The electric telegraph, as we know it, sent its first official message in 1844. For the first time in history, a message could travel the miles at virtually the speed of light. Since the American West was so vast, so far from the eastern seat of government, and still expanding, the telegraph closed the distance, in a sense. Updated prices, standardized time zones, train schedules, it could all be sent much faster than even the Pony Express. News could arrive as it happened, so cowboys no longer had to wait on riders or word of mouth.