Brantford in Brant County, Ontario — Central Canada (North America)
Canada’s First Telephone Business Office 1877
Photographed by Tim Boyd, August 8, 2023
1. Canada’s First Telephone Business Office 1877 Marker
In 1877 this house, then located in downtown Brantford, became Canada's first telephone business office. It was the residence of the Reverend Thomas Philip Henderson (1816-1887), a former Baptist minister and school inspector in Paris, Ontario, who in 1870 had encouraged the Bell family to come to Brantford. In 1877 he retired from the ministry to become the first General Agent for the telephone business in Canada and played a significant role in its establishment and development. Henderson used this house as his office until 1880, when he joined the newly-formed Bell Canada in Montreal as Purchasing Agent and Storekeeper.
Erected by the Archaeological and Historic Sites Board,
Department of Public Records and Archives of Ontario
Erected by Archaeological and Historic Sites Board of Ontario.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Communications • Industry & Commerce. In addition, it is included in the Canada, Ontario Heritage Trust series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1877.
Location. 43° 6.477′ N, 80° 16.263′ W. Marker is in Brantford, Ontario, in Brant County. It is on Tutela Heights Road 0.8 kilometers east of Mount Pleasant Road, on the left when traveling
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Regionally, this marker is in the Hamilton-Halton-Brant Area and in Southwestern Ontario. It is also in Central Canada. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once a British colony, the Viceroyalty of New France, the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy, and Rupert’s Land.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 5 kilometers of this marker, measured as the crow flies: The Bell Homestead/ La Propriété Bell (within shouting distance of this marker); The Invention of the Telephone/ L’Invention du Téléphone (within shouting distance of this marker); Heritage in Water (approx. 3.2 kilometers away); The Original Six Nations Land Grant (approx. 3.2 kilometers away); The Mohawk Institute (approx. 3.3 kilometers away); St. Paul’s 1785 H.M. Chapel of the Mohawks / St. Paul’s 1785 Chapelle Royale des Mohawks (approx. 3.4 kilometers away); Mohawk Village (approx. 3.5 kilometers away); Her Majesty’s Chapel of the Mohawks (approx. 3.5 kilometers away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Brantford.
Also see . . . The Canadian Encyclopedia - Bell Canada Enterprises Inc.
Incorporated by an act of Parliament on 29 April 1880, the Bell Telephone Company of Canada (today Bell Canada) received by its charter the right to construct telephone lines alongside all public rights-of-way in Canada, a most valuable privilege. Under a licensing agreement with the US-based America Bell Telephone company, Bell also manufactured telephones(Submitted on August 10, 2023, by Tim Boyd of Hamilton, Ontario.)and telephone equipment, an activity that would be spun off as Northern Electric Manufacturing Company in 1895 which, in turn, would become Northern Electric Ltd.Photographed by Tim Boyd, August 9, 20232. Canada’s First Telephone Business Office 1877 Marker
Photographed by Tim Boyd, August 9, 2023
3. Henderson House, Canada’s First Telephone Business Office 1877
Formerly in downtown Brantford, now at the Bell Homestead National Historic Site.
1875
4. Sheridan Street, from the Bird’s Eye View of Brantford, 1875
Original location of the Canada’s First Telephone Business office.
Source: Library of Congress
Credits. This page was last revised on August 11, 2023. It was originally submitted on August 10, 2023, by Tim Boyd of Hamilton, Ontario. This page has been viewed 391 times since then and 44 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on August 10, 2023, by Tim Boyd of Hamilton, Ontario. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.
