The double lever proved challenging to send with. It is possible to close both the dash and the dot at the same time, in which case the dash covers up any dots. It took me most of a year to figure out how to send with it. Now it is one of my favorite keys with a soft mainspring, light weight and velvety lever.

The key was the home depot key of the KATY RR in Denison, TX. The first owner's name, Ed Chalissot, is engraved on the frame. He sold it in 1933 to a young telegrapher, Tennesse Melton. Melton was headwuartered at Smithville, and later promoted to RR Superintendant during World War II. A colorful character, he road his horse around the rail yard to make inspections. he never missed a chance to be quoted or photographed by the newspaper. In the fifties, he fell out of favor, and was demoted back to telegrapher.. As telegraphy was outmoded, unions forced railroads not to fire telegraphers, just let them retire. Angry at the railroad, Tennessee never retired. he kept coming in to work each morning with his key, a cup of coffee, and the newspaper until he was in his eighties. the KATY went bankrupt in the early eighties, and Tennesse was finally out of a job, and sold his key with the proviso that it never be given to the railroad museum then under construction in Denison. and that is how I have come by it.

Status: Scarce. Made from 1910 until about 1922. This key had been repainted and converted into a single lever. No one wanted it, but me. I disassembled it, cleaned it up, and applied 24 coats of lacquer, sanded, polished, added the pin-stripes. Good friend, KR, N6WU (SK), a machinest, recreated the missing dash lever for it. The entire project took most of a year. This is an early 1910 key using some parts from Norcross and Atlanta days, and a center pinned circuit closer. It has no serial as is the case for keys from that year during the patent law suit.