Jun 7, 8:03 AM
Dialing Up the Past: Switzerland's Phone Books as Historical Records
With the final copy printed in 2022, the telephone directory has been relegated to history. Yet in a Swiss archive, these obsolete books are revealing the nation's social evolution.
The familiar, weighty tome on the telephone table is gone. The last Swiss phone book was printed in 2022, marking the quiet end of an era. Instead of oblivion, these directories have found a second life in the PTT-Archiv in Köniz, transforming from practical tools into historical artifacts that map the country’s development with surprising clarity.
These volumes are more than just alphabetized lists of names and numbers; they are a chronicle of societal shifts. The very first edition from 1880 contained a mere 99 entries, a reflection of the telephone’s exclusive beginnings. The increasingly thick books of the following decades document the device’s relentless march to becoming a mass medium, and with it, the changing face of Swiss society.
A browse through the archives reveals fascinating details. One can find Albert Einstein listed in the 1930 Zurich edition at Huttenstrasse 62, a mundane entry for a figure of world importance. In Bern's 1909 directory, Ilse Hohl appears as the first entry for a “Journalistin,” having taken over her father's work as a federal palace correspondent, a role she held for 60 years.
The directories also trace the disappearance of entire professions. The listings for coachmen in the mountain village of Pontresina dwindle between the wars, as entries for “coal sales” and “transport” appear for the same individuals, signalling the advance of motorization. A glance at the 1969 Winterthur book shows a proliferation of Italian surnames, a quiet reflection of the influx of guest workers for local industry, a topic ripe for systematic research.
More recent social trends are equally visible. The concept of the fitness center, for instance, barely existed in Bern in 1981 with just two entries. By the mid-1990s, the number had grown substantially, reflecting new attitudes towards health and leisure. Recognizing their value, the PTT-Archiv has made a large portion of these directories accessible online, allowing for research without a pilgrimage to Köniz.
To highlight this potential, the archive has ventured into the art world. A collaboration with Wikimedia CH invited artists to use the old phone books as inspiration, resulting in works ranging from sketches and sound installations to video projects.
According to Heike Bazak, the archive's head, the initiative aims to provide new perspectives on what might seem like mundane sources. The ultimate goal is to encourage more people to engage with the materials held in archives, turning dusty pages into a source of discovery. The resulting artworks are themselves freely accessible on the Wikimedia Commons platform.
Written by Christiane Hofreiter christiane.hofreiter@alpineweekly.com
