The Telegraph House is a historic hotel located in
Baddeck, Nova Scotia
Baddeck () is a village in northeastern Nova Scotia, Canada. It is situated in the centre of Cape Breton, approximately 6 km east of where the Baddeck River empties into Bras d'Or Lake.
Local governance is provided by the rural municipality ...
.
History
The hotel was built in 1861 and soon after housed the office of the first Trans-Oceanic Cable Company. The hotel first came to prominence after
Joseph Twichell
Reverend Joseph Hopkins Twichell (November 30, 1838 – December 20, 1918) was a writer and Congregational minister from Hartford, Connecticut. He was a close friend of writer Mark Twain for over forty years and is believed to be the model for th ...
and
Charles Dudley Warner
Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was " ...
stayed there in 1873. Warner subsequently detailed their stay in his book, ''
Baddeck, And That Sort of Thing'' which was published the following year. Warner described the inn as a "very unhotel-like appearing hotel". Having read Warner's book,
Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham Bell (, born Alexander Bell; March 3, 1847 – August 2, 1922) was a Scottish-born inventor, scientist and engineer who is credited with patenting the first practical telephone. He also co-founded the American Telephone and Te ...
and his wife
Mabel Gardiner Hubbard
Mabel Gardiner Hubbard (November 25, 1857 – January 3, 1923) was an American businesswoman, and the daughter of Boston lawyer Gardiner Green Hubbard. As the wife of Alexander Graham Bell, inventor of the first practical telephone, she took th ...
stayed at the Telegraph House on their visit to Baddeck in 1885. After returning to his home in
Washington, D.C.
)
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, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
Bell wrote to Kate Dunlop, the owner of the Telegraph House, telling them that they wished to acquire a cottage for their return the following year. Dunlop put Bell into contact with
Arthur McCurdy (father of
John Alexander Douglas McCurdy
John Alexander Douglas McCurdy (2 August 1886 – 25 June 1961) was a Canadian aviation pioneer and the 20th Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia from 1947 to 1952.
Early years
Son of inventor Arthur Williams McCurdy and born in Baddeck, Nov ...
) who helped Bell purchase a local property. Bell's room has been preserved in the hotel, remaining much the same is it did during his visit.
See also
*
Historic Buildings in Baddeck, Nova Scotia Baddeck, Nova Scotia is a small village on Cape Breton Island with several historic buildings, including:
*The Telegraph House - Constructed in 1861
*Saint Peter's and Saint John's Anglican Church - Constructed in 1883
*Gilbert H. Grosvenor Hall - C ...
*
History of Baddeck
Baddeck, Nova Scotia is a village founded in 1908, with a history stretching back to early Mi'kmaq, French and British settlements. The village was home to Alexander Graham Bell and was witness to the first flight in the commonwealth with Bell's ' ...
References
{{Baddeck
Buildings and structures in Victoria County, Nova Scotia