covert@covert.DEC.COM (John R. Covert) (06/03/88)
What prefixes stood for:
Area Code 301 (Maryland):
Rockville GArden 4 = GA4 = 424
Rockville POplar 2 = PO2 = 762 which, ironically, could have been...
ROCkville = ROckville 2 = RO2 = 762
Capitol Heights PENnsylvania = PEnnsylvania 6 = PE6 = 736
(735 also exists in this CO)
[Pennsylvania Avenue runs near or through here.]
Annapolis ANNapolis = ANnapolis 6 = AN6 = 266
(263?, 267, 268 also exist in this CO)
(261 is the FX for those who want metro Washington number)
(269 is the FX for those who want metro Baltimore number)
Area Code 202 (District of Columbia):
Woodley EMErson = EMerson 3 = EM3 = 363
(362, 364 also exist in this CO)
Woodley WOOdley = WOodley 6 = WO6 = 966
Woodley KEllogg 7 = KE7 = 537
Georgetown FEDeral = FEderal 3 = FE3 = 333
(337, 338 also exist in this CO)
Midtown FEderal 1 = FE1 = 331
Lincoln LINcoln = LIncoln 6 = LI6 = 546
(543, 544, 547 also exist in this CO)
[Capitol Hill area near Lincoln Park.]
Downtown ST3 = 783 (don't know what the word was) (785 added later)
Downtown METropolitan = MEtropolitan 8 = ME8 = 638
(637 also exists in this CO)
Downtown EXEcutive = EXecutive 3 = EX3 = 393 (395 is in the same
neighborhood and serves the Old Executive Office Building
near the White House but is part of Federal Telecom System,
not technically in a C&P CO)
Downtown TIme 4 = TI4 = 844 [time of day]
Downtown WEather 6 = WE6 = 936
Dupont DUPont = DUpont 7 = DU7 = 387
Dupont COLumbia = COlumbia 5 = CO5 = 265
Dupont ADAms = ADams 2 = AD2 = 232
(234 also exists in this CO)
Dupont MORgan = MOrgan 7 = MO7 = 667
(666 also exists in this CO)
Dupont HOBart = HObart 2 = HO2 = 462
[The Dupont exchange includes the Adams Morgan neighborhood which includes
Columbia Road and Hobart Street as major drags.]
Georgia PARk = PArk 7 = PA7 = 727
(722, 723, 724, 728? also exist in this CO)
Far Southwest JO1 = 561 (don't know what the word was)
(562, 563 also exist in this CO)
Area Code 703 (Northern and Western Virginia):
Arlington ARlington 6 = AR6 = 276
Arlington JACkson = JAckson 2 = JA2 = 522
(524, 525, 527, 528 also exist in this CO)
(521 exists in Arlington, but in the Columbia Pike CO)
Falls Church JEFferson = JEfferson 3 = JE3 = 533
(532, 534, 536, 538 also exist in this CO)
Old Town KIng 8 = KI8 = 548 (549 also exists in this CO)
[King Street is a major drag.]
Old Town OV3 = 683 (don't know the word for this one)
(684 also exists in this CO)
(685 exists in an adjacent CO, Columbia Pike in Arlington)
Herndon HERndon = HErndon 7 = HE7 = 437 (435 also exists in this CO)
Lorton OX0 = 690 (This one's just a guess.) [Ox Road is main drag.]
Orange ORAnge = ORange 2 = OR2 = 672
Lewinsville TYsons 3 = TY3 = 893 [Tysons Corner area.]
Fredericksburg FREdericksburg = FRedericksburg 3 = FR3 = 373 (371, too)
Area Code 516 (Long Island, New York):
Glen Cove ORiole 1 = OR1 = 671 (674, 676 also exist in this CO)
Oyster Bay WAlnut 2 = WA2 = 922 (921 is in adjacent CO, Syosset)
Bayville Originally "Twin Harbors 5" which was a manual exchange not
having a directly translatable digit combination; when the
automated CO (served to this day out of Oyster Bay with a
hardwire pair running from the next town to each of the
4,000 or so phones in Bayville) opened in 1960, it became
NA8 = 628 but had no word associated with the "NA". (624
now also exists in Oyster Bay)
Hempstead IVanhoe 5 = IV5 = 485 (and several other 48's)
Babylon MOhawk 1 = MO1 = 661 (and several other 66's)
Massapequa LIncoln 1 = LI1 = 541 (and at least one other 54)
Massapequa PYramid 8 = PY8 = 798 (and 795, 799)
Merrick/Freeport FReeport 8 = FR8 = 378 (379 too)
Merrick/Freeport MAin 3 = MA3 = 623
Lynbrook LYnbrook 9 = LY9 = 599
Area Code 718 (part of NY City):
Bayside BAYside = BAyside 9 = 229 (and several other 22's)
Bayside HA8 = 428 (don't know what the word was although HAvermeyer
was used in at least some areas of Queens)
Astoria AStoria 8 = AS8 = 278 (and other 27's)
I'm sure more will spring to mind eventually. Some older cities like New York
and Philadelphia were the last to get rid of the old letters or words. There
are still some businesses in Philadelphia who publish stationery, business
cards and billboard signs with 2-letter, 5-digit phone numbers. Such artifacts
are extremely rare (and old-looking) here in the Washington area.
Here's a question: when did the last place that did it switch to 7-digit local
phone numbers? I think NY City did it in 1946 (from 6 digits). My hometown,
Bayville, listed above went right from a manual exchange to 7 digits in 1960.
Washington DC did it in 1960 (from 6 digits). [MEtropolitan-1234 became
MEtropolitan 8-1234 with the "T" converted to its equivalent "8" to make
the translation easy for Joe Average to remember.]tli@sargas.usc.EDU (Tony Li) (06/05/88)
Another exchange: Washington (Area code 202) Anacostia (Far Southeast) LUdlow 2 = LU2 = 582 Tony Li - USC University Computing Services - Dain Bramaged. Uucp: oberon!tli Bitnet: tli@kylara, tli@ramoth Internet: tli@sargas.usc.edu