Telephone Pioneer Museum of New Mexico in Albuquerque, New Mexico

Tag : Atlas Obscura

#9 C Switchboard from Tucumcari, circa 1958.

The Telephone Pioneer Museum of New Mexico is an entirely volunteer-run operation with a huge amount of history and equipment from the very early days of the telephone.

The museum is housed in an actual telephone building in downtown Albuquerque. Visitors old enough to remember rotary dial phones will be amazed at the variety on display inside.

Genuine, original mechanical switchboards sit side by side with later computerized automated calling systems, providing a great look into the evolution of the telephone systems, and the people who designed them. They also house a library of phone books from almost every New Mexico town from 1916 onward in their research area, which is available by appointment.

Private guided tours are available upon prior request.