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#2759       Unmarked.     "Pilgrim Hat Threadless"      Red, green, tan, white.

  Lot # 2759
Listing Image
Pole_Top_Discoveries
Details
  • Lot # 2759
  • System ID # 630637
  • End Date
  • Start Date
Description

#2759       Unmarked.     "Pilgrim Hat Threadless"      Red, green, tan, white.

Height: 4-1/6 inches.

A very interesting "Hat" style threadless insulator which was recovered in Australia.  Fourteen of these historical relics were mounted on the side of a post office building in Peterborough, a town north of Adelaide, South Australia.  Post offices were generally used as telegraph offices in Britain and Australia, thus the presence of them on that particular building.

The additional photos with this auction offering show an amazing pictorial history of the insulators. A mid 1990's view shows them painted green to match the fascia and trim on the building.  When the color scheme was later changed to red as a complimentary color, the insulators were also painted red.  Each time the insulators were painted during the course of many decades, the painter was careful to cover the entire portion of the insulators visible to the public, but the back sides remained mostly unpainted, as shown in the second image, revealing multiple colors!

The photo with all insulators painted red dates to 2010.  Then, in October 2012, the next photo shows all but one insulator removed.  The final photo shows a group of the insulators after removal.

Although the post office building was erected approximately 1880, it is believed these insulators might possibly date from an earlier time period (1860's).  Perhaps they were unused material brought in from another communication project. Telegraph lines were constructed in Australia as early as the 1850's, and by the 1860's various lengthy routes of communication had been developed. 

Both gutta percha and ebonite were used as insulating materials in the 1850's and 1860's.  Although paint covers the insulator, it is believed they were produced using ebonite, a strong material derived from vulcanizing rubber.  The insulators were likely exported by one of the larger suppliers in Great Britain.

After these insulators were removed from the building over a decade ago, they were scattered to various parts of the world.  Some were in excellent condition, while others were damaged, mostly with cracks.

Excellent condition, with no apparent damage.

From the collection of Lis & Jim Bergman

A very large THANK YOU goes out to Neil Dawson, Teresa Dempsey and Byron Smith for all their help with information and photos, which made the preservation of the history of this wonderful insulator possible!