Western Electric 293A Hotel Phone

[Sargeguy]

The 293A is sometimes referred to as the "Hotel Phone" because they were common in hotel rooms in the early part of the last century.  This is the true 293A "Hotel Phone" however.  Considering my ever-expanding collection of 293 and 295s it was only a matter of time before I scored one of these.  I have been waiting for one with all the buttons and switches intact and this one is pretty close

[Sargeguy]

Here are some more detailed pictures and some pictures of the interior:

[Sargeguy]

It is in excellent shape overall.  As you can see it is missing a screw here and there.  I need to replace the housing, diaphragm and cap for the OST receiver as well.  I will most likely replace the transmitter, since it originally had an un-insulated type, and add a knurled thumbscrew.  At $125 it came in just under my absolute max, but it's not like you see these everyday, so I am pleased with it. 

[WesternElectricBen]

That is really cool, its interesting how it says Manager, not front desk, or janitor, not maid.

And what is door latch, could you lock the door from your telephone?

Ben

[poplar1]

Door latch was to "buzz someone in" in apartment buildings where guests had to call you before they could get past the lobby.

[WesternElectricBen]

Good Point

[Greg G.]

The side buttons are the same as an apartment phone, but the switch on the front clearly says Central/Hotel.  I imagine the Hotel position was to reach the hotel switchboard to ask to be connected to another room.  

[cihensley@aol.com]

Very nice. I can see why you are pleased.

Chuck

[poplar1]

Back to Ben's question: What then is the purpose of a door latch button in a hotel room?

[Phonesrfun]

My vote is apartment.

[poplar1]

The converted 293As are not often found. What you see more often are the metal wall phones with a separate wood box with buttons mounted on the same backboard. On this model, the holes are drilled for all 4 functions--a lever for switching from outside line to intercom and 3 pushbuttons for Manager, Janitor and Door Latch.

Here is one that is currently for sale on Ebay. Notice that it has a plate where the 2-line switch would be. And although there are 3 pushbuttons labeled, it is equipped with only 2 pushbuttons instead of 3. Many of these phones don't have the 2-line switch; in that case,  they were probably used just for intercom. 

Both sargeguy's phone and this one have a buzzer in addition to the line ringer. 

[G-Man]

Used in a residential hotel it could be connected to the occupant's private telephone line while still being able to connect with the front desk, janitor or manager's office. The bells would have responded to ringing on the outside line while the buzzer was used on the internal system.

Note that it was a standard set most likely modified at a WECo distributing house. The paper labels would not have been applied in the areas where the cutout for the keyswitch is and also note their uneven cuts; definitely not a factory job.

Very possible that the HOTEL designation instead of APARTMENT (or similar) was customized per the customer's request.

In use the occupant would move the key to CENTRAL for normal outside telephone calls on his private line. For internal calls he would move it to HOTEL and press the appropriate signaling key.

And of course, a visitor would press a key at the from door to signal the occupant who would  flip his key to HOTEL, remove the receiver, and converse with the visitor to determine whether to allow them admittance by pressing the DOOR key.

[G-Man]

It is also interesting to note that the only signaling key that was wired is for the MANAGER. The terminals on the JANITOR and DOOR keys were never soldered.

[G-Man]

While I am not certain what the true designation for this modified set is, here is a wiring diagram for an actual 293A. It is the same as shown on the door label marked CANCELLED since it was modified.

An actual 293A was sold for use either on regular subscriber lines or with apartment/hotel pbx switchboards. A regular 293A was capable of being wired for party-line use.

[poplar1]

It is also interesting to note that the only signaling key that was wired is for the MANAGER. The terminals on the JANITOR and DOOR keys were never soldered.

G-Man, that's a good catch. This confirms what you said about being customized for a particular customer. By the time the metal phones were used, instead of not soldering wires to unused buttons, they just plugged the holes. Looks like in the box with the metal phone, the wiring harness is there ready to be connected to the lever switch if needed.