Author: Morris Butler
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Telephone Historical Centre archieves

Visits to museums that chronicle telecommunications history can be fun and educational family excursions or school field trips. These museums honor those who built poles, laid wires and designed and implemented technology allowing us to stay in contact.

The Telephone Historical Centre in Edmonton, Alberta was founded by retired ED TEL employees in 1987 to preserve telecommunications history.

Museum of Independent Telephony

At this virtual telephone museum, you can learn about the history and impact of telecommunications technology on society. With historical photos and news articles as well as an impressive selection of telephones from different periods from which you can test yourself as an operator as well as gathering more insight into its creation from those involved in making history happen!

At this museum, visitors are immersed in retro telecommunications equipment from all eras of communication history – everything from two metal cans on wires to large switching systems that enable visitors to make calls across the room. Tours are led by knowledgeable guides who don’t hesitate to demonstrate this equipment – such as two giant cranks that enabled long distance calls!

This museum focuses on the history of independent telecommunications companies. When Bell Telephone’s patents expired in 1893, approximately 6,000 independent companies came into being all across North America. Additionally, the museum features an original C. W. Parker carousel dating from 1901.

Roseville Telephone Company Museum

Placer County offers many historical treasures from Auburn’s courthouse to Tahoe City’s ski legacy; but few destinations combine history, entertainment and education quite like Roseville Telephone Company Museum does. Situated in downtown Roseville and presented by SureWest Communications, it displays one of the country’s finest collections of antique telephones.

An guided tour through the museum transports you back in time as you pass relics that harken back to the golden age of landline telephones. Plus, get up close and personal with one of the first switchboards from 1914, complete with colored balls to signal calls and 25-foot phone cords! Guides who currently or retired employees of the phone company are there to share knowledge and entertaining stories from this piece of technological history; plus you’ll discover plenty of insulators of all sizes as well as classic rotary phones and novelty models!

Jefferson Telecom Museum

At Iowa’s historic Jefferson Barracks Park lies this museum that’s more than just an exhibition of old phones: It provides an interactive history lesson complete with working Central Office step switches, operator switchboards and military telephones as well as being an ideal destination for group outings. Run by Telecom Pioneers (retired Bell workers who run it as nonprofit organization), many artifacts came directly from pioneer basements, attics or personal collections of its members while its most valuable treasure – published less than a year after Alexander Graham Bell received his patent – remains hidden inside!

The library also houses an impressive collection of historical materials, including vintage telephone directories and technical manuals on telecom technology and history. A genealogy reference section is also available for researchers.

Oklahoma Museum of Telephone History

The Museum of Telephone History showcases an expansive collection of telephone items dating back to 1900. Displays include switchboards, crank wall phones and decorator phones as well as tools used by telephone linemen such as wax pots for dipping newly spliced wire and stretchers; in addition there is also a Wheatstone bridge which measures resistance in cables to locate trouble spots.

Bob McCoy, a retired Southwestern Bell engineer, started collecting old phone equipment. In 1997 he donated it to the Museum of Telephone History located on Dean A. McGee Street in Oklahoma City.

Oklahoma Museum of Telephone History boasts a collection of varied items that offer insight into the Trans-Mississippi West history. These include diaries and journals, personal correspondence, literary manuscripts, scrapbooks, business records and much more. Furthermore, maps and posters from this era can also be found here as well as original volumes such as The Telephone: An Account of Electricity Magnetism and Sound which was published in 1877 by their Library.

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Telephone Historical Centre Visiting hours

Few inventions have had as profound an effect on business, society and culture as the telephone. This extensive collection traces its development from Alexander Graham Bell’s gallows frame phone through to mobile technology used today.

The Museum makes for an enjoyable and educational family outing, school field trip or group sightseeing tour experience. Operated by Telecom Pioneers – a non-profit 501(c)(3) Bell System employee service organization.

Admission

The Telephone Historical Centre boasts an extraordinary collection of artifacts spanning more than a century of communication innovations, from Alexander Graham Bell’s invention through modern smart devices. These exhibits showcase this technology at its best!

This unique museum was founded by retired ED TEL employees and originally located in an Old Strathcona telephone exchange building. After opening to the public in 1987, it later moved to Prince of Wales Armouries Heritage Centre where it has remained ever since.

This museum is one of the largest of its kind in North America and provides visitors with a hands-on experience of telephone history. Staffed by volunteer docents–current and former ED TEL employees alike–the museum offers visitors a memorable tour. Popular destinations for school field trips and sightseeing tours alike, this attraction also houses novelty phones such as Spiderman and Ronald McDonald phones to make learning about phones enjoyable for both children and adults.

