PMG/Telstra in WA
This page looks at some history of PMG through to Telstra telecomm's in WA
Contents
- Federation
- Postmaster General's Department
- WA at Federation in 1901
- 1910 exchanges in WA
- Perth exchange
- Early Fremantle area exchanges
- Some metro, semi-rural and rural WA exchanges installed within first two decades of Federation
- Officers-in-Charge: From Colonial WA Post Office through to Telecom Australia - 1970s
- 1903 Perth metro area telephone directory
- 1910 Perth metro and surrounding towns telephone directory
- 1926 Perth and S/W telephone directory
- Perth Metro Step by Step Automatic Exchanges
- Perth WA Telstra exchanges pre-NBN ca. 2004
- 5, 6, 7 and 8 digit telephone numbers in WA
This page continues on from Western Australian colonial telecommunications
and is followed by 1914: The first automatic (dial) telephone exchange in Western Australia
and is followed by 1914: The first automatic (dial) telephone exchange in Western Australia
NOTE: A comprehensive article, first produced by historian John Moynihan, on WA telephony history from the first exchange in 1887 through to 1987 can be viewed at:
https://telsoc.org/sites/default/files/journal_article/254-article_text-2548-2-11-20200427.pdf
https://telsoc.org/sites/default/files/journal_article/254-article_text-2548-2-11-20200427.pdf
Federation
On 1 January 1901 the British Parliament passed legislation allowing the six Australian colonies to govern in their own right as part of the Commonwealth of Australia. British influence over Australian government ceased with the enactment of the two Australia Acts of 1986. These finally removed residual controls of Australia in the United Kingdom's parliamentary, government and judicial systems.
The following information is largely derived from an article "Interpreting the Engineering History of Telephony in Western Australia" by J. F. Moynihan, Telecom Australia, in the Telecommunication Journal of Australia Vol. 41 No. 3 1991.
John Moynihan passed away in April 2017. He was a dedicated amateur telecommunications historian in his spare time and without his efforts a lot of this history would be lost
On 1 January 1901 the British Parliament passed legislation allowing the six Australian colonies to govern in their own right as part of the Commonwealth of Australia. British influence over Australian government ceased with the enactment of the two Australia Acts of 1986. These finally removed residual controls of Australia in the United Kingdom's parliamentary, government and judicial systems.
The following information is largely derived from an article "Interpreting the Engineering History of Telephony in Western Australia" by J. F. Moynihan, Telecom Australia, in the Telecommunication Journal of Australia Vol. 41 No. 3 1991.
John Moynihan passed away in April 2017. He was a dedicated amateur telecommunications historian in his spare time and without his efforts a lot of this history would be lost
Postmaster General's Department
The Federal Postmaster-General's Department (PMG) was formed on 1 March 1901. Through the Australian Post Office (APO), it controlled postal, telegraph, telephone and later telecommunications services and remained in this role for the next 75 years. In general discussion, the acronyms, PMG and APO are synonymous.
The Federal Postmaster-General's Department (PMG) was formed on 1 March 1901. Through the Australian Post Office (APO), it controlled postal, telegraph, telephone and later telecommunications services and remained in this role for the next 75 years. In general discussion, the acronyms, PMG and APO are synonymous.
WA at Federation in 1901
- All telephone exchanges were manual, i.e. operated by telephonists, in the first decade of the 20th century in Australia. Automatic (i.e. dial) telephony did not arrive in Australia until 1912 and Australia did not become wholly automatic until 1991. Western Australia only had one automatic exchange (Central 1914 described here) until Cottesloe was commissioned in 1930.
- The majority of subscriber telephone lines were still single wire earth return and all used the local battery/magneto system (both described here). Common battery exchanges didn't start to appear in WA until 1911.
- The PMG took over and retained the colonial telephone equipment, in some cases for decades.
- There were no underground cable circuits in WA but ways of undergrounding were being considered.
- There were no coin slot-machine public telephones in WA.
- Charges for telephone services from colonial times were to remain in force for some time after Federation.
- WA’s exchanges: Perth (1887), Fremantle (l888), North Fremantle, Geraldton and Albany (1895), Guildford (1896), Coolgardie, Kalgoorlie and Boulder (1897), Cottesloe (1898), Northam (1900). Rottnest exchange, at that time, served WA Government organisations only and was not listed. In all, 2,445 telephone subscribers in WA.
The decade following Federation in WA was tumultuous in public service terms. It seems that some in the WA business community were not satisfied with the quality of east-west communications or the local post office administration. In 1905, the NSW Telegraph manager, Mr E. I. Young visited WA to examine operations and filed a negative report resulting in the demotion of senior WA staff members, G. P. Stevens and E. Snook. These were later overturned, but both these men were retired in 1906.
Reading between the lines, I get the impression that Mr Stevens and his colleagues were shafted. Stevens had complained about Central Office's bad decisions regarding technical issues and had (robustly?) requested significant expenditure on goldfields telegraphy services and improved exchange staffing. Definitely career-limiting moves!. Three new senior staff members were brought in from NSW to take over, including the above-mentioned Mr Young.
Incidentally, Mr Stevens contributed a lot to WA's colonial and early PMG telecommunications. Born in Britain, he came to colonial Australia as a child. He started his career as a telegraph messenger and worked his way up to the senior position of the PMG Electrical Engineer in WA. With Mr E. H. Innes, He was part of the first long distance telephone experiments in 1878, he successfully completed WA's first radio experiments in 1899 and still maintained an active interest in WA telecommunications until hes death in 1941. A good article about Mr Stevens can be found at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Phillip_Stevens
Map associated with the 1905 Board of Enquiry into PMG in WA (DIrcks, Jenvey, Snook & Stevens)
Following the changes to the staff in WA this map was produced ca, 1906 presumably as a not - so - gentle “dig” at the Eastern States management to illustrate the comparative size of this state and provide some understanding of the problems confronting the department in maintaining communications in a vast underpopulated region of the world.
Following the changes to the staff in WA this map was produced ca, 1906 presumably as a not - so - gentle “dig” at the Eastern States management to illustrate the comparative size of this state and provide some understanding of the problems confronting the department in maintaining communications in a vast underpopulated region of the world.
In 1908 a Royal Commission was set up to investigate WA's post office administration and the quality of the network, resulting in some modest improvements. By 1910 underground cabling was starting to replace aerial poles and wires in Perth. in 1911 common battery telephony started to appear. The first installation was at Fremantle exchange. CB slowly replacing the existing local battery/magneto system and was/is the system employed by automatic exchanges (Although LB/magneto exchanges persisted in some parts of WA until the 1980s). By 1913 dedicated telephone trunk lines extended as far as Bunbury and Albany.
1910 exchanges
In 1910 a detailed list of telephone exchanges in Australia was tabled in Parliament. At the time the report was prepared there were 42 exchanges in WA with 5431 subscribers In the metropolitan area although recently received info. suggests there were 46 exchanges by December 1910 (J.P. Mar 2019).
Two metropolitan exchanges had opened since Federation - South Perth (1902) and Midland Junction (1907). Some new country exchanges of interest were - Bunbury (1903). Grass Valley (1905), York (1906) Katanning (1907), Newcastle/Toodyay (1907) Narrogin, Beverley, Broome and Armadale (1908). Brief descriptions follow. A complete list of exchanges installed in WA by late 1916 can be downloaded as a PDF file below. Many thanks to Mr R Herbert for supplying this information.
In 1910 a detailed list of telephone exchanges in Australia was tabled in Parliament. At the time the report was prepared there were 42 exchanges in WA with 5431 subscribers In the metropolitan area although recently received info. suggests there were 46 exchanges by December 1910 (J.P. Mar 2019).
Two metropolitan exchanges had opened since Federation - South Perth (1902) and Midland Junction (1907). Some new country exchanges of interest were - Bunbury (1903). Grass Valley (1905), York (1906) Katanning (1907), Newcastle/Toodyay (1907) Narrogin, Beverley, Broome and Armadale (1908). Brief descriptions follow. A complete list of exchanges installed in WA by late 1916 can be downloaded as a PDF file below. Many thanks to Mr R Herbert for supplying this information.
wa_telephone_exchanges.pdf | |
File Size: | 184 kb |
File Type: |
The earliest surviving, telephone only, circuit map of WA is dated 1915. The extremes of connections to Perth were Bunbury, Bridgetown, Albany in the south, Mingenew and Bolgart in the north. in the east, connections were made to Kalgoorlie on Sundays by taking two telegraph lines out of service and connecting them as a temporary telephone circuit! By 1921, a surviving composite telephone/telegraph circuit map of WA shows that telephone and/or telegraph lines had reached all then settled parts of the State.
