roseville telephone museum

The Roseville Telephone Museum is open to the public by appointment only. This four-gallery museum provides a chronological visual history of the telephone from Alexander Graham Bell to the present. The display cases contain original telephones or replica copies of nearly every telephone sold or used in America, as well as some telephones used in other countries. There is the local telephone company's original plug-in switchboard, which still works, and visual displays -- such as a cross-section of an underground telephone vault -- which show how the telecommunications industry has changed in the past 120 years. This is a fascinating museum and well worth the hour or two needed to walk slowly through the galleries with your museum tour guide. My wife arranged a private tour for her 95-year old father, who worked decades for General Telephone in Southern California. He entertained our museum tour guide with stories of his experiences during the industry's transition to dial telephones. (Call 916-786-1621 to make an appointment.)