Exhibits

From Alexander Graham Bell’s inaugural phone in 1876 to modern cell phones, this collection of telephone-related objects and equipment chronicles technological developments. Exhibits include an exquisite full-sized magneto switchboard, step-by-step automatic branch exchange system and rare phone booths; as well as antique wooden wall phones from the 1800’s such as candlestick style phones or novelty phones as well as explosion proof phones designed specifically to be used in mines or environments where minor sparks could cause havoc.

Knowledgeable docents – current and retired employees of ED TEL volunteering their time – are on hand to guide visitors through the displays at the museum. A technical library offering telephone-related books, catalogs, publications, Edison insulators of various shapes and sizes as well as future exhibits such as Clinton Central Office or step-by-step exchange systems will round out its offerings.

Special Events

The Telephone Historical Centre is one of America’s premier museums of telecommunications. This unique museum showcases the creativity, craftsmanship and industry associated with telecom technology over more than 2600 years – using working equipment to show its progression over time.

The museum features a replica of an old telephone exchange and displays of glass insulators. Furthermore, there is an impressive collection of vintage phones and switchboards from which visitors can gain insight into the history and impact of Bell System technology in modern society. Visiting this institution provides an ideal way of learning more about this important part of American history.

In 1987, retired employees from ED TEL established this museum at Prince of Wales Armouries Heritage Complex in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Now among the largest phone museums in North America, it offers activities suitable for all ages with knowledgeable docents available to guide visitors through its exhibits and share knowledge on different pieces of equipment exhibited therein. Plus there’s always the famous interactive robot, Xeldon!

Parking

Telephone Historical Centre can be found within Prince of Wales Armouries Heritage Centre in central Edmonton and is one of its most captivating museums. Established by retirees from ED TEL in 1987, it has since expanded into becoming the largest museum of its type in North America.

The museum showcases an expansive collection of antique telephones and related equipment from around the world, along with other telecommunication-related pieces. Perfect for both adults and children, visitors will be treated to engaging interactive displays that are both educational and enjoyable.

Paid parking options are available around the museum, though be mindful not to enter the ZTL (restricted zone). If you have a disabled hangtag or license plate, however, any space may be used without incurring an extra fee.

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The museum features wooden box telephones, candlestick wall phones and classic rotary phones as well as antique line insulators from all eras of telephone history. Exotic painted backdrops add visual interest while equipment displays include step-by-step private automatic branch exchange systems and panel systems.

The museum features working Central Office type switching equipment as well as outdoor plant displays of poles, cables and splicing tools. A cataloged library of telecom literature is also available.

History

Few inventions have had as significant an impact on global connectivity as the telephone. To honor its legacy, museums and historical centres dedicated to this seminal invention offer comprehensive accounts of its development as well as showing how its evolution has transformed lives and communication practices over time.

Alexander Graham Bell became known as the “father of the telephone” after successfully litigating against Elisha Gray over credit for this revolutionary invention. Although other inventors predated him (such as Italian innovator Antonio Meucci and French inventor Charles Bourseul), Alexander Graham Bell became widely accepted as its creator due to prevailing in a lengthy intellectual property battle over who truly deserves credit for its creation.

The Phone Museum in Ellsworth is an expansive space bursting with vintage telecommunications technology from years past. From candlestick wall phones and the phone used by telephone operators to report President William McKinley’s death in 1897 to working Panel and Crossbar electromechanical central-office switches and outside plant displays with poles, cables, splicing equipment and tools; to a catalogued telecommunications reference library and more! The exhibits range from candlestick wall phones all the way through working switchboard exhibits featuring working Panel Crossbar electromechanical central-office switches as well as outside plant displays featuring poles cables, cables splicing equipment & tools and an extensive cataloged reference library on telecom technology history!

Exhibits

The museum showcases exhibits that cover all eras of telephone history from Alexander Bell’s first telephone in 1876 up until mobile technology’s rise today. Visitors can try their luck at working switchboards while learning about communications’ evolution over time.

Highlights of the exhibition include a Kellogg universal switchboard that enables visitors to reenact how operators would have connected circuits years ago – it even works! There is also an impressive display of candlestick wall phones as well as the McKinley phone (1897), used to report President McKinley’s assassination report and early crank telephones from 1897 onwards.

Full-sized magneto switchboard and Step-by-Step automatic branch exchange system highlight the development and impact of telephone technology in business, society and culture. Other exhibits include an expansive reference library as well as outdoor plant displays with poles, wire and splicing equipment – truly an experience not to be missed! One of Canada’s largest and most extensive collections of telephone related items. Do not miss it!

