Faded ad reveals an old Brooklyn phone exchange

It’s hard to tell how old this Realty Corp. faded ad is. But it could date as far back as 1930. That’s when the Midwood phone exchange was created, usually abbreviated MI.

Construction off Kings Highway and East 16th Street brought the ad—and vintage graffiti—back into view. The best vantage point: from the Q train platform at the Avenue P Kings Highway subway station.

Phone exchange spotting is always fun, and there’s plenty of signs and ads still left in the city that have them. Just keep your eyes peeled!

Upper Manhattan phone exchange mysteries

Tropy Washing Machines is a little neighborhood shop on 117th Street between Lexington and Third Avenues.

The sign is sweetly old-timey, but the AT exchange? It probably stood for Atlantic, according to this chart, but it’s a mystery.

Same with the TR exchange on this sign for Alexander Plumbing. The sign comes from an apartment building on Edgecomb Avenue in Harlem.

TRafalger covered parts of Manhattan, TRiangle was the exchange for a section of Brooklyn, and TRemont, of course, part of the Bronx.