The general public will be able to send actual telegrams on souvenir stationery to anywhere, using the same equipment that was used in the 1850's.

The telegrams will be sent from Parkes to Beechworth and posted from there to their destination using Australia Post.

Telegrams lodged by the public will be sent to Beechworth by morse code, received on the souvenir stationery and posted to their destination, on the next working day. 

The morse code instruments that will be used are the same as those used sending and receiving in the telegraph network since the 1850s, until the morse code was withdrawn in 1962. 

However it remained in Parkes and used as an order wire, until the last operator was transferred in 1965, and then withdrawn completely. 

Morse code was gradually withdrawn by the Postmaster Generals Department.

The last telegram using Morse Code was sent in 1962.

Later in 1988 the telegraph service was withdrawn altogether.

Whilst this situation existed morse code still remained at the main centres including Parkes and used as an order wire until there were no more morse code operators to man the system.

This was the case in Parkes when the last morse operator took on other duties and the morse code was finally withdrawn in 1965.

As an added attraction the general public will be able to send a message by themselves and it will be printed in morse code on a monitor  in front of them.

As well people can have their names sent by morse code on a local basis and receive it instantaneously on souvenir stationery.

The display will be manned by locals Keith MacRae and Eddie Parrott, Brian Mullins and Cec Mann from the Telstra Museum at Bankstown and Peter Hack from Temora.

These officers will be available to answer any questions from the general public.