Brantford celebrates Alexander Graham Bell and 150th anniversary of the telephone

Alexander Graham Bell poses for a photograph in this undated image from the National Archives of Canada.

A series of events will be held in Brantford Friday through Sunday to honour Canadian-American inventor Alexander Graham Bell.

The City of Brantford will honour Bell and the 150th anniversary of the telephone's invention with "Thanks Mr. Bell," a series of free, family-friendly events throughout the weekend.

Celebrations will be held at the Bell Homestead National Historic Site and Harmony Square.

"On July 26, 1874, at his parent’s home in Brantford, Ontario, a young Alexander Graham Bell sat in a spot he called his ‘dreaming place’ and grasped the principle of his most famous invention, the telephone," said Brian Wood, Curator at the Bell Homestead, in a media release.

The festivities begin Friday at 7 p.m. with "A Musical Tribute to the Telephone" in Harmony Square, featuring the Avalon Music Academy of Brantford.

On Saturday, the 150th Anniversary Garden Party will take place from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Bell Homestead, offering free sweets, refreshments, and musical entertainment. Free tours of the Bell Homestead will be provided, and a new telephone exhibit, "Life on the Line: The Evolution of the Bell Telephone," will be unveiled at 1:15 p.m.

Saturday evening will feature a special presentation of "Helen, Annie and Alec" at 7:30 p.m. at the Bell Homestead, with Canadian actor John Tench reprising his role as Alexander Graham Bell.

The celebration concludes Sunday with the Telephone Trail Trek Challenge at 9:30 a.m. Participants will walk, run, or bike the 18-kilometer distance of the world's first long-distance telephone call from Brantford to Paris, Ont.

For more details, visit the City of Brantford’s website.