I am trying to change my light switch, but the problem I have is the old switch has a red, black and white wire connected with 3 different screw places for each wire. The new switch only has 2 connection screws, so I am wondering how to wire this up? FYI The house was built in 1954. And there is no ground wire either.

ADD; It is 2 switches connected to 1 light in the hallway. In each light switch box there is a red-black-white wire connected to the old light switch which has 3 screws places for each wire. The new switches only has 2 screw connections.

You bought a single pole switch and you need a double pole switch. Go back to the store and look for a " 3 way switch". It will have 3 conductor screws and a ground screw.Just match how they are connected.

a double pole switch is not the same as a three way switch

You DO need a three way switch instead of the single pole switch you already have. Look at the other switch, there will be one black screw (usually) and two brass screws, hook the same colors to the two brass screws on the new switch, the remaining one on the black screw, if you look inside the switch box the two that go on the brass screws are usually grouped together somehow, maybe twisted around each other, or taped to each other , or coming in to the box in the same cable. There should be white wires nutted together inside the boxes that weren't connected to the switch, leave them be.
OR
you can (turn off power) just nut red and black together, cap the unused wire, then (power on) is the light on? No? Flip the other switch. Still no light? Put the white on the black screw, red and black on the brass screws.
If the light came on, then nut pairs of wires together until the light will not come on even when you flip the other switch back and forth, the wire that is not nutted together will always go on the black screw.



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above is a three way switch circuit,( brackets are circuit breaker) hot comes in at the left, first switch (<)picks either the top or the bottom wire, second switch (>)does the same and the single wire goes out to the light (@ sign on right)
not shown is the neutral (white) wire traveling from left to right attached only to itself and the light

helpful? Hint hint