Details and locations of Western Australian country towns can be viewed at the wikipedia site below. Locations described in the following that don't appear on this list are now part of the Perth metropolitan area: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_towns_in_Western_Australia
Details and locations of Western Australian country towns can be viewed at the wikipedia site below. Locations described in the following that don't appear on this list are now part of the Perth metropolitan area: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_towns_in_Western_Australia
Perth Exchange
In June 1892 WA's first exchange was transferred to more spacious accommodation on the second floor of the General Post Office (Treasury Building) in St Georges Terrace on the corner of Barrack St. An exchange was maintained at these premises for over two decades until the installation of Perth's first automatic exchange in 1914. As I understand it, the Perth exchange was mostly magneto working until the implementation of Central automatic exchange.
In June 1892 WA's first exchange was transferred to more spacious accommodation on the second floor of the General Post Office (Treasury Building) in St Georges Terrace on the corner of Barrack St. An exchange was maintained at these premises for over two decades until the installation of Perth's first automatic exchange in 1914. As I understand it, the Perth exchange was mostly magneto working until the implementation of Central automatic exchange.
Early Fremantle area exchanges
The only Fremantle area telephone exchanges operating at Federation were located in the Town Hall (shifted to Cliff St PO later in 1901) and North Fremantle and Cottesloe post offices.
Cliff Street (1901)
Around March 1901 a second story extension was completed on a building at the rear of the Cliff Street Post Office . A new 600 line switchboard was installed and the exchange operations transferred there (from the Town Hall) later that year under the auspices of the new Commonwealth of Australia PMG's Department. This PO closed in 1907 and operations transferred to the newly built Market St premises. The Cliff St building was demolished in 1967 and today the site is a rather boring, fenced car park.
The only Fremantle area telephone exchanges operating at Federation were located in the Town Hall (shifted to Cliff St PO later in 1901) and North Fremantle and Cottesloe post offices.
Cliff Street (1901)
Around March 1901 a second story extension was completed on a building at the rear of the Cliff Street Post Office . A new 600 line switchboard was installed and the exchange operations transferred there (from the Town Hall) later that year under the auspices of the new Commonwealth of Australia PMG's Department. This PO closed in 1907 and operations transferred to the newly built Market St premises. The Cliff St building was demolished in 1967 and today the site is a rather boring, fenced car park.
Market Street (1907)
The “new” Post Office opened in Market Street in July 1907 and the exchange transferred to a location on the first floor later that year. In 1911 some of Fremantle's customer services were converted from magneto to common battery (CB) and this continued progressively as underground cabling was installed. Fremantle was the first CB exchange in WA. From the late 1930s, the town migrated to automatic (i.e. dial) working and, I believe, fully automatic working by 1941. The Telstra exchange is still at the Market St site (2015).
In his memoirs, the PMG Engineer, Kirke Hearder (1908 - 1991) recalled seeing the manual exchange at Fremantle in 1926. He stated it was manufactured by the British company, British Insulated and Helsby Cables Ltd (BI&H) and appeared "venerable", not surprising as it was then nearly 20 years old. Mr Hearder recalled seeing the customers' wall mounted CB telephones and commented "they looked like museum pieces".
Cottesloe (1898)
A makeshift post office was established in Cottesloe in 1894. Apparently it operated near, or at, the railway station to facilitate mail services. By 1898 a purpose built post office and telephone exchange had been constructed at the corner of Forrest and Railway Streets (the building still survives).
Automatic exchange
in January 1930, the Cottesloe automatic exchange was completed at 1 Congdon St. The first exchange in the Fremantle region to “cut-over” to fully automatic (dial) telephony and only the second in WA after Perth Central in 1914. A brief article about the exchange and equipment from 1929 can be read at:
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/32279823
North Fremantle (1895)
Even though it is in an historic building, the current post office (2018) at 211 Queen Victoria St North Fremantle is not the original completed in 1893. The telephone exchange was installed in 1895. Located on the southern side of John Street (now Tydeman Rd) at the corner of Queen Victoria St, the original North Fremantle Post/Telegraph/Telephone Office was demolished to make way for road widening in 1966.
Information source: http://inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au/Public/Inventory/PrintSingleRecord/613ce986-976c-4745-a8dc-9f434fc56418
An excellent history of Fremantle's post offices can be found at:
http://fremantlestuff.info/post/index.html .
Complete 1903, 1910 Perth Metro. and 1926 Perth and SW area telephone directories appear at the bottom of this page. Click to open PDF file/s.
http://fremantlestuff.info/post/index.html .
Complete 1903, 1910 Perth Metro. and 1926 Perth and SW area telephone directories appear at the bottom of this page. Click to open PDF file/s.
Some metro, semi-rural and rural WA exchanges installed within the first two decades of Federation
Exchanges described here
Brief history and/or images of some early exchanges. In alphabetical order - scroll down as required.
A complete list up to 1916 appears in the PDF file below.
Brief history and/or images of some early exchanges. In alphabetical order - scroll down as required.
A complete list up to 1916 appears in the PDF file below.
|
|
|
WA exchanges opening dates 1887 - 1916
wa_telephone_exchanges-1a.pdf | |
File Size: | 346 kb |
File Type: |
Condenser telephones in WA
An interesting newspaper article giving an outline of WA rural telephone services for 1907 can be accessed below. The text refers to the "condenser" telephone which made providing telephone services to many rural towns viable. Click on "download file".
An interesting newspaper article giving an outline of WA rural telephone services for 1907 can be accessed below. The text refers to the "condenser" telephone which made providing telephone services to many rural towns viable. Click on "download file".
kalgoorlie_western_argus__wa___1896_-_1916__tuesday_21_may_1907_page_17.pdf | |
File Size: | 271 kb |
File Type: |
Another article describing the application of a "condenser" telephone service between Narrogin and Williams 1909. Click on "download file".
narrogin_williams_nla.news-article157052794.3.pdf | |
File Size: | 174 kb |
File Type: |
Condenser telephone: from Wikipedia here: "The condenser telephone also known as the "Phonopore" telephone system, was an invention first patented in 1892 and subsequently introduced in many countries in large numbers, whereby telephone voice communications could be made over existing Morse code telegraph infrastructure at a low installation and running cost."
Albany (1895)
Located on the south coast about 400 km from Perth, Albany is the oldest settlement in WA (1826). "On December 26, 1871, a telegraph service to Perth was established and on January 1, 1875 the first pole for an E-W intercolonial telegraph line was placed outside the post office by Governor Weld, where a plaque remains on a monument commemorating this engineering milestone. The worldwide service began in 1877. In 1895, a telephone exchange, with 112 subscribers and two telephonists, who were paid £35 per annum, was housed in the George Temple-Poole designed extension on the western side. This was built by the Tighe Bros and supervised by Francis Bird, at a cost of £4,500. Again, local bricks, granite and sheoak was used, while freestone, bluestone and cedar were imported from New South Wales." The building was shared with Customs and Treasury. Source:
https://www.albanygateway.com.au/visitor/historical/uwa-albany-centre-old-post-office-35-stirling-terrace
Located on the south coast about 400 km from Perth, Albany is the oldest settlement in WA (1826). "On December 26, 1871, a telegraph service to Perth was established and on January 1, 1875 the first pole for an E-W intercolonial telegraph line was placed outside the post office by Governor Weld, where a plaque remains on a monument commemorating this engineering milestone. The worldwide service began in 1877. In 1895, a telephone exchange, with 112 subscribers and two telephonists, who were paid £35 per annum, was housed in the George Temple-Poole designed extension on the western side. This was built by the Tighe Bros and supervised by Francis Bird, at a cost of £4,500. Again, local bricks, granite and sheoak was used, while freestone, bluestone and cedar were imported from New South Wales." The building was shared with Customs and Treasury. Source:
https://www.albanygateway.com.au/visitor/historical/uwa-albany-centre-old-post-office-35-stirling-terrace
Armadale (1908)
The Armadale Post and Telegraph Office was officially opened on 1st September 1898 (Info. source https://www.armadale.wa.gov.au/1830-1899-timeline). The building was substantially extended over the 20th c. By 1910 Armadale's exchange was working with 19 subscribers. A PDF subscriber list can be downloaded below.
The Armadale Post and Telegraph Office was officially opened on 1st September 1898 (Info. source https://www.armadale.wa.gov.au/1830-1899-timeline). The building was substantially extended over the 20th c. By 1910 Armadale's exchange was working with 19 subscribers. A PDF subscriber list can be downloaded below.
armadale1910_wa_metro_tel_dir.pdf | |
File Size: | 294 kb |
File Type: |
Beverley Post office and Telephone Exchange (1908)
Beverley is a small wheatbelt town about 130km east of Perth. The area was settled very early in colonial WA's history. The exchange was opened on 15 April 1908 and by 1910 it had 24 subscribers. The telephone list appears below as a PDF download.
