I recently read Mary Morton Cowan’s book Cyrus Field’s Big Dream. I remembered learning in school that Cyrus Field laid the first transatlantic telegraph cable, but hadn’t known much else until I read Cowan’s book. Her story revealed just how many times he attempted and failed at this feat, losing tons of money, the confidence of his investors, and the faith of American and British citizens, all things I previously didn’t know. But he kept trying. Success came at great length and expense, but he did it. I found his story one of inspiration, as well as one packed with adventure. I interviewed Mary Cowan about her work delving into Field’s life. It’s an interesting read, which I highly recommend. If you have a young history lover in your life or one who thrives on adventure stories, this book will make a great gift.
Read the Transcript
Kathy:As a writer, everything I write begins with what I call “a spark.” You said the Heart’s Content Cable Station Provincial Historic Site captured your imagination. Can you tell us a bit about how that led to this book?
Mary: I had no plans to write a biography of Cyrus Field. But my visit to the cable station in Heart’s Content, on the island of Newfoundland, fascinated me. In addition to hearing docents talk about cable pioneers and seeing lots of cable samples, I spied a model of the ship, Great Eastern, which played a major role in cable-laying. I had crossed the Atlantic Ocean in a hurricane years earlier, and to say it was an adventure is putting it mildly! I thought laying a telegraph cable across that angry sea must have been treacherous. Right away, I started reading about it. I had written an adventurous biography earlier (Captain Mac, about Arctic explorer Donald MacMillan). When my editor, Carolyn Yoder, asked me for another one, Cyrus Field came to mind. He surely lived a life of adventure!
K: In school, the only thing I learned about Cyrus Field was that he laid the first transatlantic telegraph cable. I don’t remember reading anything about all his struggles and failures that preceded his doing it. How much did you know about the man before you began your research?
I knew absolutely nothing about Cyrus Field until I visited the cable station in Heart’s Content. The more I learned, the more compelling his story became.
K: As a writer, I have also dealt with struggles and failures, and I found Cyrus’s journey inspiring. Did you find parallels in your life to his? And did you intend the book to be inspirational to your readers?
Struggles and failures are part of our lives. Cyrus’s were monumental compared to mine, but I have struggled to persevere after failing, when giving up seemed easier. I hadn’t originally intended to write an inspirational biography. I was writing an adventure. But I quickly found Cyrus’s courage, perseverance, and integrity so inspiring, that of course I wanted to portray that to readers.
K: Life in the 19th century seemed more tenuous than today. Your book tells of Cyrus’s search for his brother lost at sea and of the death of his 4-year-old son. Did you find any evidence of how these incidents might have affected Cyrus?
My research revealed that in the 1850s, more than one-half of the children living in New York City died before age five – perhaps due to unclean water, or by raw milk brought in from outlying areas. But no matter whether childhood deaths were common or not, they were huge losses and caused much suffering. Cyrus wrote little about his son’s death. Diving headlong into the cable project helped him cope. One of his daughters later wrote that Arthur’s death brought her parents closer together. When I visited the family cemetery plot in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, I noticed young Arthur’s small gravestone. Cyrus and his wife had it inscribed, “How many hopes lie buried here.” I also found a gravestone of a broken column, depicting Cyrus’s brother Timothy’s life, cut short by drowning at sea. Cyrus’s family was a close one – and he, along with other family members, searched for years for any news of his brother. He followed every lead to learn of Timothy’s fate, which assures me that the subject was never far from the surface of his mind.
K: When I research for a book, some incidents don’t make it into the final book. Do you find the same thing in writing non fiction? And would you like to share anything here that isn’t in the book?
It may not happen as often in nonfiction, but there were a number of interesting scenes that couldn’t fit into the book. In nonfiction, the true story has already happened, so right from the beginning, I have some idea what needs to be left out. Cyrus played more of a role in the Civil War than I could include, because it didn’t relate directly to the goal of laying a telegraph cable across the ocean. For instance, when you read historical accounts of a confederate raid on St. Albans, Vermont, you might read that a British official and a commanding Union general were dining together in New York City when the raid happened, and the general received a telegram about it.
What you seldom read is that they were dining at Cyrus Field’s house, that the general received the message via Cyrus’s personal telegrapher, and that Cyrus influenced the general’s response, to avoid further conflict between the Union and Great Britain. There are several interesting anecdotes. Also, Cyrus focused on other ventures after the cable succeeded, but my story stops when the cable is laid.
K: Is there a question I haven’t asked that you would like to answer?
As happened with Captain Mac, young people ask me, “Why did you write a book about that man?”
I answer with a question. “Have you ever heard of him?”
“No,” is the reply, with heads shaking.
“That’s why,” I tell them.
I enjoy learning about unusual topics, and I like introducing young readers to people they don’t know, especially people who have made a contribution to society. I also enjoy “placing” a person in his or her time in history, and since most young readers have some knowledge of the Civil War, and are familiar with Abraham Lincoln, they can fit Cyrus into his place in history, even if they can’t imagine what life was like before cell phones and instant communication!
