The 19th century introduced new and increasingly efficient forms of transportation and communication to Newfoundland and Labrador. Roads and railways linked many isolated communities by providing fast and convenient modes of land-based transportation, while government-subsidized steamships transported mail, freight, and passengers to remote coastal settlements and urban centres.
At the same time, the telegraph and telephone replaced mail as more efficient means of communication able to place people in almost instant contact with friends, family, or business associates in other parts of the country and the world. The island of Newfoundland, strategically located between Europe and mainland North America, also played an important role in advancing global telecommunications by providing a terminus for the world's first transatlantic telegraph cable.
