The Telephone Historical Centre’s collection of telephones and related equipment pays a fitting tribute to generations of workers who put up poles, laid cable lines, and pioneered technologies that transformed communications forever.
Explores Alexander Graham Bell’s revolutionary invention with family papers, diaries and scientific notebooks from his life and time in service of this fascinating project.
The History of the Telephone
The telephone has revolutionized how people communicate, as well as creating an industry. This exhibition examines its origin and the technology that made telephony possible.
This exhibition pays a fitting homage to those who created, maintained, and managed the telephone network over generations of time. They must erect poles, bury cables, oversee technology management systems, install telephones in homes and businesses across America and train people on how best to use them.
Alexander Graham Bell may be best known as the inventor of the telephone, but Antonio Meucci played an integral role in its creation as well. Discover Antonio Meucci’s tale when he created a device known as the Teletrophono in 1860 and filed a caveat (an official notice that someone will file an official patent later) in 1871 – you’ll be able to see one of its prototypes at our exhibit! You will also gain insight into telephone exchanges which were established as ways of interconnecting pairs of telephones together.
The Bell Collection
The Bell collection consists of photographs, drawings and documents. A majority of the photographs in the Bell collection are negatives rather than prints; many were taken by amateur snappers but many also produced professional photographs or even made in Alfred Lobo’s camera!
This collection also boasts drawings, paintings and blueprints. Of particular note are its maps: from ancient surviving world maps that feature all five continents to impressive six panel maps like Kunyu wanguo quantu (Complete Geographical Map of Ten Thousand Countries).
The Alexander Graham Bell Family Papers document his relationship with his family. There are scientific notebooks, blueprints, diaries, articles and correspondence in addition to typed transcripts of many handwritten letters written in order to make them easier for users; though these transcriptions can provide great value as part of an archive collection they cannot replace the original letter itself.
The New Hampshire Telephone Museum
For anyone with an interest in telephones, the New Hampshire Telephone Museum in Warner is well worth a visit. It details their development from Alexander Graham Bell’s original invention through today’s smart phones.
The museum boasts an impressive array of old phones, from wooden wall mounted phones and candlestick phones to princess phones and flip phones. There’s also a working switchboard and group of linemen’s tools; visitors can explore independently or take advantage of knowledgeable staff members to offer guided tours.
Alderic “Dick” Violette and his family have worked in telecommunications for more than 85 years, beginning as field workers before being promoted to manager at Merrimack County Telephone (MCT) in his hometown of Warner. Today, his collection of more than 1000 artifacts can be seen here in addition to Gary Mitchell’s from Woodbury Telephone Company as well as various donated items from members of the public.
The Telephone Archives
No matter your position within education or research, or even simply as a curious individual, the archives contain material that allows you to delve into the history of telecommunications. Our collection features vintage telephone directories dating from 1895 up until present day; technical manuals documenting technological development; and books that discuss its significance.
Archives also hold an array of artifactual material such as scrapbooks, employee awards and commemorative items that demonstrate the depth and breadth of Southern New England Telephone Company and its historical impact in Connecticut.
The Archives are home to several payphone kiosks, such as a Mercury pay phone and KX100 Plus Internet Kiosks that were last deployed by British Telecom during the 90s. We use these in our ‘Telephone Workshops’ so students and young adults can gain knowledge in engineering through mathematics and electrical theory by working with old and new phones.
