Posted 7 years ago
AnythingOb…
(1778 items)
This heavy brass panel was the in-car controls for an elevator in a bank building (maybe from the 1930's?) which was razed in the late 1970's. It features pushbuttons for floors 1 and 2 plus OPEN DOOR and ALARM and toggle switches for FAN, LIGHT OFF, and EMERGENCY STOP, plus a keyswitch for CAR TOP INSP(ection?) OFF and a 1/4" phone jack, both probably for use by elevator technicians. All the various parts and switches are complete and intact behind the roughly 8"x13" brass panel (itself about 1/8" thick) attached to a stamped steel inner chassis, the brass panel with 4 pushbuttons (only) is removable from the chassis with the three brass phillips-head screws. I do not now know (if I ever did) who actually manufactured the elevator.
SEE PART 2 posting, for pics of the switchgear behind the panel. I also have one matching external 'call button' station from the same elevator -- I'll add pictures of it soon too.
AnythingO,
This item is called a Car Station, it was made by Otis Elevator Company. the worlds Oldest Elevator Co. {AKA,UTC.} The Elevator was probably a 2 Stop Oil Hydraulic Elevator. The Elevator was probably used to take people to their Safety Deposit Box, and to move money from the Vault up to the Bank.
The Car Station is from the mid 1950's to the late 1960's.
I know because I fixed Elevators in New York City for 40 Years.
I Retired from Otis Elevator Company, 5 Years Ago.
Thank You . ekim.
Thank you ekim for the further info -- OTIS it is! :-) I'd also gladly defer to your estimate of its age, I could easily be off on the age of the bank building -- which was literally halfway demolished when I recovered the Car Station. Can't say for sure whether it was hydraulic or not, the car was stuck in its no-doubt final location on the first floor of the building (it went from 1 to 2, no basement) and I could not climb or otherwise gain access to its 2nd floor landing or any mechanical room which might have been above that. :-(