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North America

American Payphones- Three Slot
 
gallery
with thanks to Mike's Vintage Telephones
This is an example of a Western Electric three-slot pay phone. Three-slot pay phones like these were used by Western Electric (Bell System) from the 1940's through the 1970's. They had a coin slot for each of 3 kinds of coins - Nickel, Dime and Quarter. When you inserted a coin, it either rang a special bell or gong to singal the operator what kind of coin it was. A nickel was one 'ding', a dime was two 'dings', while a quarter was a 'gong' sound. For local calls, depositing a set amount of money (as determined by internal phone wiring by the phone company) completed a 'ground loop' to the local telephone company central switching equipment. The coin return hopper flipped down allowing you to recover returned coins. Phones were commonly made in black or ivory (as shown here).
5 CENT PHONES, MADE 1920-1935
GRAY/WE 50K
ON 139A BRACKET
NON DIAL, POST-PAY		 WE 55C WE 155G
GRAY/WE 50G
WITH 2AC DIAL, PRE-PAY
BOTH ARE DIAL, PRE-PAY
CONVERTED TO 10 CENTS IN 1950S
MODEL 161A
  THIS IS THE FIRST MODEL  PAYPHONE MADE BY WESTERN ELECTRIC AFTER THEIR SEPERATION FROM GRAY.  THIS WAS DONE ONCE GRAY'S PATTENTS RAN OUT. IT IS A 5 CENT PREPAY PHONE
SEE THE INSCRIPTION BELOW
INSCRIBED ON ABOVE
GRAY 50G WITH RURAL DIAL
WE 653AX  IT APPEARS THAT DURING WW2 WESTERN ELECTRIC SALVAGED OLD PAYPHONES AND CUT THEM DOWN INTO WALL PHONES.  THE DIAL IS A #2
WE 181 WE 182
WE 174G
WE 191G
WE 193H
WE 196C WE 212G
WE 197
WE 233 WITH ORIGINAL CHROME FINISH NOTE THE DISCONNECTED PLACK MOUNTED TO THE COIN SLOTS.
THIS IS AN ACTUAL OUT OF SERVICE WE PAYPHONE THAT WAS BRONZE PLATED AND GIVEN TO AN EXECUTIVE AS A RETIREMENT GIFT.
WE 1234 THE FIRST TOUCH TONE PAYPHONE. THESE WERE USED FOR A VERY SNORT TIME.
WE 236 THIS MODEL NO LONGER REQUIRED A SUBSET OR RINGER BOX.
NEWER 139 BRACKET
AE #62. WITH TYPE 40 HANDSET & STEEL SHROUD AE 66E-10 WITH TYPE 34 HAND SET BAKELITE SHROUD
GRAY 75A MADE FOR AUTOMATIC ELECTRIC. GRAY 34A-10 MADE FOR AUTOMATIC ELECTRIC.
I CAN NOT IMAGINE WALKING OUT OF A BUILDING CARRYING THIS CASE WITH 9 FILLED 3 SLOT PAYPHONE COIN BOXES.  IT WEIGHS A LOT NOW:
KEY TO RELEASE LIGHT BULB IN PHONE BOOTH
2 EARLY COIN BOXES
NORTHERN ELECTRIC #2236 TOUCH TONE 3 SLOT PAYPHONE.
1A              2A
TWO WESTERN ELECTRIC PAY PHONE ADS