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OBJECT TYPE: tumbler/toggle/double pole/surface
DATE: 1914
ARTIFACT NUMBER: 1992.2478.001

MANUFACTURER: Hubbell
MODEL: Unknown
LOCATION: United States of America

More Information

General Information

Serial #: N/A
Part Number: 1
Total Parts: 1
AKA: N/A
Patents: N/A
General Description: synthetic base/ brass shell & switch handle/ metal parts

Dimensions

Note: These reflect the general size for storage and are not necessarily representative of the object's true dimensions.

Length: N/A
Width: N/A
Height: 5.6 cm
Thickness: N/A
Weight: N/A
Diameter: 5.7 cm
Volume: N/A

Lexicon

Group: Energy-electric
Category: User site
Sub-Category: N/A

Manufacturer

AKA: Hubbell
Country: United States of America
State/Province: Unknown
City: Unknown

Context

Country: North America
State/Province: Unknown
Period: circa 1914+
Canada: An American made switch of a type used in Canadian households. Part of a large & varied collection of over 7500 electrical items acquired & documented by Ontario Hydro in the 1960s. The collection was thought to be the largest & most comprehensive of its kind in Canada & was donated to the National Museum of Science & Technology in 1992.
Function: An electrical wiring device used to make or break a connection in an electrical circuit, specifically in domestic lighting.
Technical: Example of switch of toggle type, in which dolly & contacts rigidly connected with springs provided definite on & off. Originating in England, the tumbler switch came into regular use about 1891 & rapidly superceded all other movements, replacing the established turn & turn button arrangement. The Kelvin switch of 1881 showed a radical departure from the influence of the gas tap (Ref. 2). Beginning around 1905, the design of tumbler switches became simpler & thinner. In Canada, the flush type soon became the favourite over the surface type. The latter was probably still available for older houses in which flush type switches could not be used. Still, until the late 1920s, the turn type switch (snap) & push button switch were the type most often seen in catalogues (Ref.1).
Area Notes: Unknown

Details

Markings: incised lettering on shell reads "HUBBELL [logo] & "3.A./ 5.A.", "250.V./ 125.V." & ‘UND. LAB. INSP."
Missing: appears complete
Finish: glossy black painted base/ brass coloured shell & switch handle
Decoration: N/A

CITE THIS OBJECT

If you choose to share our information about this collection object, please cite:

Hubbell, Switch, circa 1914, Artifact no. 1992.2478, Ingenium – Canada’s Museums of Science and Innovation, http://collections.ingeniumcanada.org/en/id/1992.2478.001/

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