A description of Beverly Post Office from a 1997 media statement
(source: https://www.mediastatements.wa.gov.au/Pages/Court/1997/07/Heritage-listing-for-Beverley's-historic-post-office.aspx)
"It is a fine example of the period's architecture and has been used as a post office since construction in 1910," Mr Kierath said.
"Beverley's first post office was opened in May 1858, possibly in a private residence and the first official post office was part of the old police station in Hunt Road. With the gold rushes of the 1890s, Beverley was developing as an important regional centre and by the 1900s a new post office was needed to meet the demands of a growing population," Mr Kierath said. "The old post office was condemned by the Beverley Roads Board and demolished in 1914."
"The building was designed by the chief architect of the Public Works Department, Hillson Beasley, and was opened on January 3, 1910. It is a fine example of the Federation Free style of architecture from Mr Beasley, one of the recognised exponents of the style. In 1957 the new post office was significantly up-graded to allow for new communications facilities. These extensions are not part of the heritage listing."
Beverley is a small wheatbelt town about 130km east of Perth. The area was settled very early in colonial WA's history. The exchange was opened on 15 April 1908 and by 1910 it had 24 subscribers. The telephone list appears below as a PDF download.
A description of Beverly Post Office from a 1997 media statement
(source: https://www.mediastatements.wa.gov.au/Pages/Court/1997/07/Heritage-listing-for-Beverley's-historic-post-office.aspx)
"It is a fine example of the period's architecture and has been used as a post office since construction in 1910," Mr Kierath said.
"Beverley's first post office was opened in May 1858, possibly in a private residence and the first official post office was part of the old police station in Hunt Road. With the gold rushes of the 1890s, Beverley was developing as an important regional centre and by the 1900s a new post office was needed to meet the demands of a growing population," Mr Kierath said. "The old post office was condemned by the Beverley Roads Board and demolished in 1914."
"The building was designed by the chief architect of the Public Works Department, Hillson Beasley, and was opened on January 3, 1910. It is a fine example of the Federation Free style of architecture from Mr Beasley, one of the recognised exponents of the style. In 1957 the new post office was significantly up-graded to allow for new communications facilities. These extensions are not part of the heritage listing."
beverley1910_wa_metro_tel_dir.pdf | |
File Size: | 451 kb |
File Type: |
Boulder (1897)
The town of Boulder is contiguous with Kalgoorlie and both are now merged into a single city with a population exceeding 30 000.
Gold was discovered in large quantities in the eastern goldfields of WA in the 1890s. Boulder, Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie telephone exchanges were opened in the same year - 1897. Coolgardie is located about 550 km east of Perth WA and Kalgoorlie/Boulder about another 40km NE of Coolgardie. Development of the goldfields saw rapid expansion in their postal, telegraph and telephone services. They were housed in well-built, robust buildings that have survived to the present day. A reconstructed telephone directory for Boulder in 1900 (PDF) can be downloaded below.
The town of Boulder is contiguous with Kalgoorlie and both are now merged into a single city with a population exceeding 30 000.
Gold was discovered in large quantities in the eastern goldfields of WA in the 1890s. Boulder, Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie telephone exchanges were opened in the same year - 1897. Coolgardie is located about 550 km east of Perth WA and Kalgoorlie/Boulder about another 40km NE of Coolgardie. Development of the goldfields saw rapid expansion in their postal, telegraph and telephone services. They were housed in well-built, robust buildings that have survived to the present day. A reconstructed telephone directory for Boulder in 1900 (PDF) can be downloaded below.
boulder_directory.pdf | |
File Size: | 38 kb |
File Type: |
Broome (1908)
By 1884 the Perth - Broome telegraph line was in service (and extended on a simplex line to Wyndham). The 1650km cable from Banjoewangie ( now Banyuwangi), Java, came ashore on the 26th February 1889, hence the name Cable Beach. The Cable link to Europe greatly facilitated the development of the Broome and Kimberly regions. Broome telephone exchange was in place by 1908.
By 1884 the Perth - Broome telegraph line was in service (and extended on a simplex line to Wyndham). The 1650km cable from Banjoewangie ( now Banyuwangi), Java, came ashore on the 26th February 1889, hence the name Cable Beach. The Cable link to Europe greatly facilitated the development of the Broome and Kimberly regions. Broome telephone exchange was in place by 1908.
Bunbury (1903)
The first post office in Bunbury was built in 1864. It also served as the telegraph office from about 1872 until the new building was completed in 1894.
Second Post Office
Bunbury's first telephone exchange opened here on 16 April 1903.
"The Railways and Works Department awarded on 12 May 1894, a contract to A. Pugh at a cost of £1,839 for the construction of a building to provide postal, telegraphic, banking and telephone services at 4 Stephen Street. On 24 May 1894, Sir John Forrest laid the foundation stone and construction was completed later that year. Additions were made in 1896 and in 1897 by John Gibbs. On 14 October 1968, the building was damaged by tremors from the Meckering Earthquake, prompting the construction at the corner of Victoria and Stirling Streets on the site of the former Mitchell family residence, “The Willows” in 1969, of a new Post Office, Telephone Exchange and Administration building. From 1970 to 1974 the former Post Office was used as a Courthouse, then purchased by the Bunbury City Council in 1974. It was demolished to make way for the building of new Council offices in 1976." Source: https://www.bunburyhistoricalsociety.org.au/bunbury-history/
The first post office in Bunbury was built in 1864. It also served as the telegraph office from about 1872 until the new building was completed in 1894.
Second Post Office
Bunbury's first telephone exchange opened here on 16 April 1903.
"The Railways and Works Department awarded on 12 May 1894, a contract to A. Pugh at a cost of £1,839 for the construction of a building to provide postal, telegraphic, banking and telephone services at 4 Stephen Street. On 24 May 1894, Sir John Forrest laid the foundation stone and construction was completed later that year. Additions were made in 1896 and in 1897 by John Gibbs. On 14 October 1968, the building was damaged by tremors from the Meckering Earthquake, prompting the construction at the corner of Victoria and Stirling Streets on the site of the former Mitchell family residence, “The Willows” in 1969, of a new Post Office, Telephone Exchange and Administration building. From 1970 to 1974 the former Post Office was used as a Courthouse, then purchased by the Bunbury City Council in 1974. It was demolished to make way for the building of new Council offices in 1976." Source: https://www.bunburyhistoricalsociety.org.au/bunbury-history/
Some more Bunbury images here
Coolgardie (1897)
The goldfields towns of Coolgardie, Kalgoorlie, Boulder all share similar telegraph and telephone history. Exchanges opened in the three adjacent towns in 1897. Coolgardie is located about 550 km east of Perth WA and Kalgoorlie-Boulder approx. another 40 km N-E of Coolgardie. A reconstructed telephone directory for Coolgardie in 1900 (PDF) can be downloaded below.
The goldfields towns of Coolgardie, Kalgoorlie, Boulder all share similar telegraph and telephone history. Exchanges opened in the three adjacent towns in 1897. Coolgardie is located about 550 km east of Perth WA and Kalgoorlie-Boulder approx. another 40 km N-E of Coolgardie. A reconstructed telephone directory for Coolgardie in 1900 (PDF) can be downloaded below.
coolgardie_exchange_1900.pdf | |
File Size: | 91 kb |
File Type: |
Geraldton (1895)
Geraldton is a coastal town located approx. 420 km north of Perth. It was first settled in about 1850. By January 1893 the foundations had been laid for Geraldton's new Post Office building located on Marine Terrace. The land extended through to 15 Chapman Road where the Telstra exchange still stands (2018). Costing approximately 3,000 pounds, the building incorporated post and telegraph offices and the Post Master's residence. The new Post Office was opened on 11 December 1893. The building comprised two storeys with an ornate tower which was added in 1914. Private mail boxes were located to the right of the building and the telephone exchange (1895) was sited on the second floor on the left hand side.
Information source: City of Greater Geraldton - Municipal Inventory Place Record
Geraldton is a coastal town located approx. 420 km north of Perth. It was first settled in about 1850. By January 1893 the foundations had been laid for Geraldton's new Post Office building located on Marine Terrace. The land extended through to 15 Chapman Road where the Telstra exchange still stands (2018). Costing approximately 3,000 pounds, the building incorporated post and telegraph offices and the Post Master's residence. The new Post Office was opened on 11 December 1893. The building comprised two storeys with an ornate tower which was added in 1914. Private mail boxes were located to the right of the building and the telephone exchange (1895) was sited on the second floor on the left hand side.
