Commercial Pacific Cable Company
| Company type | Joint venture |
|---|---|
| Industry | Telecommunications |
| Founded | 1901 |
| Defunct | October 1951 |
| Successor | American Telephone and Telegraph (AT&T) |
| Headquarters | United States , United States |
Area served | Pacific Ocean region (United States, Philippines, China, Japan) |
| Products | Undersea telegraph cables and services |
| Owner | Commercial Cable Company (25%), Great Northern Telegraph Company (25%), Eastern Telegraph Company (50%) |
Commercial Pacific Cable Company was established in 1901 and terminated its operations in October 1951. It introduced the inaugural direct telegraph connection linking the United States with the Philippines, China, and Japan.
This enterprise was a joint venture comprising three organizations: the Commercial Cable Company holding 25%, the Great Northern Telegraph Company with 25%, and the Eastern Telegraph Company owning 50%. Despite the Eastern Telegraph Company, a British entity, being the principal shareholder, CPCC was incorporated in the United States.
CPCC deployed cable ships to install undersea cables traversing the Pacific Ocean, covering , with an investment near $12 million. Before this development, communications had to be routed either via the Atlantic Ocean through Cape Town and the Indian Ocean, or alternatively through London and Russia to access Japan and the Philippines.
In 1902, the cable vessel CS Silvertown completed the initial segment from Ocean Beach close to San Francisco to Honolulu, commencing service on January 1, 1903. Subsequently that year, cable lines were extended from Honolulu to Midway Atoll, then onward to Sumay, Guam, and ultimately reaching Manila. On July 4, 1903, US President Theodore Roosevelt transmitted the first message that circumnavigated the globe using this network, taking nine minutes to complete.
The year 1906 saw Siemens lay the cable section connecting Guam to Japan's Bonin Islands. In that same year, the India Rubber, Gutta Percha and Telegraph Works Company produced and installed cable between Manila and Shanghai utilizing CS Silvertown and CS Store Nordiske.
During World War I, trans-Pacific telegraph services experienced delays due to technical faults and increased wartime traffic. Although American businesses and government officials urged CPCC to enhance infrastructure or expand capacity, no such investments were made. Following the war, demand remained elevated with repeated assurances for a second cable that were never realized. After the United States entered World War II, the link between Midway and the Philippines was shut down on December 7, 1941, only resuming operations after hostilities ended.
By 1946, significant cable malfunctions had arisen; repairs exceeding $1 million were undertaken. Unable to sustain effective service levels, CPCC discontinued operations in 1951 and merged with American Telephone and Telegraph (AT&T).
See also
- Celso Caesar Moreno and Li Hongzhang made efforts in the 1870s to create a trans-Pacific telegraph cable.
External links
- The Commercial Pacific Cable Company
- The Commercial Pacific Cable Company on Midway
- 1905 Magazine Article with photos
- Completing the Transpacific Cable (September 1903 feature in Marine Engineering)
- Articles with short description
- American companies established in 1901
- American companies disestablished in 1951
- Defunct telecommunications companies of the United States
- Former joint ventures
- History of the Pacific Ocean
- ITT Inc.
- Midway Atoll
- Telegraph companies of the United States
- Submarine communications cables in the Pacific Ocean
- Telecommunications companies established in 1901
- Telecommunications companies disestablished in 1951