Automatic Electric (AE CO) Type 80 Telephone - See and Hear It Dial and Ring

This is an uncommon Automatic Electric Type 80 telephone from the 1950s / 1960s / 1970s.
The Automatic Electric Company manufactured phones for non-Bell system carriers in North America. This phone is their answer to the familiar Western Electric / Northern Electric 500 telephone set.
The company was founded by Almon Brown Strowger, an undertaker. In order to bypass the need for operators to connect calls, Strowger invented the automatic telephone exchange to help save his undertaking business.
The story is that the wife of one of Strowger's competitors was a telephone operator. Strowger suspected her of directing funeral business to her husband and away from his own business.
Strowger's solution was to invent the automatic exchange, for which he received a patent in 1891.This became known as a Strowger Exchange or Strowger Switch. The undertaker-turned-inventor founded the Automatic Electric Company which provided switching equipment to the Bell system and telephones to independent telephone utilities.
Ultimately headquartered in Chicago, the company also had manufacturing facilities in Brockville, Ontario, Canada.
See if we still have this phone at:
callmemaybepho...
And if not, have a look around and see what else might ring your bell.

[@dolorescruz959]

Tellephone Ringing 3 Times