Information source: City of Greater Geraldton - Municipal Inventory Place Record
From http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WMCJZQ_Geraldton_Former_WA_6530
"In 1970 the Postmaster-Generals Department announced that due to the prosperity of the region, within five years Geraldton would have a new larger post office to deal with the increased business. The old post office was vacated and the building was offered to various community groups. No takers however were found and the building was demolished in 1979. The new post office was never built, and the site remained vacant. Many Geraldton residents still lament the demolition. As part of the Marine Terrace mall project in 1994, the stone from the original post office was used to create a screening wall, and public open space. Later the former post office clock was installed on a tower."
"In 1970 the Postmaster-Generals Department announced that due to the prosperity of the region, within five years Geraldton would have a new larger post office to deal with the increased business. The old post office was vacated and the building was offered to various community groups. No takers however were found and the building was demolished in 1979. The new post office was never built, and the site remained vacant. Many Geraldton residents still lament the demolition. As part of the Marine Terrace mall project in 1994, the stone from the original post office was used to create a screening wall, and public open space. Later the former post office clock was installed on a tower."
Grass Valley (1905)
(Information derived from Northam Municipal Heritage Inventory September 2012)
Grass valley is a small hamlet located about 13 km east of Northam and about 110km north east of Perth.
In the 1890s Grass Valley was an important rural centre with a railway siding providing access to the hay and chaff industry set up by the local farmers. An agricultural hall was built in 1898 and a school was held there from 1899. The Grass Valley Hotel was licensed and a post office and foundry were established at around the same time. In 1910 it had an exchange with 14 subscribers. The subscriber list from 1910 can be downloaded below
Later mobility after the advent of the motor car and changes in farming practices during the 20th c, led to a decline of this and similar small wheatbelt towns.
(Information derived from Northam Municipal Heritage Inventory September 2012)
Grass valley is a small hamlet located about 13 km east of Northam and about 110km north east of Perth.
In the 1890s Grass Valley was an important rural centre with a railway siding providing access to the hay and chaff industry set up by the local farmers. An agricultural hall was built in 1898 and a school was held there from 1899. The Grass Valley Hotel was licensed and a post office and foundry were established at around the same time. In 1910 it had an exchange with 14 subscribers. The subscriber list from 1910 can be downloaded below
Later mobility after the advent of the motor car and changes in farming practices during the 20th c, led to a decline of this and similar small wheatbelt towns.
grass_valley_york1910_wa_metro_tel_dir.pdf | |
File Size: | 658 kb |
File Type: |
Guildford (1896)
In 1903 Guildford exchange had 84 subscribers. An overview of the Guildford PO (1896-8) and exchange can be viewed at https://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-04-20/guildford-post-office-memories/6406324
The following images of Guildford are from a PMG album prepared in 1937.
In 1903 Guildford exchange had 84 subscribers. An overview of the Guildford PO (1896-8) and exchange can be viewed at https://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-04-20/guildford-post-office-memories/6406324
The following images of Guildford are from a PMG album prepared in 1937.
The 1903 Guildford telephone directory can be downloaded. Go to the end of his page
Kalamunda (1911)
I have a personal interest in Kalamunda with family connections from the 1930s to today so this description may exceed others here. The following text was taken from a 1982 report completed by Mrs J Lewis.
In 1906 Mr Gull, MLA, was requested by the Darling Range Roads Board to secure a telephone or telegraph service for Kalamunda. The efforts of all concerned must have had reasonably quick results because mid way through the following year the Secretary of the Roads Board was instructed to contact the telephone Department on the matter of trees felled during the erection of the telephone line to Kalamunda. The Post Office telephone was used to transmit and receive telegrams, the usual form of communication of the day. One such telegram, dated 2 January 1908 to the Secretary of the Darling Range Roads Board has survived. By mid 1908 the Roads Board Office had been connected by telephone to the Kalamunda Post Office. In 1911 Archibald Sanderson applied for and was granted permission to erect telephone poles to his home in Lesmurdie.
The Kalamunda telephone exchange was opened on 16 March 1911 at the existing non-official post office at 63 Railway Road owned and operated by the McCullagh family. It remained there until the new PO was built in 1921 further up Railway Rd, on a site now occupied by the eastern car park of the Kalamunda Central shopping Centre. The postmistress of the new P.O. was Miss Alice Ethel Chambers. She served there until 1934 but remained in similar senior roles until retirement from the PMG in 1945. Upon closure in 1972 the PO building was recovered and relocated at the History Village Museum in 1975. Similarly Miss Chambers' family home and the McCullagh home and PO building were also relocated to the museum. All are well maintained and give an insight into a bygone age.
The images below show (top) the 1901-1921 PO, the 1921 PO (taken 1937) and the manual exchange room in 1937. Telephonist is believed to be Miss Doreen Penrose. A little more information on Kalamunda exchange here.
Telephone subscribers list for Kalamunda can be downloaded in PDF form below. The first contains early subscribers list from around 1914 and 1921. The second is an extract from 1929 WA telephone directory when Kalamunda had about 90 subscribers.
I have a personal interest in Kalamunda with family connections from the 1930s to today so this description may exceed others here. The following text was taken from a 1982 report completed by Mrs J Lewis.
In 1906 Mr Gull, MLA, was requested by the Darling Range Roads Board to secure a telephone or telegraph service for Kalamunda. The efforts of all concerned must have had reasonably quick results because mid way through the following year the Secretary of the Roads Board was instructed to contact the telephone Department on the matter of trees felled during the erection of the telephone line to Kalamunda. The Post Office telephone was used to transmit and receive telegrams, the usual form of communication of the day. One such telegram, dated 2 January 1908 to the Secretary of the Darling Range Roads Board has survived. By mid 1908 the Roads Board Office had been connected by telephone to the Kalamunda Post Office. In 1911 Archibald Sanderson applied for and was granted permission to erect telephone poles to his home in Lesmurdie.
The Kalamunda telephone exchange was opened on 16 March 1911 at the existing non-official post office at 63 Railway Road owned and operated by the McCullagh family. It remained there until the new PO was built in 1921 further up Railway Rd, on a site now occupied by the eastern car park of the Kalamunda Central shopping Centre. The postmistress of the new P.O. was Miss Alice Ethel Chambers. She served there until 1934 but remained in similar senior roles until retirement from the PMG in 1945. Upon closure in 1972 the PO building was recovered and relocated at the History Village Museum in 1975. Similarly Miss Chambers' family home and the McCullagh home and PO building were also relocated to the museum. All are well maintained and give an insight into a bygone age.
The images below show (top) the 1901-1921 PO, the 1921 PO (taken 1937) and the manual exchange room in 1937. Telephonist is believed to be Miss Doreen Penrose. A little more information on Kalamunda exchange here.
Telephone subscribers list for Kalamunda can be downloaded in PDF form below. The first contains early subscribers list from around 1914 and 1921. The second is an extract from 1929 WA telephone directory when Kalamunda had about 90 subscribers.
kalamunda_exchange_lists.pdf | |
File Size: | 163 kb |
File Type: |
kalamunda_dir_1929.pdf | |
File Size: | 481 kb |
File Type: |
Subsequent Kalamunda telephony history
Kalamunda was converted to automatic at the end of 1955. No images are available of that exchange. A building was proposed in 1954 (see drawing below) but it was a very substantial brick structure and I doubt that it was ever built due to major material shortages in that era. In PMG Engineer, Kirke Hearder's, memoirs (extract here) he refers to the stopgap measures of "double and triple garages" being pressed into service during the 1950s as temporary exchanges and specifically mentions Kalamunda as a triple garage. The 1949 image below shows the proposed Kalamunda line yards behind the post office with a triple garage. Short of any other evidence, I can only presume this was pressed into service until the "new" exchange across the road was built around 1970. According to Parliamentary papers once read by this writer, the current exchange (2021) was commissioned in 1969-70 at a cost of $65 000. Located Railway Rd, (opposite Kalamunda Hotel).
Kalamunda was converted to automatic at the end of 1955. No images are available of that exchange. A building was proposed in 1954 (see drawing below) but it was a very substantial brick structure and I doubt that it was ever built due to major material shortages in that era. In PMG Engineer, Kirke Hearder's, memoirs (extract here) he refers to the stopgap measures of "double and triple garages" being pressed into service during the 1950s as temporary exchanges and specifically mentions Kalamunda as a triple garage. The 1949 image below shows the proposed Kalamunda line yards behind the post office with a triple garage. Short of any other evidence, I can only presume this was pressed into service until the "new" exchange across the road was built around 1970. According to Parliamentary papers once read by this writer, the current exchange (2021) was commissioned in 1969-70 at a cost of $65 000. Located Railway Rd, (opposite Kalamunda Hotel).
Kalgoorlie (1897)
See also Boulder and Coolgardie. The Kalgoorlie Telephone Exchange opened in August 1897 with 43 subscribers connected. On completion of the Post and Telegraph Office in Hannan Street in 1899, a telephone exchange was re-installed on the second floor of this building.
