Dr. Alexander Carruthers Beatty - The Telephone Exchange in Hope Township
A Special Feature presented by the Port Hope and District Historical Society
[ Dr. Alexander Carruthers Beatty ]Alexander Beatty was born in the village of Elizabethville on Oct. 10th, 1860. He attended the local one-room school and later Port Hope High School. After graduating he taught school in Elizabethville in order to earn enough money to attend medical school. He graduated from Trinity Medical College in Toronto in 1889. Following graduation he apprenticed with Dr. Clarke in Cobourg, and then started to practice back in Elizabethville.
Many amusing stories and incidents surround the early days of the system and its operators.
For his pioneering efforts Dr. Beatty was made a life member of the Telephone Pioneers of America. Dr. Beatty died on Sept. 14th 1946, and his wife Sophia continued the system until her death in 1956 when it was sold to the neighboring Port Hope Telephone System based in Newtonville. This system was in turn sold to Bell Canada in 1967 bringing to an end the independent telephone in Hope Township.
The Port Hope and District Historical Society, with the assistance of the Ontario Heritage Foundation and Bell Canada, has placed a commemorative plaque to honour the accomplishments of Dr. Beatty at Dorothy’s House Museum in Garden Hill.
The 4th Line Theatre performed a play based on the Doctor’s life called Crow Hill which ran from July 2 to Aug. 3, 1997.