Telephones

About Antique and Vintage Telephones

People started collecting phones shortly after Alexander Graham Bell patented them in 1876. Some of those early handmade wood telephones from the 1880s (e.g. those marked Charles Williams Jr. or American Bell) are among the most prized finds for telephone collectors.

Collectible antique and vintage telephones basically fall into three groups. Wood wall phones, which were produced from 1876 up through WW2, have lost much of their appeal (except those earliest models) as few collectors still remember growing up with them. Candlestick phones, produced from the 1890s through the 1920s, are still in great demand, especially the earliest turn of the century nickel-plated models...

Desk sets, including most phones after 1930, are the bulk of the hobby today, and range from early 1920s models with ringer boxes to the groovy 1960s and 70s Ericofon, Princess and Trimline models. The most commonly found phones are rotary dial models such as the Western Electric 202s (1930s), 302s (1940s-50s), and 500 sets (1960s and 70s).

While Western Electric is the big name for many American collectors, makers like Automatic Electric, Kellogg Switchboard and Supply, Stromberg Carlson and others are also in high demand. Many telephone collectors also focus on related items such as telephone signs and switchboards.

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Interviews & Articles

An Interview With Antique Telephone Collector Gary Goff

How did I get started collecting antique telephones? As a kid I always liked phones, using them, talking on t… [more]

An Interview With Ericofon Telephone Collector Richard Rose

I like mechanical things. I’ve collected outboard motors, things like that in the past. I got into the tele… [more]



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Telephones Videos



See all 35 videos


Best of the Web (“Hall of Fame”)

The Telephone Archive

The Telephone Archive

If you're into old phones, check out this 600-page repository of images and historical information. Includes an ext… [read review or visit site]

Ericofon.com

Ericofon.com

Richard Rose's tribute to the Ericofon, a colorful, stylish concept phone introduced in Europe in the 1950's and th… [read review or visit site]

Kelloggtelephone.com

Kelloggtelephone.com

Mike Neale's fantastic collection of scanned PDFs showcasing the history and products of the Kellogg Switchboard an… [read review or visit site]

Old Telephones as Entertainment

Old Telephones as Entertainment

For those who want highly detailed information on specific Western Electric antique and vintage telephone models su… [read review or visit site]


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Clubs & Associations: Telephones


