Communication Contraption

Pen register, c. 1900.

In the late 18th and early 195h centuries, fires were a menacing threat to all Winnetka. The Winnetka Fire Department could respond more quickly to local emergencies using a device like this one. The J.H. Bunnell & Co. pen register, much like a tickertape recorder, used telegraph signals to relay urgent messages in case of a fire.