Ticker tape
Early electrical medium for transmitting stock prices over telegraph lines.
Ticker tape was the first dedicated electrical system for sharing financial information, sending stock prices over telegraph wires. It used a narrow paper strip fed through a machine called a stock ticker, which printed abbreviated company names as letter symbols followed by numbers showing the price and volume of each trade. The machine’s printing noise gave it the name “ticker.”
This system changed financial markets by delivering updates from trading floors continuously and simultaneously to many locations at once. Paper ticker tape became outdated in the 1960s as television and computers took over the transmission of financial data. Still, the idea of a stock ticker survives in the scrolling electronic displays seen on brokerage walls and financial news channels.
The stock ticker was invented in 1867 by Edward A. Calahan, who worked for the American Telegraph Company and later founded The ADT Corporation.
Earlier telegraphic printing systems had been created by Royal Earl House in 1846, but they were fragile, needed hand-cranking, often lost synchronization, and never saw wide commercial use. David E. Hughes improved the design in 1856 by adding clockwork weight power, and George M. Phelps made it commercially viable in 1858 by adding a resynchronization system. Calahan developed the first stock price ticker using a telegraphic printer in 1863 and unveiled it in New York City on November 15, 1867. Early versions used Morse code symbols to send messages. One of the first practical models, Thomas Edison’s Universal Stock Ticker from 1869, printed alphanumeric characters at about one per second.
Before tickers, stock prices were delivered by hand in written or spoken messages. Because individual quotes were useful for only a short time, they were rarely sent far; instead, daily summaries were transmitted. The ticker’s speed allowed faster, more precise sales. Since it ran continuously, price updates arrived much sooner, making trading more time-sensitive and introducing near real-time transactions.
By the 1880s, about a thousand stock tickers were installed in New York bankers’ and brokers’ offices. In 1890, exchange members formed the New York Quotation Co., buying all other ticker companies to guarantee accurate reporting of price and volume.
- Inventor
- Edward A. Calahan
- Year invented
- 1867
- First unveiled
- November 15, 1867
- Location of first unveiling
- New York City
- Period of use
- around 1870 to 1970
- Printing speed of early edison model
- approximately one character per second
- Number of tickers installed by 1880s
- about a thousand
Lore & Background
Although telegraphic printing systems were invented by Royal Earl House in 1846, early models were fragile, required hand-cranked power, frequently went out of synchronization, and did not become popular. David E. Hughes improved the design with clockwork weight power in 1856, and George M. Phelps devised a resynchronization system in 1858. The first stock price ticker system using a telegraphic printer was invented by Edward A. Calahan in 1863; he unveiled his device in New York City on November 15, 1867. Early versions used the same symbols as Morse code. One of the earliest practical stock ticker machines, the Universal Stock Ticker developed by Thomas Edison in 1869, used alphanumeric characters with a printing speed of approximately one character per second.
Previously, stock prices had been hand-delivered via written or verbal messages. Since the useful time-span of individual quotes is very brief, they generally had not been sent long distances; aggregated summaries, typically for one day, were sent instead. The increase in speed provided by the ticker allowed for faster and more exact sales. Since the ticker ran continuously, updates to a stock's price whenever the price changed became effective much faster and trading became a more time-sensitive matter. For the first time, trades were being done in what is now thought of as near real-time.
By the 1880s, there were about a thousand stock tickers installed in the offices of New York bankers and brokers. In 1890, members of the exchange agreed to create the New York Quotation Co., buying up all other ticker companies to ensure accuracy of reporting of price and volume activity. The machines printed a series of ticker symbols followed by brief information about the price of that company's stock; the thin strip of paper was called ticker tape. The word ticker comes from the distinct tapping noise the machines made while printing. A typical 32-symbol letter wheel had to turn on average 15 steps until the next letter could be printed, resulting in a very slow printing speed of one character per second. In 1883, ticker transmitter keyboards resembled the keyboard of a piano with black keys indicating letters and white keys indicating numbers and fractions.
Reader's Guide
Ticker tape revolutionized financial markets by relaying information from trading floors continuously and simultaneously across geographical distances. It provided the first mechanical means of conveying stock prices over a long distance via telegraph wiring, transforming trading into a more time-sensitive, near real-time activity. The ticker tape became obsolete in the 1960s as television and computers were increasingly used to transmit financial information. However, the concept of the stock ticker lives on in scrolling electronic tickers seen on brokerage walls and on news and financial television channels. Simulated ticker displays, named after the original machines, still exist as part of television news channels and on some websites. One of the most famous outdoor displays was the simulated ticker scrolling marquee called the "Zipper" at One Times Square in New York City. Ticker tapes then and now contain generally the same information: ticker symbol, shares traded, price traded, change direction (downtick and uptick), and change amount. Many today include color to indicate whether a stock is trading higher (green), lower (red), or unchanged (blue or white). Used ticker tape was often repurposed as confetti for ticker tape parades, primarily in lower Manhattan, celebrating events such as the end of World War I and World War II or the safe return of early astronauts. Actual ticker tape is no longer used in these parades; pieces of paper from paper shredders are often used instead.
Did You Know?
- The term 'ticker' came from the sound made by the machine as it printed.
- Edward A. Calahan invented the stock ticker in 1867 and later founded The ADT Corporation.
- Thomas Edison developed the Universal Stock Ticker in 1869, which printed about one character per second.
- Ticker tape parades in New York City originally used actual ticker tape thrown from windows.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who invented ticker tape and when was it first shown to the public?
Edward A. Calahan is credited with creating the system, and it made its public debut in New York City on November 15, 1867. It was the first electrical network built specifically to push stock prices out over telegraph wires.
How does a ticker tape machine actually work?
A narrow paper strip threads through a stock-ticker device that stamps abbreviated letter codes for each company followed by the trade price and volume. The steady clicking of the print head is what earned the whole apparatus its 'ticker' nickname.
Why was ticker tape such a game-changer for financial markets?
Before ticker tape, price information moved slowly and reached only one place at a time, but the new system let trading-floor data stream continuously to many distant offices simultaneously. That real-time, multi-location delivery fundamentally restructured how markets operated.
When did ticker tape stop being used?
The paper-strip method began losing relevance in the 1960s as television broadcasts and early computer terminals offered faster, more readable price feeds. Its working life as a market tool spanned roughly from the early 1870s to the late 1960s.
How fast could the early ticker machines print?
The first Edison-model ticker managed only about one character per second, which was sluggish by later standards but still a revolutionary leap for its era. Traders had to track the strip in real time, making sharp eyes and quick reading essential on the floor.
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