My Sisters Telegraphic: Women in the Telegraph Office ... - Monoskop

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DAILY LIFE IN THE TELEGRAPH OFFICE
of the telegraph operators was further stratified. A chief operator supervised
technical operations, first-class operators handled press reports and market
quotations, and second-class operators handled local traffic and personal
messages. 10
Duties of the Manager
The manager of a telegraph office oversaw the general operations of the office,
which included hiring and firing of personnel, payroll, recordkeeping,
assignments and promotions, and liaison with corporate headquarters. Although
most managers were male, it was not uncommon for women to
manage a commercial office.
Typically the manager was a telegrapher who had come up through the
ranks, as operator and then chief operator. Hettie Ogle, manager of the
Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Western Union office in the 1880s, started as the
sole operator in 1869 and rose through the ranks as the office grew and new
personnel were added. She maintained a low profile about her gender, signing
official correspondence as “H. M. Ogle”; many at Western Union
thought the Johnstown manager was a man. 11
Some women found that a willingness to relocate led to better opportu-
Figure 10. Hettie Ogle,
manager, Johnstown,
Pennsylvania, Western
Union Office, 1889.
From McLaurin, The
Story of Johnstown, 178.