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# Alexander Graham Bell's Large Box Telephone

National Museum of American History

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                      -     DetailsRelatedObject Details- inventor
- Bell, Alexander Graham
- Bell, Alexander Graham
- Description
- One of two telephones used by Alexander Graham Bell in a demonstration that took place between Boston and Salem, Massachusetts on November 26, 1876. Critical features are the iron diaphragm (seen as a black circular disc mounted on the vertical wooden support), two electromagnets (seen in white, facing the diaphragm) and a horseshoe permanent magnet (lying horizontal, pressed against the electromagnets).
- When used as a transmitter, sound waves at the mouthpiece cause the diaphragm to move, inducing a fluctuating current in the electromagnets. This current is conducted over wires to a similar instrument, acting as a receiver. There, the fluctuating current in the electromagnets causes the diaphragm to move, producing air vibrations that can be heard by the ear. This was a marginal arrangement, but it worked well enough to be employed in the first commercial services in 1877. The magneto receiver continued to be used, but the transmitters were soon replaced by a carbon variable-resistance device designed by Francis Blake and based on a principle patented by Thomas Edison.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Credit Line
- from American Telephone & Telegraph Company
- 1876
- used in a demonstration
- 1876
- ID Number
- EM.308214
- catalog number
- 308214
- accession number
- 70856
- Object Name
- telephone
- box telephone
- Other Terms
- box telephone; Telephones; Transmitter/Receiver
- Physical Description
- wood (parts material)
- iron (magnet material)
- brass (hardware material)
- iron (diaphram material)
- mica (insulator material)
- Measurements
- overall: 6 1/4 in x 7 1/2 in x 12 1/2 in; 15.875 cm x 19.05 cm x 31.75 cm
- Associated Place
- United States: Massachusetts, Salem
- United States: Massachusetts, Boston
- See more items in
- Work and Industry: Electricity
- Communications
- American Stories exhibit
- National Museum of American History
- Subject
- Telephone
- Magnet
- Record ID
- nmah_704159
- Metadata Usage (text)
- CC0
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746ab-f6ef-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa
Related Content-                    Telephones                 
  CC0Creative Commons - No Rights Reserved iconUsage Conditions Apply>download icon>          There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .        International media Interoperability FrameworkIIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.View manifestView in Mirador ViewerExpand to view image×                PreviousNext             Footer logo      
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