Western Electric
History
Western Electric (WE) was the American electrical engineering company that manufactured telephones for AT&T (American Telephone & Telegraph) between 1881 and 1995. It also functioned as the purchasing agent for the companies who were members of the Bell System.
The Western Electric Manufacturing Company was incorporated in 1872 by the inventor Elisha Gray, and his business partner Enos M Barton. They manufactured a wide variety of electrical products, forging a close relationship with the telegraph company Western Union to whom they supplied equipment.
In 1875, Elisha Gray sold his portion of Western Electric on to Western Union, including the caveat that he had filed contesting Alexander Graham Bell’s patent application for the telephone. Western Union and the Bell Telephone Company continued the legal battle over the patent for the telephone, which finally ended in 1879 with Western Union ceding Telephony to Bell. The Bell Telephone Company then acquired Western Electric in 1881.
Establishment of a Monopoly
in 1915, Western Electric was incorporated as a subsidiary of AT&T, under the name Western Electric Company Inc. From then on, Western Electric manufactured all the telephonic components used by AT&T in their network. They also manufactured all of the telephones used by household customers of AT&T and their subsidiaries. These telephones were owned by local Bell System companies, and were leased to the customers along with their line rental.
Western Electric Phones
In 1928 Western Electric released the first of the Bell System telephones with a single handset. This was the Model 102, and replaced the separate microphone and earpiece ‘candlestick’ shape of their previous phones. The Model 202 followed a few years later in 1930 with improved electronics, and an improved oval base.
The next big improvement in telephony came in 1937 with the release of the Model 302 phone, designed by the renowned industrial designer Henry Dreyfuss. This phone contained an integral ringer in the main housing of the phone instead of needing a separate ringer box.
Following this, in 1949, Western Electric released the Model 500, which would become the most extensively produced telephone in the company’s history. Later models included the Princess phone in the 50s and the Trimline phone in the 60s. Western Electric officially dissolved in 1984, and its corporate charter was assumed by AT&T Technologies.
