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I'd love to get my hands on a wiring guide or some type of electrical code book from back in the era this stuff came from.

Me too! I bet the codes were extremely simple, e.g.:

"Wire, for circuit conductors, shall be used."

"Fuses, for circuit protection, shall be permitted." [Linked Image]

I could think of other ersatz codese but I'll spare the rest of the world.

No wire bias here- I'm standing on neutral ground.