Edmonton’s Telephone Historical Centre specializes in collecting, researching, organizing, documenting and exhibiting historical items related to telecom. Offering both group tours as well as educational programs – this one-of-a-kind museum truly makes for an educational experience!
Archives at this museum include vintage telephone directories, technical manuals and oral histories from former telecom employees. Working panel and crossbar electromechanical central office switches; operator switchboards; outdoor plant displays (poles wire insulators) plus an extensive cataloged research library are among the features at the museum.
Gridley Museum of Independent Telephony
Gridley Museum of Independent Telephony chronicles 100 years of communications technology by showcasing antique telephone equipment that will both entertain and educate. Spanning 4,500 square feet, this museum houses working models of many of America’s early phones; an interactive hands-on switchboard; as well as an impressive artifact collection to appeal to tourists of all ages.
The Museum is situated on Center Street near the Gridley Public Library in downtown Gridley and is one of 27 nationwide. This unique museum was the result of several factors: an isolated location too small for major telephone firms to acquire; retirees who opted to save their equipment rather than discard it; and Charles Hoobler himself who, upon selling his controlling interest of Gridley Telephone Company to Rogers Kaufman in 1970, saw its potential.
As soon as visitors step foot inside the Museum, they’re welcomed by an accurate reproduction of a 1920s phone office complete with its still-functioning community switchboard and collection of wooden wall mount phones, candlestick phones and novelty princess phones – not forgetting our rich archive of old technical manuals and telephone directories!
Winter Park Telephone Museum
Winter Park Telephone Museum chronicles its history from hand-cranked switchboard to direct dial pushbutton calling; an exciting tale of community and innovation. Carl Galloway, an ex-Texas telephone-company employee installed an old switchboard above Maitland family grocery store; this ultimately became Winter Park’s lifeline to the outside world.
Moneyed Northerners quickly established themselves, buying homes and opening businesses like a first railroad passenger depot. A black Congregational church was established, followed by Methodist and Baptist missionary churches.
Winter Park depended heavily on citrus for economic development; therefore, consecutive freezes between 1894 and 1895 proved devastating to its citrus industry and economy. By the late 1950s, Winter Parkers rallied to oppose an Interstate 4 route which would have cut through their town center.
Winter Park’s community rallied behind the war effort in various ways. Isabelle Sprague Smith, an artist and school principal from New York who served as president until her death in 1950, founded and ran the Bach Festival Society until its close in 1950. Rollins students took part in relief programs while Rollins College offered courses such as War Problems Literature Psychology Propaganda Proctor Shops offered art-inspired goods as an added measure.
Jefferson Barracks Telephone Museum
The Jefferson Barracks Telephone Museum is housed in a restored 1896 building located within Jefferson Barracks Park – an historical 426-acre park 15 minutes’ drive south from St. Louis, Missouri. The self-guided museum caters to visitors of all ages with guided tours available for groups of 10 or more. Please plan ahead: tours should be scheduled two weeks in advance.
The first room features a working Central Office Step Switch and several operator switchboards from 1920s, 1940s, and 1960s; hundreds of telephones dating back to late 1800s; as well as tools of the trade such as glass insulators, soldering irons, lineman (butt set) handsets; as well as numerous novelty phones on display.
The second room showcases Jefferson Barracks’ role in westward expansion by providing military escorts for merchant trains on the Santa Fe Trail and Oregon and Missouri trails; sending exploratory troops out along these routes; serving as a base for Indian Wars forts; and honoring Civil War casualties by providing memorials. A third room displays numerous Yellow Pages directories as well as tools of trade relating to climbing a telephone pole complete with climbing equipment – these displays make up its collection.
