1889 Elliott Telephone Co. 3 Box Walnut String Phone

1889 Elliott Telephone Company Three Box Walnut String Wall Phone

This is a beautiful 1889 Elliott telephone company String phone, it is the Cadillac of String telephones.  This one is in especially great shape, it looks as if it had never been put into service.  This phone was made by the Elliott Telephone Company of Martinsville Indiana with parts they bought from the Viaduct manufacturing company.  The backboard was built by Viaduct for three box phones, the battery box was only used as a writing shelf.  The black in the battery box is a tar like substance used in early phones to protect the wood from battery acid vapors and spills from the wet cell batteries.

The decal on the back of the transmitter says:

“THE ELLIOTT TELEPHONE”

PATENT SEPT 10 1889

THE ELLIOTT TELEPHONE CO.

SOLE MANUFACTURERS

MARTINSVILLE, IND

The transmitter has a large leather diaphragm with a large brass button in the center.  The large transmitter is made of walnut and is sometimes called a “Spittoon” style unique to the Elliott telephone company.  The large hole in the back is where the transmitter wire was connected to the mate telephone at a different location.

Elliott was the best example of the use of string phones.  It was the highest quality manufacturer having a Viaduct magneto to box that rang the bells on the other phone to notify the other end that they wanted to talk.  Viaduct was one of the earliest manufacturers of telephone apparatus and sold parts to the American Bell telephone company and to its competitors.

The phone is 28 ¾” tall and 7 ¼” wide.

This is a museum quality telephone and would be a great addition to your collection.  This is what was being sold to by some of Bell’s competitors to provide service in the telephones early beginnings.