .

In 1850 Brett made the first attempt, together with his brother Jacob Brett , to establish a telegraph connection between Cap Gris-Nez and Dover . However, this company failed because of the still inadequate insulation and the lack of armouring of the cable. However, the experiment succeeded a year later. This time Brett had worked with four copper wires that were insulated with gutta-percha and protected by tar-impregnated hemp yarn and galvanized iron wires. In 1854, the Brett brothers established a telegraph connection between mainland France and Corsica and Sardinia . They now founded the Mediterranean Extension Telegraph Company and tried to lay another submarine cable from Italy to Algeria . However, this initially failed. Only the cable brake aid used in 1857, which was able to prevent the cable from rushing out too deeply, made this laying possible. The first transatlantic cable laying began in 1858. Here, too, John Watkins Brett was involved.

In addition to his technical achievements, his art collections also made Brett famous.

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personal data
SURNAME Brett, John Watkins
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English engineer
DATE OF BIRTH June 10, 1805
PLACE OF BIRTH Bristol
DATE OF DEATH December 3, 1863
Place of death London