Museum fears losing connection
Posted By: Kelsey Murphy
A ringing telephone, it’s a sound familiar to us all. But, what may not be as recognizable is the device creating the sound.
The Lincoln Telephone Museum, near 21st and M street, is dedicated to preserving and sharing the history of the phone.
"What started out as a gimmick, in turn became the most important development in the early 1900’s up through today," Wally Tubbs, President of Board of Directors, said.
It’s an educational experience that could shortly be disconnected.
Speedway Properties and Nelnet plan to redevelop about 20 acres in the telegraph district, it’s where the museum is located. They want to add office space, retail, and residential units.
Now, the museum is calling out for help.
"We will go down fighting," Tubbs, said.
They say they are working on finding another place to house the artifacts, but as of now they have nothing.
The museum is a unique piece of history that people connect with.
It’s a look back on the past.
"I remember as a boy we did not have a dial on our telephone, we would pick it up and it would be answered by the operator," Paul Hansen, visitor, said.
And an appreciation of the present.
“You are not used to seeing that kind of thing compared to like an iphone or something, because you can only talk and you can’t text," Bailey Spencer, visitor, said.
The history dates all the way back to 1876, when Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone.
The museum says they are at risk of losing the artifacts if they don’t find another location for display.
The museum will be open until March 31st, admission is free. They tell me the last few days have been very busy.
