Episode 219: A Conversation with a Career Phone Company Man

America at 250 Episode 4: "A Lineman for the Country: A conversation about the evolution of telecommunications with a career phone company man."

This is the kind of episode I imagined making when I started taking the Everything is a Primary Source Podcast out into the world.  I had just sat down with Pam to record a piece at the New Hampshire Telephone Museum when Bill, a retired telephone company man, and his family came in to visit.  Bill and Pam immediately got to talking and I just sat back, microphones on, taking in the interesting stories that someone with such an incredibly interesting career might tell.

Bill worked for telecommunications companies for 50 years, and what a monumental half a century that was as he was immediately involved with the entire communication system as it evolved from analog to digital to fiber.  Bill and his fellow telephone employees were responsible for ensuring the integrity of the infrastructure so that the most important trait of our culture--sharing of information--could continue unabated.

This is the fourth episode of a special season of the Everything is a Primary Source where, in celebration of the 250th anniversary of the United States, American pop culture is examined for historical value and for connection to the founding of the country in July of 1776.

Teaching resources and supplements available soon at everything-history.com/america250

This episode is brought to you by iCivics and their new educational game, Investigation Declaration.

#podcast #popculture #telephone #phones #oralhistory