Don Capeheart and his wife, Rita, house over 200,000 pieces in what was an old Coca-Cola bottling plant on the corner of South Ninth Street and East Ninth Avenue.  (Drivers heading east on Seventh Avenue may have noticed the lone small brown sign signaling the location of the telephone museum.)

The collection features all aspects of the telephone business, from switching stations to two red English phone booths to hundreds of examples of how the style and technology of the telephone has changed over the years. 

The collection also showcases the role the company, Western Electric, played in the telecommunications and electronics fields.  Don Capeheart worked for Western Electric as an installer for nearly 30 years and has turned his profession into his obsession.

Standing in front of a rack of an original fiberoptics panel, Capeheart recalled how quickly technology was changing when fiber optics came online in the mid – 1980’s.   “This is part of the original fiber optics in Texas.  We started putting them between Midland, Texas and Pecos, Texas.  They were inventing it as we were putting it in,” he said.  The original plan had “reach-in” panels installed every five miles.  “By the time it was ready to be turned up, we had to go back and take two of them out...because it had already advanced to 15 miles.” 

Don Capeheart is a consummate storyteller and clearly enjoys the history lessons he delivers as he describes the pieces in his museum.  He even good-naturedly needles overly inquisitive visitors and those who can’t keep their hands to themselves.  (Now mind you, I’m admitting to nothing!)

Two of my favorites had to be the English phone booths. “The solid cast iron back has to face Parliament in England regardless where it sits in the English Empire,” Don Capeheart explained.  “The reason was when World War I started, the old boy got shot on the steps in Austria.... they found rifles in two phone booths.  Back then they were all glass and made out of wood.”  The solid back to the booth was the answer to prevent anyone from hiding in a phone booth attempting to assassinate members of the royal family.

Besides serving as museum, Capeheart Communication Collections also sends many of the pieces to Hollywood to be used as props in movies.

Don is hoping to see an increase of visitors during Derrick Days.  “I’m fixing to get them all polished up...hoping somebody comes by.”  Call ahead for an appointment at 903-874-0220 and let Don Capeheart explain (to those that remember) why Lily Tomlin, who played Ernestine, the Telephone Operator on the TV comedy hour Laugh-In, said, “One ringy dingy...Two ringy dingy!”   

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