neal@lynx.uucp (Neal Woodall) (08/03/89)
In article <telecom-v09i0261m03@vector.dallas.tx.us> (Mike Trout) writes: >The above got me thinking about the history of the USA telephone numbering >system. When was the above study done? When were all numbers standardized at >seven digits? What other systems were used before that? What were the last >non-seven-digit systems? >A little personal experience: My family has owned a camp in the Adirondack >Mountains of upstate New York since 1954. When we bought the camp, its phone >number there was "Eagle Bay 3268." Not EB2-3268 or anything like that; just >Eagle Bay 3268. You could dial locally just by using the last four digits, >any other calls required an operator..... >...until the late 1960s and may have not been until the mid-1970s. I grew up in Shreveport, LA, and until about the late 1960's you had to use an operator to call Oil City, LA which is only about 30 miles away. Shreveport numbers were direct dialable even at this time, and was at that time (as in the present) in area code 318. My father worked in Oil City, and to call him at work, one called the operator, and asked for "Oil City XXXX" (where XXXX is the number, I will not post it). Unitl the late 1960's or early 1970's this was the only way. Then Oil City finally got direct-dial service, and all of the four-digit numbers stayed the same, just prefixed by 995. Today, Oil City is still completely served by the 995 prefix (only about 2500 phones in that town total). All of the service in this area code (Shreveport and Oil City included) are handled by South Central Bell, so the quality is good. It is interesting to note that Shreveport has cellular service now, and that the Oil City cell (yes, there is only one!, actually in Mooringsport, LA) is tied directly to the Shreveport MTSO.....to call a cellular phone in Oil City (or just about anywhere in Northwest LA) is a local call from Shreveport. However, if one strays too far to the west of Oil City, then you loose coverage from the Mooringsport cell, and must dial through the Marshall, TX system. Actually, I kind of miss the "old days" of operator assisted calls to places where you had to use the name of the town and some number of digits....it is kind of a nostalgic feeling. It gave a place some feeling and character. Now, everything is just numbers.....oh well. Neal