1908 Providence Telephone Co. map

[Sargeguy]

Just won this item, a Providence Telephone Co. map dated 1908:

[WEBellSystemChristian]

Very cool Greg!

How many different fonts were used in making the title for that map? I count seven!

[Sargeguy]

Most likely the name of the telco was cut out of a single block and the rest is moveable type.  The map was probably a lithograph or perhaps an etching. That's how they did it in the olden days. 

[unbeldi]

Would love to get a high resolution copy of the map, especially around the Pawtucket area, which seems to be just on the edge of that map.

I just acquired a second telephone from Pawtucket, albeit much later than the vintage of that map.

[Sargeguy]

It is coming from Tolland CT so it should be here soon

[Sargeguy]

Why would you want a map of Pawtucket (unless you were trying to find your way out of there)?

The map arrived but I can't seem to get the Pawtucket part to fit on my flatbed, and it's pretty fragile, so I don't want to fold it back against the crease.  I am looking into getting the whole thing scanned from a place that has a large format scanner.  If not I have an older scanner somewhere that has a removable lid, I'll see if I can track it down.

[unbeldi]

Why would you want a map of Pawtucket (unless you were trying to find your way out of there)?

The map arrived but I can't seem to get the Pawtucket part to fit on my flatbed, and it's pretty fragile, so I don't want to fold it back against the crease.  I am looking into getting the whole thing scanned from a place that has a large format scanner.  If not I have an older scanner somewhere that has a removable lid, I'll see if I can track it down.

oh, just curiosity what the telephone landscape looked like. Not important actually.  Don't spend effort on it especially if it is fragile.

[unbeldi]

PAwtucket 3

ca.1956

Do you know when the 2-5 numbering plan was implemented in Pawtucket, or RI?

[unbeldi]

Here is PAwtucket 5 (725) in the 1960s.
Same wire center/building PWTCRIHI at 85 High Street, Pawtucket.


When did DDD and ANC arrive in Pawtucket, was it uniformly implemented across RI?

Today, PWTCRIHI still serves only the following exchanges: 721 722 723 724 725 726 727 728 729
It is a DMS-100 switch today.   What it still a crossbar before that?


The TENP database lists these records:

25   BL   BLackstone   Pawtucket   RI   USA   1933 directory   Hugh Hamilton <hugh.hamilton
25   BL   BLackstone   Providence - Pawtucket   RI   USA   1932 Providence Telephone Directory   frankants
33   FE   FEderal   Pawtucket-Cumberland   RI   USA   from my collection   nLAmbert
72   PA   Pawtucket   Pawtucket   RI   USA   Memory
72   Pa   Pawtucket   Pawtucket   Rhode Island   USA       Kenbear
72   PA   Pawtucket   Albion   RI   USA   I believe my parents' number was PA2-8282. It was in the village of Albion, in the town of Lincoln.   Tessier
72   PA   Pawtucket   Saylesville   RI   USA   My number was Pawtucket2-2042. The exchange covered Central Falls and parts of what was reorganized into Lincoln, RI (Saylesville was one of the villages.)   smith
73   PE   PErry   Pawtucket   RI   USA   from my collection became PAwtucket 2   nLAmbert
4000   HO   Hopkins   Pawtucket   RI   USA

The Pawtucket exchange apparently included not only the city, but some of the villages surrounding it.

[Sargeguy]

Here are a couple snapshots of the area in question.  I flattened the map under glass to take out some of the wrinkles.  I'll see what I can do in natural light once the weather cooperates. 





Clicking on this link will give you more detail:

http://tinyurl.com/1908-Map-Pawtucket-detail

[unbeldi]

Oh, that's already great.  Thanks much.
With objects like this daylight only alters the color temperature, and I can correct for that digitally easily.

What do the colored lines mean on the map?
Seems the read lines are some kind of district.

Thanks much.

[Sargeguy]

The solid lines are the "better" roads, the dashed lines are "fair" and the dotted lines are "poor".  Not much has changed in Pawtucket's roads since then, apparently. 

Here is a detail of the key from the auction:

[unbeldi]

For the general audience here, attached is the building that the Providence Telephone Co. occupied at the time of the map.

The building was erected in 1892/3, two years after founding the company. In the lobby were telephone stations for public use, for both local and long-distance. The second floor were offices, and the third floor was the switching room.  The fourth and fifth stories were added in 1906, because of rapid growth in service. In 1917, the company left the building for a larger one, because of size limitations once again.

I found it interesting, that the company designed an extensive conduit system, but I haven't found out, whether this was supplemented by poles within the city, or not.

The building is on the National Register of Historical Places.

[AE_Collector]

The building was erected in 1892/3, two years after founding the company. In the lobby were telephone stations for public use, for both local and long-distance. The second floor were offices, and the third floor was the switching room.  The fourth and fifth stories were added in 1906, because of rapid growth in service. In 1917, the company left the building for a larger one, because of size limitations once again.

I love this sort of history! Are you certain that the 4th and 5th floors were added at the same time? Looking at the building I could see it being two stories and then having 3, 4 & 5 added or more likely 3 & 4 with 5 coming later again. Or am I looking at it incorrectly?

The time frame somewhat mirrors BC Telephones downtown Vancouver offices though I guess the same could be said girl telephone if files around the dirks at that time. The first office in Vancouver was in the back of a book store and they quickly outgrew that moving to the second floor of a multi tenant building so the wires could come off the poles and straight through the windows (!) to the frame and switchboards.

In 1906 a new company owned building was put up which had all deoartments within its walls....for awhile at least. It was added to many times and eventually a new "HQ" building was built a couple of blocks away in about 1918 for all of the non switching functions as the cord boards were filling the original building.

The 1906 building hung on until SxS was finally introduced in the downtown Vancouver area just as war was declared in Europe in 1939. All that remained in the 1906 building once the downtown SxS conversion was completed in 1941 was the Toll Boards which stayed there until an AE FW1 office went into service in the 1950's.

Meanwhile, down the road at the 1918 "HQ" building, the SxS was slowly taking over the building pushing departments yo other temporary buildings and the additions to that building kept coming. To this day it is still the one and only downtown exchange 12 stories high and a full city block in length though of course there are now "remotes" everywhere.

I found it interesting, that the company designed an extensive conduit system, but I haven't found out, whether this was supplemented by poles within the city, or not.

Almost for certain there were poles initially. Studying Vancouvers telephone history I too was amazed at how early conduit systems were built to put wiring (paper undulated lead jacketed cables) underground but this replaced poles that had initially been used to quickly provide service. The further from the downtown core the longer the poles were in use before conduit was installed.

Terry

[Sargeguy]

Here is a picture of one of the few extant Providence Telephone Company manhole covers.  They are located about a block from my house.  The neighborhood is very affluent, mansions built in the 1800s-early 1900s and the utilities are all underground.  Since PTelCo disappeared as a separate entity around 1920, these are very old.  100 years later my block still has everything on poles.