Events

At this museum dedicated to communications technology, visitors will find an impressive collection of telephones and related equipment on display, complete with full-scale mannequins and recorded narration that document innovations in this industry. A working switching station can also be seen here; run by Telecom Pioneers (a non-profit 501(c)(3) Bell System employee service organization), this museum makes for an interactive journey.

From Alexander Graham Bell’s groundbreaking gallows frame phone to modern cell phones, this museum provides an interactive experience for visitors of all ages. Visitors can crank wall phones, operate manual switchboards, dial rotary phones and dial wall phones; while learning about telecom history – especially how privacy was often compromised during early telephone usage when strangers could easily eavesdrop on private conversations.

The Museum of Broadcasting and Telecommunications is an essential visit for anyone who appreciates communications technology. Housed in a restored 1896 building, this attraction hosts an impressive collection of telephones and related equipment; perfect for family adventures, field trips with school groups and group outings alike!

Education

At Historic Jefferson Barracks Park in Cle Elum lies one of the largest collections of telephones and related equipment west of the Mississippi River. This Museum showcases over one century of telephone development from Alexander Graham Bell’s attic workshop to what we all use today – our modern phones.

The Museum is run entirely by volunteers – former and current telecom workers passionate about preserving telephone history. It makes an ideal destination for family visits, school field trips and group sightseeing tours.

Our collection features an exquisite full-sized magneto switchboard, Step-by-Step private automatic branch exchange and rare telephone booths. Our exhibits chronicle technological changes to the telephone while offering fascinating glimpses into business culture and society. Our ‘Telephone Workshops’ encourage enthusiasm for engineering by exploring electric theory, mathematics and engineering with old and new telephones – we even conduct multi-year formative evaluations to assess its effect on participants’ engineering interest, understanding of electric theory as well as historic advancements to semiconductor architecture.

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The Telephone Historical Centre is a museum of communications technology. It contains rare examples of telephone equipment from every era – from Alexander Graham Bell’s attic workshop to modern mobile phones.

Volunteers educate youth on electricity and engineering through hands-on exploration of old and modern telephones at the Museum, while an impressive collection of glass insulators awaits their perusal.

Educator Workshops

The Telephone Historical Centre is a non-profit corporation dedicated to researching, collecting, organizing, documenting, exhibiting and storing telecommunications history. In addition, they house one of the country’s largest privately held telephone museum collections as well as conduct educational programs.

Find out how Alexander Graham Bell refined Samuel Morse’s telegraph into the modern telephone that enabled people to communicate across continents and oceans. Discover various exhibits at this hands-on museum, such as working step switches, xy switches, panel systems; artifacts from Bell Attic Workshop and an organized telecommunications library cataloged for your viewing pleasure.

Participants will leave with a framework and direct examples on how to teach social action using critical literacy lens, with emphasis on institutionalized and interpersonal racism issues as they pertain to both Common Core, C-3 History Standards and best practices for teaching with primary sources. This virtual workshop runs twice annually; teachers can earn professional development credit during each 90 minute session.

Community Groups

The Telephone Historical Centre is one of North America’s premier telecommunications museums, chronicling how telephone technology has progressed from solid wooden wall-mounted phones to today’s cell phones. Volunteer escorts take visitors through exhibits that showcase this technological marvel that revolutionized communication.

The museum houses an impressive collection of working panel and crossbar electromechanical central office switches as well as outside plant displays of poles, cables, splicing equipment and tools for poles and plants in general. Furthermore, there is the last step-by-step automatic branch exchange in Europe as well as an exquisite full-sized magneto switchboard on display in its halls.

The museum reaches out to former telephone workers and items start arriving from garages and sheds across Edmonton. Since opening in 1987, its collection has greatly expanded – now including over 10,000 objects as well as its incredible multi-media historical telecommunications theatre show with its famous talking robot “Xeldon.” It is an engaging stop for history lovers, families and school groups on field trips or sightseeing tours of Edmonton.

Private Tours

Take a step back in time at Edmonton’s largest telephone museum. Boasting hands-on displays and working switch equipment, this remarkable collection chronicles the history of telecomms technology and offers visitors a glimpse into its impact.

Educators lead groups through the core exhibit galleries that showcase an assortment of historical telephone items, from wooden box phones and candlestick phones to decorating phones and classic rotary dial models – the museum provides a feast for the senses! In addition, tools used by your ancestors as well as cases filled with various shapes and sizes of insulators are all on display here.

Telephone Historical Centre initially opened in Old Strathcona in 1987 but moved later that year due to relevance and structural issues with its foundation, eventually becoming part of Prince of Wales Armouries Heritage Centre later that same year. Now overseen by Telecom Pioneers – an association composed of former employees from Bell Systems.

