I got super interested in old phones after finding my grandpa’s dusty phone bills from 1927. Figured I’d dig into which brands people actually used back then. First step? Hit my local library’s basement archives. Man, those old newspapers crumble like stale cookies!
Hunting Down Dead Brands
Spent hours squinting at microfilm readers checking 1920s ads. Kept seeing three names pop up constantly:
- Western Electric – Big shots making AT&T’s equipment
- Stromberg-Carlson – Fancy wooden wall units for rich folks
- Kellogg Switchboard – Their candlestick phones were everywhere
The librarian thought I was nuts asking for 1923 phone catalogs. “They’re all ashes now!” she said. Had to hunt through moldy theater programs instead where companies advertised.
Handle Problems
Tried finding actual working phones – total nightmare! Drove four hours to some antique radio collector’s garage. He had this rusted Stromberg-Carlson wall phone. Thing weighed like a brick! When I lifted the receiver, dead silence obviously. Felt weird shouting “OPERATOR? OPERATOR?” like they did back then.
The Winner
Turned out Western Electric dominated. Found service records showing their phones broke less. Kellogg candlesticks looked prettier in photos though. My grandpa confirmed it – everyone he knew used leased AT&T sets from Western Electric unless they were show-offs with Strombergs.
Funny thing happened during research: called my buddy using “1920s voice” pretending to be an operator. He hung up! Kids these days don’t appreciate old-timey jokes. Still glad I did this – now I know why that heavy rotary phone in my attic matters.
