Fire drill at Tremont switchboard, 1912

glass negative

PHOTOGRAPHS
Rosenfeld and Sons
USA, NY, Bronx County, Tremont
1912-1913
emulsion on glass
overall: 10 x 8 in.; 25.4 x 20.32 cm

8 x 10 glass negative photographed by Rosenfeld and Sons in 1912 or 1913. Image taken as part of long term commissioned work and documentation for the American Telephone & Telegraph Company, ranging from 1910 through the 1940s. View of women switchboard operators lined up in a stairwell at the Tremont office, Bronx, NY. Ladies are seen evacuating for a fire drill. The ladies are seen dressed in long skirts with light blouses, with long hair tied loosely back. Each woman has her telephone operator headset still attached with the switch board plug tied lose around their waist. Handwritten on original negative sleeve: "1635 / Telephone Co. / Box 131-12 / Tremont Office / Fire Drill / Box 131". CREDIT LINE: Mystic Seaport, Rosenfeld Collection.

1984.187.1635

Mystic Seaport, Rosenfeld Collection