Special Events

History enthusiasts, families, school field trips and sightseeing tour groups all find this museum engaging. Home to one of North America’s largest collections of telephones and related equipment from Alexander Graham Bell until today’s communications technologies; on display are an operator switchboard as well as panel systems used by private automatic branch exchange systems; candlestick wall phones used to report William McKinley’s assassination are on show, along with an original Kellogg universal switchboard showing how operators connected circuits manually prior to automated systems being more commonplace; candlestick wall phones depicting this period include one used by George McKinley himself!

THG volunteers, both current and retired telecom employees, began the organization when they recognized that historical items were being lost as buildings closed down, companies consolidated, or staff was laid off. THG is an independent non-profit supported by membership dues, research fees and grants and maintains both an impressive archive as well as two museums.

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Telecommunications history comes alive at this 4,500-square-foot museum. It chronicles and celebrates over 100 years of wired communication technology in Roseville, nationally and internationally.

Pole climbers, phone booths, telephone switchboards once used locally but now part of the Museum collection; wood-and-steel phones as well as one of the first cell phones can all be seen here.

History

With an expansive collection of phones spanning from the first telephone to mobile phones, this telecommunications museum makes an exciting stop for phone enthusiasts, history lovers and school groups on field trips. Colorful painted backdrops add vibrancy to equipment displays like operator switchboards, Step-by-Step private automatic branch exchange systems and panel systems.

Prior to automated systems making telephone connections much simpler for users, calls between non-local numbers and local lines required manual transfer through a central office. Operators were often female; companies actively canvassed neighborhoods looking for suitable operators who could handle the switches of telephone switches.

As part of this enjoyable tour, current and retired Bell employees volunteer their services as guides for visitors through the exhibits. There are hands-on displays that spark children’s curiosity about technology and history; Boy Scouts may use this museum towards fulfilling Inventing and Engineering merit badge requirements; an original Kellogg Universal switchboard illustrates manual switching used at telephone exchanges before automated systems became commonplace.

Technology

The museum documents technological changes to telephones while collecting old models as reminders of what has come. Their collection features an exquisite full-sized magneto switchboard, step-by-step automatic branch exchange, and rare phone booths.

Walls within walls and anterooms were used to maintain stratification between ruling elites and middle and working classes before the telephone came into existence. A 1920s trade catalog announced it was difficult to imagine modern business being conducted without using phones.

The museum’s hands-on workshop allows children and young adults to discover electricity and engineering by capitalizing on America’s remarkable telephone history. By comparing modern day semiconductor architecture with historically significant artifacts, it arouses children’s curiosity similar to that which drove telephone inventors of years past. Furthermore, telecommunications related technology is available for educational and outreach activities within the community while there is also a library housing reference material and books related to telecom.

Artifacts

THG collections showcase many facets of modern telecom, from a book of sketches documenting its construction in Almonte-Pembroke in 1886 to fiber optic artifacts dating back to its first fibre optic tests in Brantford in 1917 and pieces used by linemen, tools for use during lineman tests, early Brantford tests wire, as well as albums full of stamps depicting this field from all around the globe. Of particular note are duplicate items placed in Beaver Hall building cornerstone, duplicate tools for linemen use and an early fibre optic artifact dating from 1917, plus albums full of stamps depicting all facets of telecom today from around the globe!

Colourful painted backdrops accent equipment displays, such as an operator switchboard and last step-by-step central office type switching system as well as crank wall phones. The museum is an engaging stop for phone enthusiasts, families and school groups touring Edmonton sightseeing tours or field trips.

THG was established by a group of telecom employees alarmed at seeing historical items being thrown away when buildings were demolished or considered obsolete. Now, THG maintains one of North America’s largest telecommunications reference libraries and two museums, housing thousands of pieces from wired communications history spanning Bell Canada’s early days, trans-Canada Telecom affiliates like Northern Telecom as well as foreign countries’ telecom materials.

Exhibits

Our museum boasts telephones from every era, such as Edmonton’s first manual system phone installed in 1878. Additionally, there are central office type switchboards, crank wall phones and hundreds of pieces of equipment, such as our fully functional operator switchboard.

Our collection boasts many rare artifacts, such as Alexander Graham Bell’s Gallows Frame Telephone and Thomas A. Watson’s Thumper Telephone, as well as Thomas A. Watson’s Thumper Telephone from Thomas A Watson himself. Additionally, there is a fully functioning stepping switch which shows how early telephones were connected together.

Telephone Historical Centre features an extensive library of telephony publications and materials, providing researchers and collectors with invaluable resources. An annual exhibition called “telephone show” gives local collectors an opportunity to display their memorabilia in an educational setting. Furthermore, workshops foster curiosity that led to telephone invention and teach children and young adults electrical theory and engineering using old telephones as well as modern day semiconductor technology.

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