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...and much of the equipment dated back to the 1930s. |
Plugs, Switches and Headsets
The 'old fashioned' headset (above) does not look out of place among the cords and plugs of the switchboard, which date back to the 1930s.
Headsets
The breastplate transmitter/headset receiver combination was in use throughout the GPO until about 1959 when the lightweight, one-piece headset was produced by STC (Standard Telephone and Cables). The older combination headsets terminated on a very large 4-way plug. The new headsets still used a 4-way plug, but this was much smaller; the same type as on 'Plan 4' telephones. Thus is was not possible to have a mix of both types on the same switchboard. It is thought that Switchroom 2A was still using the old headsets in 1966.
Keysenders
To the right of the keyshelf, you can see the round white buttons of the keysender used to set up international calls. The buttons are marked 0 to12. This was to cater for Code 11 and Code 12 signalling.
See WREN HOUSE for a closer look at this type of console.
The Jacks
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Under the engineers' bench, hundreds of jackfields which have been removed, either for refurbishment, or scrapping. Jacks would go faulty due to dusty, corroded contacts, brittle, loose wiring, or even metal fatigue on the springsets after many years of continual use. |
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M.Knight.
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