After 44 years employment with G.P.O. Telephones & B.T. and with duties covering the installation of telephones & switchboards, from the single householder to large business customers, it was only natural that Max Flemmich should carry on his interest in telephone memorabilia by putting together a collection of "100 years of the Telephone".

This is housed in a former bakery adjacent to his home in Darvel Ayrshire and it is the only one of its kind in Scotland. The museum is very "hands on".

The manual switchboards are operational; phones will dial through the automatic mechanical Strowger equipment, and semi digital systems. There are many examples of early wooden and metal magneto phones from the first half of the last century, as well as more modern switchboards and telephone equipment. There are opportunities to operate an old A & B coin box with its old style 2p's & 10p's, an earlier coin box using pennies, sixpences and shillings. Climb an old style shortened telephone pole and see how the wires connected up to the insulators or try out the morse code key.

East Ayrshire Council's Education Department have been approached regarding visits by school children. Along with electricity & magnetism, communications are to be shortly added to the school curriculum.

A visit to the museum gives an insight to the world of communications in the days gone by.

Return to Museum Index

Copyright © 1998-2007 THG and contributors