The Monmouth inquirer., 1926-02-18
New Telephone Exchange
Quarters on Court Street.

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Only few seconds were needed on
Monday; Feb. Sth, to accomplish the
very complicated operation Of cutting
over the telephone system Of Frsehold
from the old central office switchboard
on Main St to the board in the new
office on the second floor of the post
office building at IS Court ST., opp site
According to the announcement OF
the County Jail
J.. G.. Webster, Local commercial
Manager. the change marked the real
ization of new telephone central
Office in Freehold and the establish
ment of Freehold as one Of the New
York Telephone Company's toll CEN
ters.
The fact that the cutover was eff
fected so rapidly and without a hitch
was due to the many months Of careful
work done by the Construction force
Of the New York Telephone. The
parts of the new switchboard were i'm
stalled and connected and both the new
and old boards were then prepared for
the change.
With these preparations completed,
Miss Bovine, Freehold Chief Operator.
then saw that all operators were prop
erly placed at the new positions ct the
switchboard. CinchrOnized watches held
by Messers, J. M. Bayles, Dist
Traffic Manager and J. G. Reilly.
plant foreman, announced the arrival OF
the moment for the cutover. Two
o'clock was the appointed hour
Mr.. Bayles gave the word to cut to
Mr.. Reilly, who was stationed in the
new terminal room. MFR. Reilly passed
the word to the Freehold magneto
office to pull the heat coils. When
they were pulled, word was passed
back to IN Reilly who then ordered
the release Of the cut OF relays, or
brass separators at the new office.
Thus, life left the old board and elec-
trical energy flashed into the new;
A moment beforethe minute set for the
cutover, the new switchboard was en-
tirely blank Seventeen operators
and six supervisors filed in and took
their posts. Ais the cords wero pulled
and the change occurred, the new
board dotted with small lights and in
stantly became new work Of connect
ing cords.
Thi ty4two operators will be requir-
ed to handle Freehold local and toll
calls which average six thousand and
three hundred respectively In the
course of p day.
The new equipment with TOO lines
cuts into service will provide Tor not
only the psesent need but will allow
for future growth. The ultimate ca
pacity Of the new board is 1892 lines
now in use.
The new board is of the. common
battery tSpe and lisa great improv-
Tnent override former equipinentbecause
Of the greater nvenienee to subscriD-
ers. TO them it means the departure
Of having to turn the crank to get the
operator. The subscriber can now call
the operator by simply lifting the re-
ceiver from the hook.
There are II p, sitions on the new
switchboard, ten tolls or long distance,
for information and six for local calls.
By position il meant the section Of
the board in front Of which an opera
can answer It only the calls on er
own position, alsocalls which come IN at
the positions at either side Of her
Officials of the Company who attend ed
the event were: ]. G.. Webetsr, Local
Commercial Manager; j, Nd, Bayles,
District Traffic Manager; w.
s.. Emmons, District EQUIP nent
Supervisor; B. G.. McCusker, Division
Equipment Supervisor; 4 5. Han,
Division Toll Supervisory. B. Me-
Cullin, New Jersey central supervisor
Of Traffic; j. i. Ryan Of the Traffic
Engineering Department and r b.
Landscha Of the toll switchboard en-
gineering department.
To expedite the cutover from the
old board to the new and to assist Miss
Bovine, Chief Operator r. n supervising y Tasns
Chief Operator from Asbury Park.
Miss f. Il. Britton, Chief operator
from Spring Lake; Mrs. c. N Sherman,
Chief Operator from Point Pleasant;
Miss E. Flanagan, toll chief operator
from Asbury Park and Mrs. Dorothy
Fowler, Chief Operator of the toll
training school Of Newark.