WE 500 motel phone (manual)

[AdamAnt316]

Hello, everyone! Found another phone at the flea market, but this one's got a bit more originality to it than my last one, and I only paid $10 for it. It's a Western Electric 500C (non-dial) bearing a date of 10/53, as well as an early style 95A apparatus blank vs. the 95B/C more often seen on 500 sets. According to the seller, it was taken from an old motel in New North Conway, NH; I Googled the number on the tag, and it pointed towards Junge's Motel, which is indeed closed, though I have no idea how recently this phone was removed (apparently from room 6). Anyway, here are a couple of photos:

[.....]

Nice manual 500, I have 2 but not that old. Good score!

[Key2871]

I think you mean North Conway. And that name rings a bell... I know where that was..
It sold last year, and the lot next to it. It was one of the last small business in that area.
Cool find and a great price. Im about an hour south.. Abouts.

[Doug Rose]

Very Nice....the 95A dial blanks are not an easy find and very distinctive.....Doug

[paul-f]

Looks great with the old number card.

Well cone, Adam.

[AdamAnt316]

Nice manual 500, I have 2 but not that old. Good score!

Yeah, this is my first manual WE phone, unless you count handset mounts. I don't generally pick up manual sets unless I find them interesting, like that JYDSK magneto phone I picked up earlier this year. The early dial blank is what attracted me to this one; the extra provenance makes it all the more interesting, especially since early 500 sets meant for manual duty seem to be hard to come by, as opposed to more modern ones which probably spent their lives as "hotline" phones in businesses.

I think you mean North Conway. And that name rings a bell... I know where that was..
It sold last year, and the lot next to it. It was one of the last small business in that area.
Cool find and a great price. Im about an hour south.. Abouts.

Oops. I'll blame AutoCorrect and/or posting late at night. I've been to North Conway a number of times, primarily after driving the scenic Kancamagus Highway. I live in northern MA, so it's a bit of a haul, but there's some lovely foliage to be seen during the fall. Not sure if there are any vintage photos of Junge's Motel on the 'net to be able to prove how long these phones might've been in use.

Very Nice....the 95A dial blanks are not an easy find and very distinctive.....Doug

Yep, that's what drew me to this particular phone, after having seen the photos on Paul's site. Speaking of which...

Looks great with the old number card.

Well cone, Adam.

Thanks. Provenance is always fun to have with these old phones. Old number cards are a great help in identifying where the phone might've spent much of its life. though I've encountered ones where the original cards were covered over once or twice, making that difficult. This one, however, seems to have survived its duties quite well, with only some minor scratches on that early apparatus blank.
-Adam

[Key2871]

Yea spell check ... Don't like it much.
Try looking on the web junges north conway nh and you will most likely come up with some.
Its been there for a long time, ski bums and weekend trippers  used to visit quite a bit.
But strip malls are becoming the new place to go for that area.

I remember they used to advertise phones in the rooms, not surprised they were manual too much.

But the cottages were small and all in a row.

[Key2871]

https://www.google.com/search?sxsrf=ALeKk00wLtDSbMRhhKZGfyqd1UVvUUxwhw%3A1602794288131&source=hp&ei=MLOIX4iSAsSIggeX3JEw&q=junges+motel+north+conway&oq=junges&gs_lcp=ChFtb2JpbGUtZ3dzLXdpei1ocBABGAAyBQgAEMkDMgIIADICCAAyAggAMgIILjICCAAyBAgAEAoyBAgAEAo6BwgjEOoCECc6BQgAEJECOggILhCxAxCDAToFCAAQsQM6CwguELEDEMkDEJMCOgUILhCxAzoICAAQsQMQyQM6BAguEAo6CgguEMkDEAoQkwI6BwgAEMkDEA06BggAEA0QCjoECAAQDToLCAAQsQMQgwEQkQI6CAgAELEDEJECUN8fWOhpYIp5aAhwAHgAgAG1AYgB2QySAQQwLjExmAEAoAEBsAEC&sclient=mobile-gws-wiz-hp#lkt=LocalPoiPhotos&trex=m_t:lcl_akp,rc_f:nav,rc_ludocids:6851216751335246153,rc_q:Junge's%2520Motel,ru_q:Junge's%2520Motel,trex_id:MOJquf

[HarrySmith]

I knew that town was familiar, been through there a few times on way to points further north & Mt Washington. I grew up in Connecticut.

[AdamAnt316]

Yea spell check ... Don't like it much.
Try looking on the web junges north conway nh and you will most likely come up with some.
Its been there for a long time, ski bums and weekend trippers  used to visit quite a bit.
But strip malls are becoming the new place to go for that area.

I remember they used to advertise phones in the rooms, not surprised they were manual too much.

But the cottages were small and all in a row.

Interesting info. I've done some searches for Junges, but most of the photos I've found seem to be fairly modern and/or don't show the room phone. This is the best photo I've been able to find thus far, with it on the right side of the desk:

Second prize, barely visible on the far right side of this image on the desk near the pole lamp:

Looks to be a somewhat modern ivory 2500 clone of some sort. Guessing they were installed in the '90s, possibly earlier (or later).
-Adam

[Key2871]

They most likely upgraded the system at some point, and the old sets were stored in the shed or something.
Im surprised it look so nice, I think its the one before or after this one that really goes way back.
I dont recall the name, but its in the same area as junges. And that was the old one I was thinking of they have small one room cottages, and I would expect to find old manual sets in those rooms, if they even had phones in the "rooms".
Its been a couple years since I was up that way last.
But junges and a few others right in that area have been sold and some torn down, for more shop's.
North Conway is chock full of shops, some do ok some close shortly after opening.
Buildings are highly saught after for retail space. 

[AdamAnt316]

They most likely upgraded the system at some point, and the old sets were stored in the shed or something.
Im surprised it look so nice, I think its the one before or after this one that really goes way back.
I dont recall the name, but its in the same area as junges. And that was the old one I was thinking of they have small one room cottages, and I would expect to find old manual sets in those rooms, if they even had phones in the "rooms".
Its been a couple years since I was up that way last.
But junges and a few others right in that area have been sold and some torn down, for more shop's.
North Conway is chock full of shops, some do ok some close shortly after opening.
Buildings are highly saught after for retail space. 

Yeah, I've been to the outlet malls at the end of the Kancamagus a few times. Not sure I've done much else in North Conway, though I've largely been there on day-trips with friends or relatives. Not entirely surprised that the rest of the town is going that way, sadly.

Anyway, I went back to the flea market the other day, and talked to the seller. He wasn't aware of the motel having been sold, so I'm guessing either this phone (and possibly the others as well) left the shed sometime before the sale, or he got it from someone else. I'll have to open it up and look for signs of refurbishment; at the least, the handset seems to have been replaced (with another G1) in 1960, though the U1 receiver carries a 1957 date.
-Adam

[Key2871]

Its been a couple years since I've been up, because the shops are all im interested in.

My kids like going to the train station to look at that stuff, but other than that. I dont get up there much anymore.
Traffic is a nightmare on weekends..

[SUnset2]

I recently ended up with this phone's brother, from Room 18.  I didn't get as good a deal as the O.P., but I snagged it because it was a 500A, and I don't have a 500A.  It had a newer-looking coiled handset cord, so I replaced it with a straight cord to look closer to original.  The phone is dated 1-51.

[MMikeJBenN27]

Great find!  I have seen a couple of these on E-Bay this year, but I have too many phones now.  No room for any more, or else I would have tried to get one!

Mike