A reconstructed telephone directory for Kalgoorlie in 1900 (PDF) can be downloaded below.
See also Boulder and Coolgardie. The Kalgoorlie Telephone Exchange opened in August 1897 with 43 subscribers connected. On completion of the Post and Telegraph Office in Hannan Street in 1899, a telephone exchange was re-installed on the second floor of this building.
A reconstructed telephone directory for Kalgoorlie in 1900 (PDF) can be downloaded below.
kalgoorlie_directory_1900.pdf | |
File Size: | 42 kb |
File Type: |
Katanning (1907)
The following information and image derived from an article by Kevin Porteous published on the "Lost Katanning" website https://lostkatanning.com/telecommunications/.
1892 – Mr Trott was the successful tenderer for the erection of the Post and Telegraph offices at Katanning and Broomehill at the respective prices of £986/17/0s and £978/0/0s.
1893 – The Post and Telegraph Office at Katanning was opened on 4 August 1893. A.E. Piesse was the first Postmaster.
1907 – The opening of the first Telephone Exchange for Katanning was possibly due around July 1907. Due to an illness of the officer sent to commission the new Exchange it was delayed and opened on the 11th October. This Exchange would have been housed in the existing Post and Telegraph building.
1912 – In 1912, Mr J. Park was the successful tenderer for the new post office. The contract price was £2482/4/10.
1913 – The new Post Office, located on the corner of Clive and Richardson Streets was opened in April. The Great Southern Herald described in detail the building in all its glory and gives background on the need for the upgrade. The old building, re-used as part of the Postmaster’s residence, is also mentioned. Completion of a new trunk line between Perth and Albany allowed Katanning to communicate with other towns and subscribers on this network.
2019 - building is still used as a PO.
The following images were derived from the above resource and http://purl.slwa.wa.gov.au/slwa_b4537970_2
The following information and image derived from an article by Kevin Porteous published on the "Lost Katanning" website https://lostkatanning.com/telecommunications/.
1892 – Mr Trott was the successful tenderer for the erection of the Post and Telegraph offices at Katanning and Broomehill at the respective prices of £986/17/0s and £978/0/0s.
1893 – The Post and Telegraph Office at Katanning was opened on 4 August 1893. A.E. Piesse was the first Postmaster.
1907 – The opening of the first Telephone Exchange for Katanning was possibly due around July 1907. Due to an illness of the officer sent to commission the new Exchange it was delayed and opened on the 11th October. This Exchange would have been housed in the existing Post and Telegraph building.
1912 – In 1912, Mr J. Park was the successful tenderer for the new post office. The contract price was £2482/4/10.
1913 – The new Post Office, located on the corner of Clive and Richardson Streets was opened in April. The Great Southern Herald described in detail the building in all its glory and gives background on the need for the upgrade. The old building, re-used as part of the Postmaster’s residence, is also mentioned. Completion of a new trunk line between Perth and Albany allowed Katanning to communicate with other towns and subscribers on this network.
2019 - building is still used as a PO.
The following images were derived from the above resource and http://purl.slwa.wa.gov.au/slwa_b4537970_2
From:
http://inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au/Public/Inventory/PrintSingleRecord/3e1f2d7b-1dee-45db-928f-992a2a5519e9
The Great Southern Herald provided the following description in 1913: "Entering the new building from Clive Street, through the lobbies and under the spacious arches there is on one side the public receiving box for letters and papers, and on the other the private letter boxes. A public telephone box is situated on either side opening from the lobbies. Passing through the folding doors there is an impression of appreciable roominess. The desks and writing facilities are arranged against the southern wall, between which the counter is some 25ft of floor and space. The counter is arranged in semi-circular fashion across the room. The main hall in which are erected all the necessary fittings, is about 40ft square, and light and ventilation have been studiously provided. The telephone room is situated in the northeast corner of the main hall, from which entrance is obtained to the battery room. In the opposite corner are the strongroom, built with concrete and lavatories also built into the main structure. Granolithic has been provided as flooring for the back verandah and two large tanks provide ample fresh water for drinking and other purposes. The general appearance both inside and out reveals careful workmanship; and the new building combines utility and adornment in this rapidly growing centre.... "
Maddington (1916)
I have included this exchange as a personal indulgence. I grew up in this area and have had a continuous family connection there back to the early 1930s.
Historical information is sparse but I know that Maddington (manual) telephone exchange opened on 16th June 1916. There was a Store/Post Office located on the NW corner of Albany Highway and Maddington Road by 1928 and operated by Mr C.J. Waddell. After 1936 the proprietor was Denison. In the 1950-60s the postmaster was a Mr Strang. This building was demolished in about 1985. I am unsure of the telephone exchange history prior to 1928 but it was still located in the above-mentioned PO/store in 1944. In 1948, the first automatic exchange was installed in a hut on the corner diagonally opposite the PO. A later exchange was built on the same site but ultimately it shifted to its latest site (2019), cnr Attfield and Herbert Sts Maddington. Images below
I have included this exchange as a personal indulgence. I grew up in this area and have had a continuous family connection there back to the early 1930s.
Historical information is sparse but I know that Maddington (manual) telephone exchange opened on 16th June 1916. There was a Store/Post Office located on the NW corner of Albany Highway and Maddington Road by 1928 and operated by Mr C.J. Waddell. After 1936 the proprietor was Denison. In the 1950-60s the postmaster was a Mr Strang. This building was demolished in about 1985. I am unsure of the telephone exchange history prior to 1928 but it was still located in the above-mentioned PO/store in 1944. In 1948, the first automatic exchange was installed in a hut on the corner diagonally opposite the PO. A later exchange was built on the same site but ultimately it shifted to its latest site (2019), cnr Attfield and Herbert Sts Maddington. Images below
Midland (1907)
Early records can be confusing. From 1895, Midland Junction was officially called Helena Vale but common practise prevailed and the name Midland Junction was restored in 1901.
The (former) Midland Post Office is located on the north-west corner of Great Eastern Highway and Helena Street. It was repurposed and renamed Midland Junction Lotteries House in 1997.
A PO was built on this site in 1897. It was an unpopular building and was demolished 16 years later and replaced by the current building, built in 1913-14. The reason why such a substantial building was demolished to make way for the new design of 1913 has not been officially established but the local newspaper, the Swan Express, described the existing Post Office as a ’dog kennel’, and used the visit of the Postmaster General and Federal politicians in March, 1912, to report that "the building was utterly unsuitable. It was inadequate for the needs of the public...positively insanitary unhealthy on account...of the absence of ventilation" (Source: http://inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au)
The first Midland Junction Exchange was installed in this building in 1907
Early records can be confusing. From 1895, Midland Junction was officially called Helena Vale but common practise prevailed and the name Midland Junction was restored in 1901.
The (former) Midland Post Office is located on the north-west corner of Great Eastern Highway and Helena Street. It was repurposed and renamed Midland Junction Lotteries House in 1997.
A PO was built on this site in 1897. It was an unpopular building and was demolished 16 years later and replaced by the current building, built in 1913-14. The reason why such a substantial building was demolished to make way for the new design of 1913 has not been officially established but the local newspaper, the Swan Express, described the existing Post Office as a ’dog kennel’, and used the visit of the Postmaster General and Federal politicians in March, 1912, to report that "the building was utterly unsuitable. It was inadequate for the needs of the public...positively insanitary unhealthy on account...of the absence of ventilation" (Source: http://inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au)
The first Midland Junction Exchange was installed in this building in 1907
The current building was completed by November 1914 at a cost of £4,903/13/05, a very substantial amount at that time, apparently second only to Market St Fremantle (completed 1907). It was constructed on the same site as the earlier (1897) PO.
Narrogin (1908)
"The first mails in Narrogin were handled at Mr. Chipper’s store near the railway line. Narrogin’s first Post Office was built by J Mackie in 1892 on the corner of Fortune and Rowley streets, to a government design by George Temple Poole. It had one room for postal services and the rest was living quarters for the Post Master. By 1908 a telephone exchange with 28 subscribers was operating and there was need for a new post office. Built in 1912 it was sited to the left of the original building. In 1961 the first Post Office building was demolished to make way for an extension to the TLE (trunk line equipment) building." (Source: https://www.narrogin.wa.gov.au/)
Extract from Narrogin Local Heritage Survey document 2019: "STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE. Narrogin TLE (trunk line equipment) building is on the site of the original post office, and represents progress in telecommunications in Narrogin. It does little for the streetscape or the Narrogin town’s historic aesthetic."
John's note. Luckily the second PO building (1912) was preserved and is the current post office and shop. A small portion of it can be seen to the left of the TLE building in the following image.
