1st August 1939
The telephone line between Jersey and the mainland is inaugurated
Jersey was connected to the mainland by a very circuitous route at the beginning of August 1939 when the Postmaster-General, Major GC Tryon, placed a call from a London post office to the Lieutenant-Governor and Bailiff in Jersey.
The Times explained that, before reaching the co-axial cable that had been laid across the seabed, the call first had to travel from the capital to Compass Cove, near Dartmouth, but the achievement was sufficient to gain national press coverage, and generate excitement about what it might lead to.
Although the cable was at the time carrying just one call, when fully exploited it would allow 12 simultaneous Jersey to mainland calls, four between Guernsey and the mainland, and five between Jersey and Guernsey.
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Other events that occured in August
Jersey men are permitted to marry their dead wives’ sisters
- Differences of opinion between the British and Jersey legal systems means some marriages may not be entirely legal.
- Read more…
Two men drown at St Ouen’s bay
- Two men drowned in Jersey's St Ouen's bay after heading into the water to rescue one of the friends they were holidaying with.
- Read more…
ITV broadcasts final episode of Island at War
- Island at War was a tale of life in the occupied Channel Islands. Taking inspiration from real-life events, it was set on a fictional island.
- Read more…
Napoleon lays into Jersey in the French press
- Napoleon accused Jersey of granting asylum to criminals condemned to death, then sending them on raiding missions back into France.
- Read more…
