antoniosk:jasonbrice:antoniosk: So who remembers that for a long time, the Post Office had to put 6V dry cell batteries in houses to enable phones to ring and cheap the lines powered? They had to send techs around doing battery replacement before they electrified from the exchange.
And here's the thing - I remember this happening in 1979, when I was 8. It wasn't that long ago.
What part of the country are you? I'm the same age, and I don't remember this in Christchurch at all growing up.
This was in Wellington at my parents house, which is connected to the 'vintage'' Courtenay Place exchange....
You must be very old then. Courtney place was automatic from about the late 1920s.