Horace Victor Dalling (1854-1931) was a Canadian watchmaker, jeweller,

optician An optician, or ''dispensing optician'', is a technical practitioner who designs, fits and dispenses lenses for the correction of a person's vision. Opticians determine the specifications of various ophthalmic appliances that will give the nec ...

and inventor. He was the

watch inspector A watch is a portable timepiece intended to be carried or worn by a person. It is designed to keep a consistent movement despite the motions caused by the person's activities. A wristwatch is designed to be worn around the wrist, attached by ...

for the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

, and is also known for manufacturing the first two telephones in Woodstock, New Brunswick, which he placed in his store and in his home.

Biography

Dalling was born in Richmond, New Brunswick on February 5, 1854, to Thomas M. and Matilda Jane (Gray) Dalling. In 1878 he moved to Woodstock and established his business, Dalling's Jewellery Store. In 1879 he married Mary Isabella McKilligan and the two had four children. His store was damaged by fire on February 26, 1891. His losses ($150) were covered by insurance. In 1900, he donated a silver cup, known as the "Dalling Cup", for golf. Another cup, a gold-lined silver cup, was given in 1905 for the Woodstock Hockey League. His son William Victor Dalling, fought in the First World War as a gunner. He was wounded in France on October 13, 1916, but died of pneumonia on October 19, 1918, contracted in Fredericton while waiting for his discharge. Dalling continued to run his store until 1929, when he retired because of ill health. His daughter, Edith, ran the store until his death on January 6, 1931.

Telephone

He is most remembered because of his homemade telephone, which he constructed in 1885 and ran between his home on Richmond St. and his store on Main St. He supported the wires by running them in the branches of trees alongside the streets. Telephones (either wires or instruments) were not yet common in the region. Bell Telephone later investigated his setup and threatened him with a lawsuit for infringing on the company's patent. However, a compromise was reached and Bell opened a small

telephone exchange A telephone exchange, telephone switch, or central office is a telecommunications system used in the public switched telephone network (PSTN) or in large enterprises. It interconnects telephone subscriber lines or virtual circuits of digital syst ...

of twenty lines in his store, of which he was the manager. Because there was no service at night or on Sundays, Dalling built and installed a miniature switchboard of eight lines at his home to answer important messages after hours.

References

External links

Probable photo c. 1876

H.V. Dalling Jewellery Store in 1876
John Campbell
Death Certificate
GNB Archives {{DEFAULTSORT:Dalling, Horace Victor 1854 births 1931 deaths Canadian inventors Canadian jewellers Opticians People from Carleton County, New Brunswick