The early telephones required a hand cranked magneto generator which produced an alternating current which would ring the bells in the telephone exchange to alert the operator that someone wanted to make a telephone call. The operator would then connect the two telephones and ring the bell on the receiving telephone.
Shown below are some of the hand cranked telephones displayed in several museums.
Shoshone County Mining and Smelting Museum, Kellogg, Idaho
Quincy Valley Historical Society Museum, Quincy, Washington
Tillamook County Pioneer Museum in Tillamook, Oregon
Northern Pacific Depot Museum in Wallace, Idaho
Historical Museum at Fort Missoula, Missoula, Montana
Sherman County Historical Museum in Moro, Oregon
Museum of Mental Health, Salem, Oregon
East Benton County Museum in Kennewick, Washington
Heritage Station Museum, Pendleton, Oregon
Klager House, Woodland, Washington
This Victorian farmhouse in Woodland, Washington was built in 1889 and is now a National Historic Site.
Heritage Museum, Libby, Montana
More museum exhibits
Museums 201/301/401 is a series in which similar exhibits from several museums are shown.
Museums 201: Antique farming equipment (photo diary)
Museums 201: The timber industry (photo diary)
Museums 201: Forest fire lookouts (photo diary)
Museums 201: Telephone Exchanges (photo diary)
Museums 301: Medicines (photo diary)
Museums 301: Radios (photo diary)
Museums 301: Washing machines (photo diary)
Museums 301: Quilts (photo diary)