There is a very worthwhile and interesting museum at Morton College, in Cicero, Illinois, about the Hawthorne Works of Western Electric. There was once a huge manufacturing plant there, over 100 buildings.

Vacuum tubes, microphones, radios, telephones, even WE washing machines. It's very well presented, but a relatively small museum - allow about 90 minutes, max.

Morton is a 2-year community college southwest of Chicago, accessible from I-290 or I-55.

Website: http://www.morton.edu/museum/index.html
Doug

That almost right in my backyard (Byron, IL), will have to take a look at the web site and plan a weekend trip.

David S

:There is a very worthwhile and interesting museum at Morton College, in Cicero, Illinois, about the Hawthorne Works of Western Electric. There was once a huge manufacturing plant there, over 100 buildings.
:
:Vacuum tubes, microphones, radios, telephones, even WE washing machines. It's very well presented, but a relatively small museum - allow about 90 minutes, max.
:
:Morton is a 2-year community college southwest of Chicago, accessible from I-290 or I-55.
:
:Website: http://www.morton.edu/museum/index.html
:Doug

::Website: http://www.morton.edu/museum/index.html
::Doug

I worked for AT&T for five years, I was amazed at what all WE made for Ma Bell. It seems there wasn't anything in the Bell System that WECo didn't make.
Lewis

Lewis, you're right. I learned at the museum that the Hawthorne Works had a foundry building where they made their own solder. Each bar was cast with the WE logo.

:
:I worked for AT&T for five years, I was amazed at what all WE made for Ma Bell. It seems there wasn't anything in the Bell System that WECo didn't make.
:Lewis

I worked at WE at the Hawthorne plant and Clearing, I did ESS wiring. My mother worked there during the war. That's for the museum link!

:Lewis, you're right. I learned at the museum that the Hawthorne Works had a foundry building where they made their own solder. Each bar was cast with the WE logo.
:
::
::I worked for AT&T for five years, I was amazed at what all WE made for Ma Bell. It seems there wasn't anything in the Bell System that WECo didn't make.
::Lewis

:I worked at WE at the Hawthorne plant and Clearing, I did ESS wiring. My mother worked there during the war. That's for the museum link!
:
::Lewis, you're right. I learned at the museum that the Hawthorne Works had a foundry building where they made their own solder. Each bar was cast with the WE logo.
::
:::I worked for AT&T for five years, I was amazed at what all WE made for Ma Bell. It seems there wasn't anything in the Bell System that WECo didn't make.
:::Lewis

If WE had to buy something in the outside world, it was built to a specification set down by the plant at Kerney, NJ, and was given a Kerney Specification number, like KS 123456, so if you have a piece of Bell equipment with a KS number, that's what it means.

Lewis

:I worked at WE at the Hawthorne plant and Clearing, I did ESS wiring. My mother worked there during the war. That's for the museum link!
:
::Lewis, you're right. I learned at the museum that the Hawthorne Works had a foundry building where they made their own solder. Each bar was cast with the WE logo.
::
:::I worked for AT&T for five years, I was amazed at what all WE made for Ma Bell. It seems there wasn't anything in the Bell System that WECo didn't make.
:::Lewis

If WE had to buy something in the outside world, it was built to a specification set down by the plant at Kerney, NJ, and was given a Kerney Specification number, like KS 123456, so if you have a piece of Bell equipment with a KS number, that's what it means.

Lewis

:I worked at WE at the Hawthorne plant and Clearing, I did ESS wiring. My mother worked there during the war. That's for the museum link!
:
::Lewis, you're right. I learned at the museum that the Hawthorne Works had a foundry building where they made their own solder. Each bar was cast with the WE logo.
::
:::I worked for AT&T for five years, I was amazed at what all WE made for Ma Bell. It seems there wasn't anything in the Bell System that WECo didn't make.
:::Lewis

If WE had to buy something in the outside world, it was built to a specification set down by the plant at Kerney, NJ, and was given a Kerney Specification number, like KS 123456, so if you have a piece of Bell equipment with a KS number, that's what it means.

Lewis