1920s Western Electric Apartment Hotel Telephone
Pricing & History
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Feast your eyes on this beautiful antique telephone, a rare model, seldom seen. This model was normally found in a hotel or apartment house. If you remember the show âeoeMaryâe starring Mary Tyler Moore, Carlton the Doorman called her on this model to announce visitors. This 1920âe(tm)s telephone came to me from a demolition in San Francisco several years ago. It was an apartment house that bought this telephone from the telephone company for a house phone. And itâe(tm)s amazing how it was used. If the tenant wanted to talk to someone within the building, such as the janitor, manager, or doorman, he would throw the lower switch to the right for âeoeHouse System.âe If the tenant wanted to call outside the building, he would throw the switch left for âeoeCentral Officeâe and could place an outside call. I painstakingly dismantled this instrument in the 1990âe(tm)s upon acquisition, and made a major restoration to it. As they âeoemodernizedâe the apartment over the years, they painted this phone several times. I removed layers of ugly paint of varying colors, all brushed on with a paintbrush, till it was not even recognizable. The top metal housing received a semi-flat black powder coat finish, the dial stripped and refinished, calibrated, oiled, etc. The transmitter was stripped to the brass, polished, and clear coated. The speaker
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