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. 

Sandusky Gas and Electric Company

Several employees of the Sandusky Gas and Electric Company are seen in front of the old Power House which was on the west side of Lawrence Street, between Market and Water Streets about 1908. Notes with the original item stated that at that time the company had a “horsepower of one.” The power house can be seen below on the 1886 Sanborn Map. It was then listed as Sandusky Electric Light, Gas, Fuel and Supply Company. The power house was situated to the south of the old Number 2 Fire Station, and across the street from the R.B. Hubbard & Son Lumber Yard.  The building was constructed of stone, as were so many early buildings in Sandusky and Erie County.

The history of the Sandusky Gas and Light Company is interesting. The company changed names often, as technology changed. According to  McKelvey’s  1867 Sandusky City Directory, it began in 1854 as the Sandusky Gas Light Company.

An article in Sandusky of To-Day reported that in 1886 the Sandusky Gas Light Company entered into the electrical field, and had one of the most complete electric stations in the country, with a capacity for 200 arc lights and 1,400 incandescent.   By 1919, the Sandusky Gas and Electric Company eliminated horse-drawn vehicles in all departments, and switched to automobiles. 

In the 1920s, the Sandusky Gas and Light Company was purchased by Ohio Public Service, a processor of Ohio Edison.  The former Sandusky Gas and Light power house in Sandusky no longer stands. This link at Google Maps shows its former location, now a part of Sandusky International Division of MetalTek.