Western Electric 500 Series Phone, 1960-1969
01
Artifact Overview
The iconic 500 series phone was designed by Henry Dreyfuss and was used in millions of homes across the world for decades. The Bell system began to produce these rugged phones and distribute them to telephone subscribers in 1949. Even after the breakup of the AT&T monopoly in 1984, 500 series phones continued to be produced.
Artifact Details
Artifact
Telephone
Date Made
1960-1969
Creators
Place of Creation
Location
at Henry Ford Museum in Collections Platform
Object ID
2008.0.14.11
Credit
From the Collections of The Henry Ford.
Material
Leather
Metal
Bakelite (TM)
Plastic
Color
Green
Inscriptions
Center of dial: Woodward 4 / 1017
On handset: Western Electric / MADE IN USA / G3
On back of casing: BELL SYSTEM / MADE BY / Western Electric
Keywords |
|---|
02
Related Content
SetCurators' Choice: Info Technology & Communications
- 25 Artifacts
Thomas Edison's electric pen, an ancestor of both the mimeograph and the tattoo needle, was a successful product in the mid-1870s. Users would write normally with the pen, which, instead of a nib, had a needle powered by an electric motor. The needle poked holes into a stencil, which was then used to copy the document. Many businesses found document duplication an attractive possibility.