Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1922-06-06
STATES FIRST
PHONE MAN IS
AT CONVENTION
p. v. Draper Of Mandan
Installed System With
Central in 1881.

Mandan, N. D., June 6.-Amons
those to greet the 200 members OF the
North Dakota Telephone Mems asso-
citation. which convened for a three
day session here today. was c. E. v.
Draper, proprietor and manager OF
the first telephone system installed in
the state Of North Dakota. =.
While. history records that the frs,
switchboard for, commercial use was
installed January %, 1873, at New
Haven. Conn. with eight connected
telephones and the first pay station
was o0tAbit1hed that year at Bridge
port. Conn, Mi. Draper pioneered in
b field OF telephone communication
two years before that. 'as E.
In 1876 he was employed a q tel
egraph operator al Gilman, Iowa He
invented, made and put into operation
in his Office there a Telephone switch
board which he used in connecting up
the depot with various business places.
1t was not the phone ofstoday but an
acoustic telephone operated upon the
conveyed over a. thread using a tin
can sort of a apparatus as the dia-
phragm for the sending and receiv-
ing.
II used to room above the bank at
Gilman with the cashier. ands we fit
ted up the acoustic. phones for the
fun of the thing. However" said Mr..
Draper. business men soon, wanted to
be hooked up and l installed about
seven of these homemade phones and
handled them for about six months
until I3got tired of it and it became
work instead of a novelty"
First in North Dakota
Draper later came to North Dakota,
and in 1881 installed the firBt tele-
phones in North Dakota. This was a
single line of. communication between
two hotels, the Bismarck and the
FRANKLIN. owned and operated by the
same man, but some five blocks apart.
Ihese were also acoustic phones but
operated with the addition OF a copper
wire for carrying signals, the cover
ing OF the wire serving to carry the
sound waves.
InstalB Electric Phones.
In 1882 or early in 1888 MI. Draper
received the franchise irons Bismarck,
Mandan and Fort Lincoln and in
stalled the first electrical telephone Of
the bell type. There were about 40
or SO In Bismarck, 25 in Mandau, and
a few at old Fort Lincoln. However,
the royalty was SO great and the serv-
-SNSS oA$OA Sdhu ll4dl 11AIlN OI the SUD-
withdrew their patronage.
First Long Distance.
In 1885 Mr.. Draper installed the
first long distance line in North pa
kota. This vas purely experimental
ran from Bismarck to the store
or Kin John" Satterlund in Wash
Urn a distance of some so miles.
Ihey worked some of the time at
least said Mr.. Draper, land could
be counted a success. A second phone
was cut in at Painted Woods which
was then a considerable settlement
ten miles north of the present city
Of Wilton. ,.g -,
The plants were finally sold back
to the Bell people and dismantled.
IN 19OO the telephone business
aga n called him and he organized the
Mandan Telephone company, This
he conducted until 1916 when he sold
out to the Northwestern Bell Tele-
phone company. and has since retired
from active business.
Old Equipment Exhibited.
The old equipment used in the orig.
inal exchanges after the invention o,
the Bell phone forms a decidedly in.
teresting exhibit at the telephone
mems convention.
me acoustic phones, the first voic.
Communication apparatus in til.
state. were saved by Mr.. Draper. blu
were DESTROYED in a fire in 1902.
AS Draper was the first telephon.
mar in the state. SO too does Manda1
claim as q citizen the first Central
MRS. c: G. Conyne. wife of a local Jew.
eler. The first exchange was locate.
IN a brick block in the east end q
the city, long since destroyed by fire
n Mrs. Conyne, then Mrs. Aic,
Kennedy, was the first operator 70,
the rs patron circuit.