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Western Electric #10 Telephone 1899 American Bell Phone$1,785 Ends Sunday 5 bids 77 watchers
Strowger Automatic Dial Candlestick With Ringer Box$1,047 Ends Friday 6 bids 24 watchers
Vintage Candlestick Telephone Tapered Shaft$835.00 Ends Monday 3 bids 36 watchers
Candlestick ( Tapered Shaft )$799.00 Ends Sunday 1 bid 4 watchers
Rare 1905 Holtzer Cabot Electric Co. Phone$765.00 Ends Monday 1 bid 51 watchers
Working Phone Booth With Western Electric Phone In Vgc!$700.00 Ends Wednesday 1 bid 8 watchers
Western Electric #10 American Bell Candlestick Phone$510.00 Ends Saturday 2 bids 74 watchers
Vintage Old Automatic Chicago Pay Phone Telephone C1930$406.99 Ends in 2 hours 4 bids 77 watchers
Western Electric 51al Dial Candlestick W/534a Rngr Box$349.99 Ends Sunday 5 bids 29 watchers
Stromberg-carlson 1920 Dial Candlestick Telephone *rare$315.00 Ends Sunday 5 bids 12 watchers
Antique Phone Booth$250.00 Ends Monday 1 bid 19 watchers
An Antique? Automatic Electric? 3-slot Prepay Payphone$227.50 Ends Saturday 8 bids 22 watchers
Western Electric Candlestick Phone & Wood Wall Shelf$201.50 Ends Saturday 7 bids 35 watchers
Rare We 20s Candlestick Telephone 229w/thumb Wheel....$182.50 Ends in 20 hours 7 bids 28 watchers
Pmg Anitique Wall Phone$180.97 Ends in 1 hour 1 bid 6 watchers
North Electric Company Candle Stick Telephone Rare Type$177.50 Ends Monday 6 bids 32 watchers
Antique Crank Telephone$167.31 Ends Saturday 1 bid 7 watchers
We 202 Telephone W/e1 Handset, Ready To Use!$162.50 Ends in 20 hours 14 bids 24 watchers
Northern Electric 202 Telephone...restored & Working$160.52 Ends Sunday 13 bids 18 watchers
We Dial Candlestick Telephone, Ready To Plug In And Use$157.50 Ends in 20 hours 9 bids 33 watchers
At&t Antique 3-coin Pay Phone: New In Box, Never Used $152.50 Ends Sunday 14 bids 43 watchers
Beautiful Oak North Electric Co. Two Box Wall Telephone$149.99 Ends Sunday 1 bid 12 watchers
Western Electric B1/102 Antique Telephone~634 Subset~nr$140.27 Ends Tuesday 4 bids 38 watchers
Antique C1940 German Wartime Telephone Berlin Tempelhof$128.01 Ends Sunday 38 bids 23 watchers
Wurlitzer 1015 Jukebox Mini Replica, Ltd Ed, Coa, New!$126.86 Ends in 2 hours 12 bids 15 watchers
Western Electric Rotary 1d Payphone & Inst-maint Manual$125.00 Ends Monday 10 bids 23 watchers
Early Original Antique Vintage Oak Kellogg Telephone Nr$122.50 Ends in 3 hours 2 bids 16 watchers
***old Antique Kellogg Wall Telephone(no Res)**$122.50 Ends Sunday 14 bids 41 watchers
Stromberg Carlson Oak Wall Phone 33" ** Great Condition$122.50 Ends Sunday 6 bids 10 watchers
Rare 1937 Metal Western Electric 302 W/ Short Ears$117.27 Ends Sunday 7 bids 45 watchers
Vintage Western Electric Rotary Deco White Telephone H1$107.50 Ends Saturday 5 bids 30 watchers
Antique Telephone Box$104.36 Ends Monday 4 bids 37 watchers
Western Electric 102 Telephone...restored And Working$102.50 Ends Sunday 4 bids 27 watchers
Western Electric Round Base 102 Telephone..1920's$102.50 Ends Sunday 5 bids 28 watchers
Automatic Electric Phone Model 50 Works!$102.50 Ends Sunday 4 bids 8 watchers
Vintage Candlestick Telephone With Ringer Box$100.00 Ends Sunday 1 bid 13 watchers
Antique American Bell Telephone Co. Brass Phone 1889$99.99 Ends Sunday 1 bid 14 watchers
1904 Western Electric Nickel Candlestick Telephone 20b$99.00 Ends Sunday 10 bids 42 watchers
Antique Hand Crank Wall Phone Stromberg, Kellogg, Works$93.00 Ends Sunday 5 bids 16 watchers
Western Electric 500 Rotary Dial Telephone Phone Pink!$91.00 Ends Sunday 6 bids 22 watchers
Antique Automatic Electric Telephone Monophone Works$90.00 Ends Tuesday 2 bids 22 watchers
North Electric Stickphone With Magneto !$89.88 Ends in 19 hours 4 bids 38 watchers
Vintage Black Bakelite 332at Pmg Telephone / Phone$86.83 Ends Saturday 2 bids 3 watchers
Vintage Turquoise Western Electric Princess Telephone$86.00 Ends Sunday 17 bids 18 watchers
Antique Oak Wall Phone Early 1900's$86.00 Ends Sunday 2 bids 7 watchers
"look" Vintage Pay-phone Original!!!!!$86.00 Ends Monday 4 bids 16 watchers
Old Fashion Pay Phone Payphone Collectable Christmas $85.01 Ends Sunday 24 bids 8 watchers
Wedgwood Jasperware & Gilt Telephone Phone Working$82.00 Ends Sunday 11 bids 29 watchers
Rare Kellogg Dial Candlestick..check It Out$81.00 Ends in 20 hours 4 bids 29 watchers
Antique Kellogg Wall Phone ( Oak ) ( Telephone )$81.00 Ends in 2 hours 4 bids 14 watchers
Old Oak Western Electric Crank Telephone ~ Antique$78.00 Ends Sunday 9 bids 30 watchers
Antique Kellogg Wall Telephone Phone Oak Hand Crank$78.00 Ends Monday 9 bids 17 watchers
Antique Western Electric Company Telephone$78.00 Ends Saturday 7 bids 16 watchers
Early & Unusual Ericsson Handset Wall Telephone Ca 1906$78.00 Ends Sunday 6 bids 41 watchers
Rare Nickel Western Electric Candlestick Phone$76.00 Ends Sunday 10 bids 25 watchers
"102 Telephone By Western Electric" With Nice Wiring! $75.00 Ends in 1 hour 10 bids 20 watchers
Antique Kellogg Oak Wall Telephone$75.00 Ends Sunday 1 bid 11 watchers
Antique Bakelite North Electric Galion Wall Telephone$72.00 Ends in 23 hours 3 bids 11 watchers

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Recent News: Telephones

Source: Google News

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Telephones

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