"The first mails in Narrogin were handled at Mr. Chipper’s store near the railway line. Narrogin’s first Post Office was built by J Mackie in 1892 on the corner of Fortune and Rowley streets, to a government design by George Temple Poole. It had one room for postal services and the rest was living quarters for the Post Master. By 1908 a telephone exchange with 28 subscribers was operating and there was need for a new post office. Built in 1912 it was sited to the left of the original building. In 1961 the first Post Office building was demolished to make way for an extension to the TLE (trunk line equipment) building." (Source: https://www.narrogin.wa.gov.au/)
Extract from Narrogin Local Heritage Survey document 2019: "STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE. Narrogin TLE (trunk line equipment) building is on the site of the original post office, and represents progress in telecommunications in Narrogin. It does little for the streetscape or the Narrogin town’s historic aesthetic."
John's note. Luckily the second PO building (1912) was preserved and is the current post office and shop. A small portion of it can be seen to the left of the TLE building in the following image.
Newcastle/Toodyay (1907)
Newcastle/Toodyay was one of the earliest inland, farming, settlements in Western Australia. Situated on the Avon River 85 km northeast of Perth, it is a popular tourist stop. The first township of Toodyay was on the site of today's West Toodyay but serious flooding problems caused it to move to the nearby convict hiring station of Newcastle in the 1850s. It retained the name Newcastle until late in 1910 when Toodyay was re-adopted.
The Newcastle Post and Telegraph Office at 115 Stirling Tce Toodyay dates back to 1897. The exchange opened 22 nov. 1907 and by 1910 it had 23 subscribers. The subscriber list can be downloaded below.
Newcastle/Toodyay was one of the earliest inland, farming, settlements in Western Australia. Situated on the Avon River 85 km northeast of Perth, it is a popular tourist stop. The first township of Toodyay was on the site of today's West Toodyay but serious flooding problems caused it to move to the nearby convict hiring station of Newcastle in the 1850s. It retained the name Newcastle until late in 1910 when Toodyay was re-adopted.
The Newcastle Post and Telegraph Office at 115 Stirling Tce Toodyay dates back to 1897. The exchange opened 22 nov. 1907 and by 1910 it had 23 subscribers. The subscriber list can be downloaded below.
newcastle1910_wa_metro_tel_dir.pdf | |
File Size: | 337 kb |
File Type: |
Northam (1900)
At approx. 100km east of Perth, Northam is located in a fertile farming area and was settled very early in WA's history - around 1833. Postal services were provided at several locations in the early days but by 1873 a dedicated post and telegraph office was built in Wellington St. The building survives to the present day. A telephone exchange, initially with 33 subscribers, was installed in 1900. Northam is on the route to the goldfields and grew rapidly in the early 1900s necessitating the construction of a new post office in 1909. The Wellington St building was transferred to the Department of Defence and served as a base for the 10th Light Horse Regiment until the 1970s. Its most recent incarnation is as an arts centre.
Source: http://inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au/Admin/api/file/d60b2514-e7c3-f034-1376-6de6d3b0aa60
The 1910 telephone subscriber list can be downloaded below.
At approx. 100km east of Perth, Northam is located in a fertile farming area and was settled very early in WA's history - around 1833. Postal services were provided at several locations in the early days but by 1873 a dedicated post and telegraph office was built in Wellington St. The building survives to the present day. A telephone exchange, initially with 33 subscribers, was installed in 1900. Northam is on the route to the goldfields and grew rapidly in the early 1900s necessitating the construction of a new post office in 1909. The Wellington St building was transferred to the Department of Defence and served as a base for the 10th Light Horse Regiment until the 1970s. Its most recent incarnation is as an arts centre.
Source: http://inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au/Admin/api/file/d60b2514-e7c3-f034-1376-6de6d3b0aa60
The 1910 telephone subscriber list can be downloaded below.
northam1910_wa_metro_tel_dir.pdf | |
File Size: | 1250 kb |
File Type: |
South Perth (1902)
The South Perth PO was completed late in 1900. The exchange was installed around 1902. It appears in the 1903 telephone directory with 30 subscribers. The PO is still in use and referred to as the Mends St PO. Some background can be viewed at:
https://southperth.wa.gov.au/docs/default-source/4-develop/planning/heritage/precinct-15-south-perth-station/south-perth-post-office-(cat-b).pdf?sfvrsn=10c0fabd_2
A new PO was completed at 59 Angelo St in 1939 and assumed the title of South Perth Post Office. In 1941 the SxS automatic exchange was installed here. In about 1960 the adjacent building at 61 Angelo St was constructed with an upgraded exchange. An article about South Perth's transition to automatic appears blow. Click on 'download file'.
The South Perth PO was completed late in 1900. The exchange was installed around 1902. It appears in the 1903 telephone directory with 30 subscribers. The PO is still in use and referred to as the Mends St PO. Some background can be viewed at:
https://southperth.wa.gov.au/docs/default-source/4-develop/planning/heritage/precinct-15-south-perth-station/south-perth-post-office-(cat-b).pdf?sfvrsn=10c0fabd_2
A new PO was completed at 59 Angelo St in 1939 and assumed the title of South Perth Post Office. In 1941 the SxS automatic exchange was installed here. In about 1960 the adjacent building at 61 Angelo St was constructed with an upgraded exchange. An article about South Perth's transition to automatic appears blow. Click on 'download file'.
s_perth_exch_1941nla.news-article59151416.3.pdf | |
File Size: | 189 kb |
File Type: |
A PDF list of South Perth subscribers from the 1903 directory can be downloaded at the end of this page.
Toodyay. See Newcastle above
York (1906)
York is about 100 km east of Perth and shares a similar history to the nearby town of Northam.
The contract was let on 1 May 1893 for £1890 to construct the York PO. The new post office was opened in 1895 and later included the manually operated telephone exchange opened in January 1906 with 21 subscribers. The manual exchange remained on site until 1981. York Post Office continues to function as a post office and residence (2019). (Source: http://inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au/) The 1910 subscriber list can be downloaded below
A detailed article appears on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/York_Post_Office
York is about 100 km east of Perth and shares a similar history to the nearby town of Northam.
The contract was let on 1 May 1893 for £1890 to construct the York PO. The new post office was opened in 1895 and later included the manually operated telephone exchange opened in January 1906 with 21 subscribers. The manual exchange remained on site until 1981. York Post Office continues to function as a post office and residence (2019). (Source: http://inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au/) The 1910 subscriber list can be downloaded below
A detailed article appears on Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/York_Post_Office
grass_valley_york1910_wa_metro_tel_dir.pdf | |
File Size: | 658 kb |
File Type: |
Officers-in-charge.
Colonial WA Post-Master Generals through to Telecom Australia/Australia Post State Managers. List from estate of J.F. Moynihan, courtesy R Herbert.
Colonial WA Post-Master Generals through to Telecom Australia/Australia Post State Managers. List from estate of J.F. Moynihan, courtesy R Herbert.
pmg_oic_wa__3_.pdf | |
File Size: | 70 kb |
File Type: |
1903 Perth metro area telephone directory
The 1903 directory is the earliest, known, surviving PMG telephone directory in WA. An original is held by a local collector and a copy is held in the Battye Library WA. Recently, I had brief access to the original and was able to photograph the alphabetic listings pages. The quality is not perfect but all pages are legible. Click on the appropriate link below to view listings by exchange.
Fees
A domestic subscriber, located 3 miles from the exchange, could expect to pay £13 (pounds) annually for a local exchange service, S/he would need to pay more for access to another exchange! See the extract below. To put this in a modern perspective, the Australian Bureau of Statistics records for 1901 “the mean annual income per inhabitant (including children aged under 15 years) was £46”. In 2017, it was approximately $62000. In modern terms a telephone service within you local exchange area would be around $17000 p/a! We wonder why antique telephones are rare items!
The 1903 directory is the earliest, known, surviving PMG telephone directory in WA. An original is held by a local collector and a copy is held in the Battye Library WA. Recently, I had brief access to the original and was able to photograph the alphabetic listings pages. The quality is not perfect but all pages are legible. Click on the appropriate link below to view listings by exchange.
Fees
A domestic subscriber, located 3 miles from the exchange, could expect to pay £13 (pounds) annually for a local exchange service, S/he would need to pay more for access to another exchange! See the extract below. To put this in a modern perspective, the Australian Bureau of Statistics records for 1901 “the mean annual income per inhabitant (including children aged under 15 years) was £46”. In 2017, it was approximately $62000. In modern terms a telephone service within you local exchange area would be around $17000 p/a! We wonder why antique telephones are rare items!
perth_directory_1903.pdf | |
File Size: | 3383 kb |
File Type: |
sth_perth_directory_1903.pdf | |
File Size: | 145 kb |
File Type: |
fremantle_directory1903.pdf | |
File Size: | 2074 kb |
File Type: |
nth_frem_directory_1903.pdf | |
File Size: | 244 kb |
File Type: |
cottesloe_directory_1903.pdf | |
File Size: | 642 kb |
File Type: |
guildford_directory_1903.pdf | |
File Size: | 349 kb |
File Type: |
1910 Perth metro area and surrounding towns telephone directory
In view of the size of the file it has been divided into parts. Below appears the Perth metropolitan subscribers listed alphabetically. Other towns' lists in the original directory now appear under the individual town's entry above.
