Old phone books

[DavePEI]

besides one American one with the famous cover.
My oldest Dutch one is from 1896, from the city of Rotterdam.

Which one is that famous one, Jackson Hole 2009-2010?

Dave

[Dan/Panther]

I've been looking for one from my youth for about 5 years. About gave up.
D/P

[DavePEI]

I've been looking for one from my youth for about 5 years. About gave up.
D/P

Keep trying - you'd be amazed how many PEI books I have found. Also, check out Gwillim Law's for sale books. He has many books from many areas of the continent for sale in addition to those, like mine he just displays. His collection is one of the largest in the world.

http://www.oldtelephonebooks.com/

Check out local yard sales, and noise it around your area that you are looking for phone books - you will be surprised how many opportunities that can open up.

Dave

[McHeath]

Ha!  The Jackson Hole cover is fairly famous, as phone books go.  Seem to recall that they did a reissue a few years back, they seem to be common on E-Bay.

A great place to at least see and experience the old phone books is the public library.  Ours has books back to the 40's.  I notice that most of the abandoned public phone booths around here still have a book hanging on them, which is helpful in dating when the booths were shut down.

[DavePEI]

In 1956 not everyone had electricity on the North Cape. Before 1950 outlying farms still were not electrified completely. To me the biggest advance was indoor plumbing becoming available in later years. AND finally the paving of Lady Slipper Dr/highway. Multi party telephone did not seem to be much of an inconvience at the time.

I noticed your reply the other day - I saw it also when you first posted it... I just wanted to comment on the indoor plumbing. We had running water two years before the power came here - how? We used a gas powered pump and a huge tank. You could pump it us once or twice a day and it held enough pressurized water for much of the day.

Hot water was provided by a tank behind the enterprise wood stove, and coils in the stove. Sure was glad, though the summer when we were waiting for the power to come. We had the wiring installed the year before, and we had fun going from room to room turning the switches on and pretending we got light....

B the way, even the washing was automated before the power - gas powered ringer washers. There was a small kick start gas engine on the washer which powered it. Where there was a will, there was a way!

Dave

[Sargeguy]

I have a few old directories from the 1910s that look good on the shelves of old wall phones or hanging from the hooks.  I try to find directories from RI from that era but have been outbid.  One 1885 directory from Providence and another from Block Island and Newport from the 30s.  The ones I currently have are from Fall River and Brockton.  I also like telephone ephemera such as bills and post cards from that era.  I never pass up an opportunity to post this one: