White House and Senate Phones

[poplar1]

This was posted by one of our members: Presidential Phones

http://www.manufacturediscontinued.com/exhibits/telephones/presidential-telephones-of-the-united-states.html

The second one mentions resistance by some senators to the new dial phones in 1930:
The US Senate Once Tried to Ban Dial Telephones From Capitol Hill

http://forgottenhistoryblog.com/the-us-senate-once-tried-to-ban-dial-telephones-from-capitol-hill/

[Pourme]

Interesting...Senators thought dialing their own numbers was too complicated.... Ha!

Thanks for posting...

[Jim Stettler]

Neat site,

At one point (years ago) the black 500's from the Whitehouse were sold off in a government auction. An ATCA member bought them and was selling them thru the newsletter. I didn't buy one then, but since that time I have picked up 2 of them, one metal finger wheel and 1 plastic.
I bought both of mine years ago before  color scanners and  printers. I believe the dial centers to be "real".


JMO,
Jim S.

[Dan/Panther]

I notice the desk Harry Truman used was not the traditional one. I thought the current desk had been in use since the late 1800's ?
D/P

[AE_Collector]

Reading through this from the second link about banning dial telephones in the senate wing of the Capitol building, I was certain that the senators were going to demand that they be paid like a telephone operator since they had become one!

Terry

Whereas dial telephones are more difficult to operate than are manual telephones; and Whereas Senators are required, since the installation of dial phones in the Capitol, to perform the duties of telephone operators in order to enjoy the benefits of telephone service; and Whereas dial telephones have failed to expedite telephone service; Therefore be it resolved that the Sergeant at Arms of the Senate is authorized and directed to order the Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Co. to replace with manual phones within 30 days after the adoption of this resolution, all dial telephones in the Senate wing of the United States Capitol and in the Senate office building.

[rdelius]

I think the desk used now was a gift from England in the 1800s and that Kennedy pulled it out of storage and it has been the desk since.I think it is called the Resolute desk because it was built out if wood salvaged from the ship.

[andre_janew]

I wonder if the Senate tried to get TT phones banned when they first came out.  I wonder if they found TT phones too complicated to dial.  I know my grandmother always used a rotary phone because she had no idea how to dial a TT phone.

[jsowers]

A little-known fact about the Truman Library in Independence, MO is Harry had a Mahogany Brown 500 keyset on his desk there. Ground was broken in 1955 for the library, so the timeline does fit. You can see the phone in the episode of the Jack Benny Show filmed there in 1959 (I have it on DVD). It clearly had a clear fingerwheel and was very dark in color.

Here's a picture of the back of it. Definitely looks brown to me. I often wonder if it's still there since they tend to preserve things as they were and it was still there in 1962, the date of the picture. If so, it may no longer be operational. Anyone near Independence, MO who could go find out?

[podor]

A little-known fact about the Truman Library in Independence, MO is Harry had a Mahogany Brown 500 keyset on his desk there. Ground was broken in 1955 for the library, so the timeline does fit. You can see the phone in the episode of the Jack Benny Show filmed there in 1959 (I have it on DVD). It clearly had a clear fingerwheel and was very dark in color.

Here's a picture of the back of it. Definitely looks brown to me. I often wonder if it's still there since they tend to preserve things as they were and it was still there in 1962, the date of the picture. If so, it may no longer be operational. Anyone near Independence, MO who could go find out?

I live about 15 minutes away. Its been about 4 years since I've been there. I'll have to check it out. I don't remember seeing his personal office. The only thing I remember was a mock oval office.

[pdxjim911]

I visited the Truman Library in 2015.  There is a black 564 telephone on his desk. It is the same phone that I remember when I met Mr. Truman as a 7 year old in 1960 in this same office.

When my five year old brother and I were introduced to Mr. Truman, my brother looked up and asked "Were you really the President"?  Mr. Truman smiled and said "yes".  My brother then said, "I thought if you weren't the current president, then you had to be dead"!   Mr. Truman laughed heartily.

1/23/17 I stand corrected, the telephone is mahogany colored.  I have a contact who is the  Archivist & Intern Coordinator at the Library.  He verified with the registrar that the color is mahogany.  I tried zooming in on my original picture but can't get the detail. There is a plexiglass window preventing access to the room.

Jim

[jsowers]

Podor--Please visit the Library sometime soon and report back. Take a camera and take a flash picture, if they will let you. We'd all love to know once and for all what color it is. Black 564s with round buttons didn't come with clear fingerwheels.

[unbeldi]

Looks like my Mahogony Brown set.

[WEBellSystemChristian]

The phone in the picture in reply #10 sure looks like a Brown set to me...open center fingerwheel, handset without groove, slight brownish haze...

[FABphones]

Following on re White House phones, photo below shows President Nixon with Shirley Temple Black. Feb 1974.

A black TT phone can clearly be seen on his desk. Can anyone ID the additional unit? Looks like there may be one on either side.

[Jim Stettler]

Following on re White House phones, photo below shows President Nixon with Shirley Temple Black. Feb 1974.

A black TT phone can clearly be seen on his desk. Can anyone ID the additional unit?

A black TT phone can clearly be seen on his desk. Can anyone ID the additional unit? Looks like there may be one on either side.

That looks like a pushbutton adjunct.
They clip to the base of the phone and have several buttons for signaling.

I have seen them as single button, 4 button and maybe 6 button.
I saw them in use on a home interphone system. It was used to select ring the extensions.
Jim