In view of the size of the file it has been divided into parts. Below appears the Perth metropolitan subscribers listed alphabetically. Other towns' lists in the original directory now appear under the individual town's entry above.
1910_perth_and_surrounds_directory.pdf | |
File Size: | 8478 kb |
File Type: |
1926 Perth and S/W directory
wa_telephone_directory_1926-compressed.pdf | |
File Size: | 5374 kb |
File Type: |
The following information is incomplete. Any advice would be welcome via contact
Perth Metro Step by Step Automatic Exchanges
Note: Scarborough. WA’s first ARF crossbar exch. 7 November 1963
Overview of SxS and Crossbar switching here
Types of SxS exchanges used in Australia
Automatic Electric USA
ATM UK
ATM UK renamed Automatic Telephone and Electric Company (AT&E) Pre-2000?
STC 2000 type
SE50 (STC TEL/Plessey Australian made)
Exchanges
Installation date and first alpha-numeric digit/s shown - if known. An explanation of alphanumeric dials here.
Central Exchange, Perth September 1914 A (1), abt 1930 B (2), abt 1946 BA (21), abt 1951 BF (23)
Cottesloe. January 1930. F (3)
Maylands. May 1936. U (7)
Victoria Park. May 1936. M (6)
Nedlands. 1937. WM (86)
Subiaco.1939. W (8). The first WA 2000 type step-by-step exchange.
Fremantle. 1941. L (5)
South Perth, 1941. MU (67)
Mount Hawthorn. 1949. BJ (24). Subscribers transferred from Perth's (1914) Central Exchange.
Bulwer, late1954. BW (28). Subscribers transferred from Perth's (1914) Central Exchange.
Applecross. 1950. MJ (64). ("double garage" - see below). Upgraded in 1954.
Wembley. 1951. WU (87). Initial capacity 400. Approx 175 subscribers shifted from Subiaco exch.
Palmyra. FX (39). Original ca 1950 ("shack" - see below). Upgraded in 1954 to 1500 lines (planned capacity 4800).
City Beach. 30 September 1953 ("double garage" - see below). Last “Perth” manual exchange automated.
Kalamunda. June 1956 (in "garage" - see below) - new building ca 1969-70.
Unknown dates but post WW2
Ascot ("double garage" - see below)
Bassendean
Cannington ("double garage" - see below)
Doubleview ca 1960
Guildford
Manning ca 1960
Medina (timber framed exch. building) ca 1954-55
Midland
North Beach ("double garage" - see below)
Scarborough ("double garage" - see below)
Rural Automatic Exchanges (RAX)
Brunswick Junction WA’s first RAX on 7 July 1935
Dowerin, Broomehill 1935;
Darlington, Waroona, Capel, Meckering, Dumbleyung, 1938;
Rockingham 1939;
Gosnells, Koorda, Three Springs 1940;
Narembeen, Mandurah, Margaret River 1941
Maddington 1948,
Spearwood Aug 1951 (90 lines)
"Double garage exchanges"
Below is an extract from Kirke Hearder's memoirs referring to "double garage" exchanges.
Perth Metro Step by Step Automatic Exchanges
Note: Scarborough. WA’s first ARF crossbar exch. 7 November 1963
Overview of SxS and Crossbar switching here
Types of SxS exchanges used in Australia
Automatic Electric USA
ATM UK
ATM UK renamed Automatic Telephone and Electric Company (AT&E) Pre-2000?
STC 2000 type
SE50 (STC TEL/Plessey Australian made)
Exchanges
Installation date and first alpha-numeric digit/s shown - if known. An explanation of alphanumeric dials here.
Central Exchange, Perth September 1914 A (1), abt 1930 B (2), abt 1946 BA (21), abt 1951 BF (23)
Cottesloe. January 1930. F (3)
Maylands. May 1936. U (7)
Victoria Park. May 1936. M (6)
Nedlands. 1937. WM (86)
Subiaco.1939. W (8). The first WA 2000 type step-by-step exchange.
Fremantle. 1941. L (5)
South Perth, 1941. MU (67)
Mount Hawthorn. 1949. BJ (24). Subscribers transferred from Perth's (1914) Central Exchange.
Bulwer, late1954. BW (28). Subscribers transferred from Perth's (1914) Central Exchange.
Applecross. 1950. MJ (64). ("double garage" - see below). Upgraded in 1954.
Wembley. 1951. WU (87). Initial capacity 400. Approx 175 subscribers shifted from Subiaco exch.
Palmyra. FX (39). Original ca 1950 ("shack" - see below). Upgraded in 1954 to 1500 lines (planned capacity 4800).
City Beach. 30 September 1953 ("double garage" - see below). Last “Perth” manual exchange automated.
Kalamunda. June 1956 (in "garage" - see below) - new building ca 1969-70.
Unknown dates but post WW2
Ascot ("double garage" - see below)
Bassendean
Cannington ("double garage" - see below)
Doubleview ca 1960
Guildford
Manning ca 1960
Medina (timber framed exch. building) ca 1954-55
Midland
North Beach ("double garage" - see below)
Scarborough ("double garage" - see below)
Rural Automatic Exchanges (RAX)
Brunswick Junction WA’s first RAX on 7 July 1935
Dowerin, Broomehill 1935;
Darlington, Waroona, Capel, Meckering, Dumbleyung, 1938;
Rockingham 1939;
Gosnells, Koorda, Three Springs 1940;
Narembeen, Mandurah, Margaret River 1941
Maddington 1948,
Spearwood Aug 1951 (90 lines)
"Double garage exchanges"
Below is an extract from Kirke Hearder's memoirs referring to "double garage" exchanges.
Kirke Hearder (1908 - 1991)
Born Coolgardie WA 1908
Joined the PMG as a teenager
Qualified - promoted as Engineer 1938
Kirke and his family were deeply involved in Perth theatre activities during the 1940-50s
Retired from the PMG in 1967
THE “DOUBLE GARAGE” EXCHANGE:
From the foregoing you will see that whereas delays were occasioned by late delivery from the manufacturers, staff shortages, and occasional problems in financing the projects, the principal delay was in obtaining buildings on time. However some bright individual in Central Office came to light with the idea of erecting a double garage in the back yard of a Post Office, out of the way on the exchange site proper, or in some cases, a vacant space in some line section depot. These buildings were designed to a standard size leaving no room for argument. They were cheap to erect and consequently needed no special authority and finally when they had out-grown their usefulness the equipment was stripped out of them and they became “double garages”. They were capable of housing 2000 lines of equipment and this generally sufficed for a newly established area.
One exception to the “standardised” building was KALAMUNDA which became a “triple” garage. Another exception was PALMYRA. This was a hastily erected building using second hand timber and, I would imagine, third hand corrugated iron. Other double garage buildings were erected at NORTH BEACH, SCARB0R0UGH, CITY BEACH, CANNINGTON, ASCOT, APPLECROSS and possibly some others that I have forgotten.
The first two double garage exchanges were ASCOT and CANNINGTON. These were contract exchanges. Another contract exchange was Palmyra. The equipment ordered for Palmyra however was installed at Central Exchange. This released some of the original Central exchange equipment and this was duly installed at Palmyra. It was hoped that the next trip for this original equipment would be to the rubbish tip. Owing to the strong demand for service this unfortunately did not occur.
City Beach deserves a mention. It was the last manual exchange in the metro network and was conducted by a store keeper in City Beach. The manual exchange started from very small beginnings. A small office switchboard was adapted and installed. It had two incoming junctions and provision for nine subscribers. There were, if I remember correctly, seven houses in City Beach at that time and each house had the telephone connected. With the growth of the area, this was soon replaced with a large floor type switchboard. By now, of course, the office keeper no longer answered three or four calls a day but had to have the switchboard continuously manned. As the monetary return for his services was small, he intimated that he was going to relinquish the switchboard at the end of a particular month. Bill Davies, then Superintendent of the Telephone Service Branch, managed to persuade him to retain the office a little longer. Meanwhile, the double garage building had been completed and a start was made on the installation of the automatic equipment. The office keeper was very skeptical about the exchange being cutover on the due date. However, Bill Davies persuaded him to provide a cocktail party should this due date be met. The due date was met and I attended the cocktail party having first presented the installation staff with sufficient beer to keep them happy for some hours. The “cocktail” at the party were brewed by the store keeper himself. Possibly, to the experienced palate, they might have tasted a little strange. It was nevertheless a highly successful party. It marked the last of the manual exchanges in the metropolitan area.
