Western Union

A singing wire runs through the territory of the Oglala. This is what the Oglala call the Western Union telegraph line through the US Midwest. For some, it is a communication path between heaven and earth that invites animistic dances to bring rain; for others, it is the continuation of the treks and trails that now transmits data by electrical means. Both utilise immaterial forces for material purposes. The indigenous people believe they are securing their livelihoods, the trust believes more in the power of telecommunications and its money and data flows. What sings in the wire flows over the heads of the Oglala, exclusively in the service of the telegraph company and the society from which it originates. To this end, the Trust relies on trust. To this day, it sells safe routes for safe business. One of the first is concluded by an outlaw with the company founder Creighton: ‘I trust you.’ Western Union is more an image-political media historiography than a US founding myth: The Western accompanies and illuminates the dematerialisation of the railway. (Karl Sierek)

Introduction by Karl Sierek on 7 November 2024

Courtesy George Eastman Museum

Photo: Austrian Film Museum