Number Please

A promotional pamphlet entitled Number Please was distributed by the Sandusky Telephone Company about 1901. The phrase of course was a common expression used by operators of that time, and became recognized in popular culture; in volume 19 of the journal Telephony, for example, a brief article reported on a recent "dancing party" held  in 1910 for the employees of the Sandusky Telephone Company, where all of the musical numbers performed at the party were named for various terms related to using the telephone, including a waltz with the title Number Please. 

The booklet of the same name gave details about the newly remodeled offices of the company, then on the fourth floor of the Kingsbury Block in downtown Sandusky.

The Sandusky Telephone Company at that time claimed to render to its patrons “the highest efficiency in service and at the same time obtaining the greatest economy in operating and maintenance expense.” All subscribers had recently been given new telephones. Here are some examples of the telephones used by customers in the very early twentieth century:

The picture below from Number Please shows five operators handling a total of 1000 telephone lines.

The cable tower was made of steel, and was capable of withstanding immense strain. Twelve 100-pair cables led from the main telephone office to various points throughout Sandusky.

Historical data on page 21 of the pamphlet states that the Sandusky Telephone Company incorporated early in 1895, with 299 telephones in service. At that time, there were only two rooms for the exchange and office. The new telephone offices in 1901 occupied ten rooms and basement. In 1916 the Sandusky Telephone Company was re-organized into the Sandusky Home Telephone Company. In 1922  that company merged with Ohio Bell. In today’s world of wireless communication and smartphones, it is easy to forget that telephone service was so different in the early 1900s. 

Early Telephone Service in Sandusky

An article by Harvey Butler from the Twin Anniversary Edition of the Sandusky Register and Star News, from November 24, 1947 reported that in 1884, there were more than four hundred telephones in operation in Sandusky, Ohio. Four operators worked to handle all the connections from those phones. From the early part of the twentieth century until about 1922, there were two telephone companies in Sandusky. The Central Union Telephone was located on Washington Row, and the Sandusky Telephone Company was on the fourth floor of the Kingsbury Block (Columbus Avenue and Washington Row). There were two exchanges at that time. Central Union Telephone customers used the Bell exchange, and the Sandusky Telephone Company used the Harrison Exchange. Dr. Henry Graefe’s listing in the 1919 Sandusky City Directory had two phone numbers, so that customers from either company could contact his office. His phone numbers were: Bell Main 75 and Harrison 57.  About 1921, the Central Union Telephone Company changed its name to the Ohio Bell Telephone Company. By 1923, there was only one telephone company in Sandusky, the Ohio Bell Telephone Company. These switchboard operators were working at Ohio Bell in 1930.

 Information posted on this picture states that in 1930 there were 75 switchboard operators who handled 45,000 calls from 9,700 Sandusky subscribers.

           

In 1984, Ohio Bell became a part of Ameritech, which later became SBC/AT&T. Of course, millions of individuals all over the world now use cell phones. On several occasions the Ohio Telephone Pioneers, a non-profit organization made up telephone employees and retirees, held their annual meeting at Cedar Point.