Perth, which had been the first capital to introduce automatic working, was the first capital to have a completely automatic network.
Born Coolgardie WA 1908
Joined the PMG as a teenager
Qualified - promoted as Engineer 1938
Kirke and his family were deeply involved in Perth theatre activities during the 1940-50s
Retired from the PMG in 1967
THE “DOUBLE GARAGE” EXCHANGE:
From the foregoing you will see that whereas delays were occasioned by late delivery from the manufacturers, staff shortages, and occasional problems in financing the projects, the principal delay was in obtaining buildings on time. However some bright individual in Central Office came to light with the idea of erecting a double garage in the back yard of a Post Office, out of the way on the exchange site proper, or in some cases, a vacant space in some line section depot. These buildings were designed to a standard size leaving no room for argument. They were cheap to erect and consequently needed no special authority and finally when they had out-grown their usefulness the equipment was stripped out of them and they became “double garages”. They were capable of housing 2000 lines of equipment and this generally sufficed for a newly established area.
One exception to the “standardised” building was KALAMUNDA which became a “triple” garage. Another exception was PALMYRA. This was a hastily erected building using second hand timber and, I would imagine, third hand corrugated iron. Other double garage buildings were erected at NORTH BEACH, SCARB0R0UGH, CITY BEACH, CANNINGTON, ASCOT, APPLECROSS and possibly some others that I have forgotten.
The first two double garage exchanges were ASCOT and CANNINGTON. These were contract exchanges. Another contract exchange was Palmyra. The equipment ordered for Palmyra however was installed at Central Exchange. This released some of the original Central exchange equipment and this was duly installed at Palmyra. It was hoped that the next trip for this original equipment would be to the rubbish tip. Owing to the strong demand for service this unfortunately did not occur.
City Beach deserves a mention. It was the last manual exchange in the metro network and was conducted by a store keeper in City Beach. The manual exchange started from very small beginnings. A small office switchboard was adapted and installed. It had two incoming junctions and provision for nine subscribers. There were, if I remember correctly, seven houses in City Beach at that time and each house had the telephone connected. With the growth of the area, this was soon replaced with a large floor type switchboard. By now, of course, the office keeper no longer answered three or four calls a day but had to have the switchboard continuously manned. As the monetary return for his services was small, he intimated that he was going to relinquish the switchboard at the end of a particular month. Bill Davies, then Superintendent of the Telephone Service Branch, managed to persuade him to retain the office a little longer. Meanwhile, the double garage building had been completed and a start was made on the installation of the automatic equipment. The office keeper was very skeptical about the exchange being cutover on the due date. However, Bill Davies persuaded him to provide a cocktail party should this due date be met. The due date was met and I attended the cocktail party having first presented the installation staff with sufficient beer to keep them happy for some hours. The “cocktail” at the party were brewed by the store keeper himself. Possibly, to the experienced palate, they might have tasted a little strange. It was nevertheless a highly successful party. It marked the last of the manual exchanges in the metropolitan area.
Perth, which had been the first capital to introduce automatic working, was the first capital to have a completely automatic network.
Crossbar exchanges
This would be a large set of data (if available) - but some firsts below:
Ericsson crossbar first installations in Australia in 1960
Scarborough. WA’s first Crossbar (ARF) exch. 7 November 1963.
Rottnest first automatic telephone exchange December 4, 1968
STD
Multimetering, a forerunner of subscriber trunk diailing (STD) introduced on calls from Rockingham, Safety Bay and Medina to Perth in 1958 using step-by-step equipment.
With crossbar full STD (09..) was initially introduced from 15 Perth exchanges to 11 country exchanges including Pinjarra, Bunbury and Northam, in October 1966.
East-west STD commenced 9 July 1970
ARM crossbar trunk exchange
Pier exchange 1968. WA's first ARM.
Two-wire ARF Minor Trunk Switching Centres (MSC) as an alternative to the costly ARM exchanges.
Busselton, 1970, was the first MSC.
WA fully automated in 1985 with the closure of Tenindewa manual exchange
This would be a large set of data (if available) - but some firsts below:
Ericsson crossbar first installations in Australia in 1960
Scarborough. WA’s first Crossbar (ARF) exch. 7 November 1963.
Rottnest first automatic telephone exchange December 4, 1968
STD
Multimetering, a forerunner of subscriber trunk diailing (STD) introduced on calls from Rockingham, Safety Bay and Medina to Perth in 1958 using step-by-step equipment.
With crossbar full STD (09..) was initially introduced from 15 Perth exchanges to 11 country exchanges including Pinjarra, Bunbury and Northam, in October 1966.
East-west STD commenced 9 July 1970
ARM crossbar trunk exchange
Pier exchange 1968. WA's first ARM.
Two-wire ARF Minor Trunk Switching Centres (MSC) as an alternative to the costly ARM exchanges.
Busselton, 1970, was the first MSC.
WA fully automated in 1985 with the closure of Tenindewa manual exchange
Perth WA Telstra exchanges pre-NBN ca. 2004
perth_wa_area_telstra_exchanges_etc.pdf | |
File Size: | 85 kb |
File Type: |
A list of Telstra Australia-wide exchanges ca. 2011 can be seen at:
https://researchdata.edu.au/telephone-exchanges/1232284
The following Excel spreadsheet is an extract from this site, listing known Australian exchanges at the time. It is expected that many of these will have disappeared with the completion of the NBN project ca. 2022.
https://researchdata.edu.au/telephone-exchanges/1232284
The following Excel spreadsheet is an extract from this site, listing known Australian exchanges at the time. It is expected that many of these will have disappeared with the completion of the NBN project ca. 2022.
telephoneexchanges_v1.xlsx | |
File Size: | 206 kb |
File Type: | xlsx |
5, 6, 7 and 8 digit telephone numbers WA
Perth area (automatic exchange) numbers started out with five digits in 1914 with the opening of Central exchange.
The first six digit exchange was Nedlands in 1937.
In 1977/78 seven digits appeared.
By June 1997, area codes and numbers were again rearranged with 8 digit numbers and a new two digit area code. WA, SA and NT were combined under the new area code of 08 and allocated 8 digit customer numbers.
First WA Area codes and numbers
(Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Former_Australian_dialling_codes)
"The introduction of subscriber trunk dialling was slow, partly because of the distances of exchanges in some areas and partly due to the use of manual exchanges well into the 1980s. By 1989, the system had been standardised to three-digit codes across the board (excepting Kangaroo island), with two digit codes in the major cities.
The digit following the leading zero was chosen to represent a rough geographic area. Sydney (02), Melbourne (03), Canberra (06), Brisbane (07), Adelaide (08) and Perth (09), 48 area codes of three digits, from (002) covering Hobart to (099) covering mid-west Western Australia, and one area code of four digits, Kangaroo Island (0848),
Perth# local numbers were only available in the forms 2xx xxxx, 3xx xxxx, 4xx xxxx or 5xx xxxx so that outside dialling could not clash with other area codes."
Area code changes and 8 digit numbers
(L-R 1989, 1998, date changed, location)
Perth area (automatic exchange) numbers started out with five digits in 1914 with the opening of Central exchange.
The first six digit exchange was Nedlands in 1937.
In 1977/78 seven digits appeared.
By June 1997, area codes and numbers were again rearranged with 8 digit numbers and a new two digit area code. WA, SA and NT were combined under the new area code of 08 and allocated 8 digit customer numbers.
First WA Area codes and numbers
(Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Former_Australian_dialling_codes)
"The introduction of subscriber trunk dialling was slow, partly because of the distances of exchanges in some areas and partly due to the use of manual exchanges well into the 1980s. By 1989, the system had been standardised to three-digit codes across the board (excepting Kangaroo island), with two digit codes in the major cities.
The digit following the leading zero was chosen to represent a rough geographic area. Sydney (02), Melbourne (03), Canberra (06), Brisbane (07), Adelaide (08) and Perth (09), 48 area codes of three digits, from (002) covering Hobart to (099) covering mid-west Western Australia, and one area code of four digits, Kangaroo Island (0848),
Perth# local numbers were only available in the forms 2xx xxxx, 3xx xxxx, 4xx xxxx or 5xx xxxx so that outside dialling could not clash with other area codes."
Area code changes and 8 digit numbers
(L-R 1989, 1998, date changed, location)
(Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Former_Australian_dialling_codes)
More information at this site: https://www.idd.com.au/telephone-numbering-plan.php