Safety First: 1925

This is a classic Bell System garage layout, used for decades all over the country. Every morning the foremen would come down and meet with their respective crews in front of their trucks, where the day's orders were handed out and other matters covered. The "cages" at the far end were for supplies. One contained revenue equipment - phones and accessories. The other contained the tools and supplies. There was only one supplier: Western Electric. Everything from screws, climbing gear, telephones, wooden phone booths, batteries in distinctive gray color ... all of it came from Western Electric.

Narrow tires and muddy dirt roads were the norm. Having a place to attach a chain or rope to pull the vehicle free from a mud hole was a necessity.

If Safety is First, why is it second?

It looks like every truck has a hook in front so it can be towed home. Could that be?

It heartens me to see that the problem of management (who ordered the sign) and labor (who painted the sign) misunderstanding the difference between adjectives and adverbs existed even when our schools did not teach "whole language". The sign should read: Drive Slowly

p.s. No flat tires!

[Grammmar, as opposed to spellling. -Dave]

The somethings that used up axles were Model T Fords. You can see the single arched, transverse springs and the wishbones (radius rods) that held everything straight. The White trucks have longitudinal, semi-elliptic springs and the axles are way heavier than the Fords.

Looks like they had to replace the front axles with some regularity judging by the rack of replacements against the back wall!