FIELD, Cm's WEST (1819-921. An Ameri can financier, the projector and promoter of the first submarine telegraph cable bet ween Europe and America, born at Stoekliridge. Mass. Ile was the brother of David Dudley Field, the eminent lawyer, and of Justice Stephen .1. Field of the United States Supreme Court. At the age of fif teen. abandoning the idea of a college education, he removed to New York City. At the cud of three years he removed to Stockbridge, but two years later he again removed to New York. lie was at first in the employ of A. 'I'. Stewart, and afterwards junior partner in a firm of paper mer chants. A disastrous failure having ensued, Field effected a temporary settlement with the creditors and set up in an independent business. Close ap plication finally rewarded his efforts; he took his brother-in-law into partnership, and on January 1, 1853, at the age of thirty-three, retired from active participation in the business, with a for tune of $250,000.
A meeting with Frederick N. Gisborne a Canadian electrical engineer, in 1854, deter mined the channel into which Field's indomi table energy was to he turned. Gisborne was in New York attempting to interest capitalists in an undertaking to construct an overland tele graph line across Newfoundland, connecting, Cape Ray and Cape Breton by fast steamships or carrier piocons, and perhaps. eventually by a sub marine cable under the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. Field took Gisborne's plans under advisement, and, in studying up the matter, became convinced not only that the scheme was practicable, but that the time was opportune for organizing a com pany to lay a transatlantic cable from Newfound land to Ireland. He was not the first to enter tain such an idea, but he was the first to put it into operation. With this more extended pur pose in view, Field set to work to interest some of his friends, with the result that in May, 1854, was organized the New York, Newfoundland and London Telegraph Company, with Peter Cooper as its president. In 1856 the United States Go• ernment, at Field's request, sent Lieutenant Berryman in the Arctic, to take deep-sea sound ings along the route of the proposed cable. with the result that the existence of the telegraphic plateau was confirmed. A British expedition under Lieutenant Dayman, sent also at Field's solicitation, further confirmed this fact. In
August, 1857. the first attempt at laying the cable was made from Valentin, on the Irish coast. It failed, but in June, 1858, attempts were resumed. Time and again a start was made, but always unsuccessfully, 200 miles being the great est length laid.
In spite of these disheartening failures, Mr. Field did not despair, and in July another at tempt was made, this time with success. On August 16, 185S, the first message was trans mitted from Queen Victoria to President Bu chanan. But even while the success of the under taking was being celebrated the cable broke. Mr. Field's firm had failed as a result of the panic of 1857, and he was now compelled to go into bankruptcy. Still he did not lose heart, nor give up his faith in the ultimate suc cess of a transatlantic cable. A contract was let to an English construction company. a new cable was constructed, weighing 300 pounds to the mile instead of 107 pounds. the weight of the old cable, and the Great Eastern, the largest steamship afloat, was chartered to lay it. On July 23. 1865, the Great Eastern, with Mr. Field on hoard, started westward from the Trish coast.
near Valentin, but the (table broke within 600 miles of the Newfoundland coast. On July 13, 1866, the Great East. rn started from Valentin on her second, and this time triumphant, voyage. The Newfoundland coast was reached on July 27th without a mishap, and the land connection was successfully made. From this time on com munication with Europe by telegraphic cable was undisturbed. The succeeding years wore spent by Mr. Field in railroad development. lie was one of the original projeetors of the elevated railroad system in New York City, re signing its presidency and that of the Wabash, Saint Louis and Pacific Railway in 1880, on retiring from active participation in business. Business reverses troubled his last years. Con sult: Isabella Field Judson this daughter), Cyrus W. Field: His Life and Work (New York, 1896) ; also H. M. I ieid, History of the .1 auntie Tile graph (New York, 1867) ; Reid. The Telegraph in America (New York, 1878) ; Bright and Bright, Life of ,sir charles Tilstan Bright (Lon don, 1898) ; Russell, 7'he .Itlantie Telegraph (London, 1868).