DID YOU KNOW?!?
What is a Glass Insulator?!?
Long before the modern era of computers, cellphones, smartphones, fiber-optic cables and the internet, long distance electric/electronic communication consisted primarily of the telegraph and telephone.
As time went on, networks of “open wire” telegraph lines, and later, telephone lines, were developed and built throughout the country, and these lines required the installation of insulators. The first insulators were manufactured as early as the 1830’s. Insulators were necessary by serving as a medium for attaching the wires to the poles, but much more importantly, they were required to help prevent electric current loss during transmission. The material, glass, is itself an insulator.
Both glass and porcelain insulators have been used since the early days of the telegraph, but glass insulators were generally less expensive than porcelain, and were normally used for lower-voltage applications. The oldest glass insulators date from about 1846.
Insulator collecting started to become really popular in the 1960’s as more and more utility companies began running their lines underground where glass insulators couldn’t be used. Many insulators in the hands of collectors are between 70-130 yrs old. As is the case with any item that is old and no longer manufactured, they became highly sought after.
Some people collect them just to have pretty glass in their window or garden, while some are highly serious collectors. Insulators prices range from free to 10’s of thousands of dollars depending on the kind and how many are left in circulation.
We have yet to sort through and attach value to the ones we found today but knowing the people who collected them we are certain we have some ’s in here!
Stay tuned for more info…
Post time: May-12-2023
