Princess Elettra Marconi, daughter of Guglielmo Marconi, visited Cape Cod National Seashore on October 24, 2006. The elder Marconi became known as the “Father of Wireless Communication” when he successfully transmitted the first transatlantic wireless message between the United States (South Wellfleet) and Europe in 1903. The two-way greetings between President Theodore Roosevelt and King Edward VII sparked global wireless communication. The site of Marconi’s former station is now part of Cape Cod National Seashore, and the story of Marconi’s achievement is shared during special amateur radio events and curriculum-based lessons with local students.
Following her visit to the wireless site with Superintendent George Price, Princess Marconi visited the newly-restored Salt Pond Visitor Center, where she was greeted by park staff, watched the historic video about her father, and signed copies of the book she collaborated on with her mother, Marconi, My Beloved. Princess Marconi’s last visit to Cape Cod was on January 18, 2003 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of her father’s history-making achievement. During that visit, the Princess joined several Cape Cod students in speaking via radio to astronauts aboard the International Space Station.
