American Bell/Western Electric Display, Paris Exhibition 1889Paris, France hosted the 1889 World’s Fair, the Exposition Universelle, from May 6th to October 31st of that year. This was the centennial of the storming of the Bastille, and the newly-completed Eiffel Tower provided an elegant, modern entrance to the pavilion. American Bell Telephone, eager to conquer Europe, was on-hand with displays showcasing the services and products of Bell and Western Electric. As seen here, a telephone pole, complete with crossarms and insulators, served as a beacon for the exhibit. The exposure of this photograph is poor at best, but close inspection reveals all sorts of nifty details for the antique phone maven. To facilitate such study, I’ve made the image available here in both big and huge versions. I have another view of the fair, a hand-tinted overview that is 3334×2502 (3.5 meg) in size… big. I was hoping to spot the Bell exhibit in the photograph, but didn’t have any luck. Perhaps you’ll fare better. (fair better… get it?!)