Any info on the Strowgerphone?

[Matilo Telephones]

I was doing some research on this ATEA model 1928 (pic1) for an article on my website. I thought this phone was an ATEA development, when I stumbled on this picture (pic 2) on this website: http://www.britishtelephones.com/atm/strowgerphone.htm

What is the story behind this Strowger phone? Does it predate the ATEA telephone? Does anybody here have one? When was it introduced?

Does anybody have a diagram for it?

I could not find anything about it in my books, not on the internet and I could not find anything about it in the TCI library.

[Jack Ryan]

Arwin,

I have a rough idea of the sequence.

In 1925, Automatic Electric (AE) in the USA released the Monophone. This was taken up by ATM (part of the AE group) in the UK soon afterwards. In 1928, AE updated the Monophone range – the tall cradles of the AE 1 and AE 5 were replaced by the more compact cradles of the AE 1-A and AE 5-A.

In the UK, Siemens Brothers released the Neophone (Tele No 162) in 1929. This telephone contained an anti-sidetone transformer that, when combined with a Bellset No 1, produced an AST telephone. ATM used this as a model for their own update of the Monophone – the AE 1-A body was increased in size slightly to incorporate an AST transformer and the Strowgerphone was born in about 1931.

In the late 1920s, ATEA (then The New Antwerp Telephone and Electrical Works) (must have) formed an agreement with AE in the US and/or ATM in the UK as it started making some very AE looking telephones with Type 24 dials such as the 1000 series (later the Type 40, the telephone in question).

In 1931, ATEA (now Automatique Electrique de Belgique) became part of the Automatic Electric group and the relationship between ATEA and ATM was strengthened.

ATEA took up ATM's Strowgerphone and ATM took up ATEA's 1000 series. The ATEA telephones used ATEA handsets and the ATM telephones used GPO standard (Siemens Brothers) handsets made by ATM.

Or, more simply, I think your phone is primarily an ATEA product that was shared with ATM.

Jack

[Matilo Telephones]

Thanks Jack, so the Strowgerphone is as it were a Monophone+, updated with newer anti sidetone technology.

And the metal box phone would have been an ATEA design, incorporated in the Strowgerphone range/line later, using the same technology?

Seeing the name Strowger on that phone, made me think it was developed in the USA. That seemed odd to me, as they weren't much into metal box telephones over there.

[unbeldi]

Seeing the name Strowger on that phone, made me think it was developed in the USA. That seemed odd to me, as they weren't much into metal box telephones over there.

The name of ATM was (originally?)  Strowger Automatic Electric Company of Liverpool, so there was precedence of the name  usage in England.  I would have attributed the design history also from AE/U.S. (1A/5A) --> Strowger AE/Liverpool --> ATEA.   AE did use metal boxes for some of their sets.

[Jack Ryan]

Thanks Jack, so the Strowgerphone is as it were a Monophone+, updated with newer anti sidetone technology.

And the metal box phone would have been an ATEA design, incorporated in the Strowgerphone range/line later, using the same technology?

Seeing the name Strowger on that phone, made me think it was developed in the USA. That seemed odd to me, as they weren't much into metal box telephones over there.

All Monophones were AST. The ATM version of the AE 1-A used the GPO version of an AST circuit.
The ATEA telephones used conventional circuits but I don't have any circuits handy - perhap Jan will have one handy.

AE used metal cabinets very early on so there is no real surprise that ATEA did.

ATM was never called Strowger. The factory at Edge Lane was called the Strowger Works but that was not the company name.

Jack