As discussed in the first part (“History of Telephone Number: The Early Years”) of this series, telephone numbers in the first half of the twentieth century used the 2L-5N system (two letters and five numbers). Two letters of phone numbers corresponded to memorable words such as BUtterfield or ANdrew. However, despite the great demand after World War II, the limitations of this system quickly became apparent. The number 1 is reserved for long-distance dialing, and 0 is reserved for the operator. Several combinations, such as 57 and 97, were unsuitable for use, because it was impossible to make the appropriate word.
Bell broke up some area codes to allow the reuse of numbers that worked for a while — only from 1962 to 1981, only two new code marks were added. However, in 1958, AT & T began a slow transition to the entire number of calls (ANC), gradually replacing the letters with numbers. Accompanying all the rooms was first implemented in small communities; Wichita Falls, Texas, was the first to complete the conversion in 1958.
AT & T used a three-step process to facilitate the transition. First, the telephone directories printed the full word associated with the exchange; eg, BUtterfield 5-6861 , At the first stage, the exchange of letters was printed without the corresponding word: BU 5-6861. In the second phase, those who still use five or less numbers were increased to seven. In the third printed catalogs, only a seven-digit number is shown: 285-6861.
By 1965, all new telephone numbers corresponded to callers on all numbers, but the national transition continued in the early 1980s. The opposition was strong in some major cities; groups such as the Anti-Digital League in San Francisco, organized against the new system. Some people viewed the exchange of Rockwell or Whitney letters as part of their identity or at least useful information about the location of the subscriber. Newspaper editors wrote to protest the changes, and in 1966 at least one protest song was recorded. New York didn’t fully convert to ANC until 1978, and one Philadelphia handbook still listed alphanumeric prefixes at the end of 1983.
It is interesting that the use The prefix 555 in movies and television began in this area, originally as KLondike 5 , The prefix 555 is reserved for the telephone company and is usually used only for referral service (555-1212). Filmmakers and television directors began using it as a way to avoid any unwanted calls to an existing number (as was good with the 1982 song, "867-5309 / Jenny").
