CD Seattle Chrysler Telco System - AT&T Bell & Lights System

[Evan Vander Stoep]

During my recent trip with user Model L to the Connections Museum in Seattle, WA, I stumbled upon something incredible: a real civil defense warning system control station, right there on a desk. I always assumed these things were extinct, existing only in historical photos and documentation. To my surprise, not only was it real (from the original Seattle installation), but it was also operational, complete with functioning bells, lights, and sirens – restored just before my visit. The equipment frame that ran not only the AT&T Bell & Lights system but also the city siren system was also in the telephone exchange office and had been powered on and wired to the control station. Witnessing this in action answered many questions I'd had for years.

One burning question I had was where the attack/alert timing happened – at the siren or the telephone office. It happens at the telephone office, as stated in document 951.081.01. The siren connection is directly to a relay, no AR timer or similar local controller, this relay pulses the attack cycle timing generated centrally. I’m still on the hunt for details about how the engine starts up and clutch engagement mechanisms are controlled at the Chrysler siren. If anyone knows how that works, please send the information you have.

Additionally, there was the AT&T Bell & Lights system that could relay four different colored alerts to vital public buildings. To activate a specific alert, you dialed the corresponding color twice and could cancel it with a single "STOP" command from the siren control console (pictured below).

Sarah from the museum kindly filmed a video of the system in action for my channel (linked below), and an official video from their channel is coming soon. I've shared all the related files from their archived publicly for anyone interested:

Download the ZIP from my server here: https://kj7bre.com/assets/documents/Sea ... uments.zip

Here is the video I filmed at the museum. It's not very well planned out, but I had the pleasure of getting an explanation from Sarah, a well-known volunteer from the Connections Museum's YouTube Channel.

My YouTube Video: https://youtu.be/l6J4ZEG1TAA

If you have questions or thoughts about this discovery, please share in the comments! I'd love to discuss this fascinating find with you. And if you're curious, here are some photos from my museum visit:

[WASirens07]

Amazing information Evan! About 6 months ago during one of my visits to the Northacres Park/Haller Lake Chrysler, I got a photo of its control box, which had some sort of little controller in it. I have the photos saved somewhere, they're from my old camera however, so It'll be hard to dig them out. On both the Northacres Location and the Phinney Ridge location there are boxes that say AT&T on them.

[Model L]

Amazing information Evan! About 6 months ago during one of my visits to the Northacres Park/Haller Lake Chrysler, I got a photo of its control box, which had some sort of little controller in it. I have the photos saved somewhere, they're from my old camera however, so It'll be hard to dig them out. On both the Northacres Location and the Phinney Ridge location there are boxes that say AT&T on them.

Good to know that the original telephone relays are still present on them (at least, the boxes that is). I'll have to check it out next time I'm up in the area.

[WASirens07]

Amazing information Evan! About 6 months ago during one of my visits to the Northacres Park/Haller Lake Chrysler, I got a photo of its control box, which had some sort of little controller in it. I have the photos saved somewhere, they're from my old camera however, so It'll be hard to dig them out. On both the Northacres Location and the Phinney Ridge location there are boxes that say AT&T on them.

Good to know that the original telephone relays are still present on them (at least, the boxes that is). I'll have to check it out next time I'm up in the area.

The Northacres location is extremely dilapidated. The one in Phinney Ridge was restored back in the early 2000's, but is starting to rust and fall apart as well. While you are checking out the Phinney Ridge location, go get the Mill Burger from Red Mill Burgers, right next to the siren. I recommend the Mill Sauce! It's some good stuff! Decently priced and tastes amazing.