I worked at Bay Avenue, Patchogue, Long Island (long distance) from '68 thru '71. This really brings back how regimented and no-nonsense it was. The best part was the great union protection and wages. For me, it was just a job while I was in college, but it was providing a great career for all the women I worked with at the time. Thanks for the posts!
Ziptrivia, also loved your post "I have to dial my own phone? Parts 1 & 2. Found that a couple of weeks ago. What a hoot. I collect and love telephone memorabilia. So this stuff is great.
I started as a landline operator in 1969 at Northern Ohio Telephone Co. which became GTE about 1970. Pay was about $1.50 an hour. I was 18. I remember the job fondly but it wasn't easy. It was a very strict job. The supervisors were not allowed to sit. Had to stand behind us. And never once did I say surely. It is now Verizon since about 2005. Thanks Ziptrivia.
The work of this entire room is now done by that big gray box out by the street in front of your neighborhood...or even by the blue linksys box in your living room.
Not exactly. Those are only the interfaces between you/your neighborhood and a central switching office located elsewhere. Operators still exist in centralized locations to handle calls when needed, but now they use keyboards and monitors instead of cords and jacks.
@elgavilan2000 The box on the street is where cable pairs terminate. No switching is done there. And your blue box is a wifi router. Calls are still switched at the central office, as they have been for years, but with digital technology.
@reward415 Unless you have digital/voice over ip phone service. Then the calls are routed over the internet, which is done by your router, and every router and switch between both points of access. (think those u-verse/fios boxes outside of a lot of neighborhoods)
Makes you wonder how the operators could make sense of that spiderweb of cords and jacks and all those blinking lights in the old days. No wonder most operators were women -- a man wouldn't have had the patience!
The jacks had designation strips above them that identified their origin or destination, and function.
The cords were put up and taken down in relation to each call a particular operator was handling, so each operator knew what the ones coming from her position were for.
For the most part the lights were steady rather than blinking (flashing), so it was more about paying attention to whether they were on or off.
I worked on that cord board for 9 years. I never passed a call to any other operator. We were measured on tone of service and how many calls you took in an hour. The goal was 40 completed tickets per hour. When we converted to a computerized system, that increased to 180 - 200 calls per hour. I have many nightmare stories... - roc
I agree..It was rare that someone else took over your call. Time and charges could always wait. If you were experienced, you would be very fast and could do multiple calls at once. I liked cord boards, now everything is done by computers .
Here in Ontario, we still have 50 (or so) operators that answer calls. Much is completed by computers, but there are still 50. Thirty years ago, there were 5000.
Yes, me too! We used to have 400 operators here in London alone. Then they garbaged us in 2001 and centralized to Ottawa and Montreal. Montreal still has about 150 operators left. The end of an era. Sad! - roc
The job has been centralized, but not deregulated. And there were still a very few cord boards remaing, for certain types of special calls that couldn't be automated, before I retired a few years ago.
i would have pulled my hair out of my head .oh my god. what a job!!!and they had to be fast !!! i dont think may people could do it today. the women were cracker jacks
Wow... it's amazing how all that actually worked with the technology of its day, and they all seemed to understand exactly what needed to go where and how. Well done Miss Kelly! :)
I was told by an electrical engineer that if we still had to route calls this way there wouldn't be enough women in the country to do it.
SepherStar 3 months ago
I worked at Bay Avenue, Patchogue, Long Island (long distance) from '68 thru '71. This really brings back how regimented and no-nonsense it was. The best part was the great union protection and wages. For me, it was just a job while I was in college, but it was providing a great career for all the women I worked with at the time. Thanks for the posts!
wamy49 8 months ago
Narrated by no other than the late great Jane Barbe.
dmine45 1 year ago
Ziptrivia, also loved your post "I have to dial my own phone? Parts 1 & 2. Found that a couple of weeks ago. What a hoot. I collect and love telephone memorabilia. So this stuff is great.
grafonolafavorite 1 year ago
I started as a landline operator in 1969 at Northern Ohio Telephone Co. which became GTE about 1970. Pay was about $1.50 an hour. I was 18. I remember the job fondly but it wasn't easy. It was a very strict job. The supervisors were not allowed to sit. Had to stand behind us. And never once did I say surely. It is now Verizon since about 2005. Thanks Ziptrivia.
grafonolafavorite 1 year ago
They're so nice to each other. Now it would be more like, "I ain't doin' your work, skank!"
c0t0d0s7 1 year ago
Then they were all laid off.
traffety 1 year ago
@traffety LOL.
therealandycook 7 months ago
Back in the day the Bell System concentrated more on the quality of the call not the quantity. Gone forever!
supremesfan2 1 year ago
All I know is that when you had to rely on the switchboard operator you didn't have dropped calls like the piece-of-shit iphone does!
lukebccb 1 year ago
Hank is that you??? Its your other have in Chicago!
franciscanschicago 1 year ago
surely
bretttiktin 2 years ago
The work of this entire room is now done by that big gray box out by the street in front of your neighborhood...or even by the blue linksys box in your living room.
We've come a long way.
elgavilan2000 2 years ago
Not exactly. Those are only the interfaces between you/your neighborhood and a central switching office located elsewhere. Operators still exist in centralized locations to handle calls when needed, but now they use keyboards and monitors instead of cords and jacks.
An805Guy 2 years ago
@elgavilan2000 The box on the street is where cable pairs terminate. No switching is done there. And your blue box is a wifi router. Calls are still switched at the central office, as they have been for years, but with digital technology.
reward415 8 months ago
@reward415 Unless you have digital/voice over ip phone service. Then the calls are routed over the internet, which is done by your router, and every router and switch between both points of access. (think those u-verse/fios boxes outside of a lot of neighborhoods)
elgavilan2000 8 months ago
@elgavilan2000 Surely.
reward415 8 months ago
Bring back the old Bell System. It was the best!
billyboi57 2 years ago
The old Ma Bell may have been a monopoly, but by God, it WORKED!
scotpens 2 years ago
This video doesn't look like much work is getting done cause when she deals wit the paper n stuff.
iPikee 3 years ago
I would have liked to have tried that job.
adelgado75 3 years ago
Makes you wonder how the operators could make sense of that spiderweb of cords and jacks and all those blinking lights in the old days. No wonder most operators were women -- a man wouldn't have had the patience!
"And stop calling me Shirley!" LOL
scotpens 4 years ago
The jacks had designation strips above them that identified their origin or destination, and function.
The cords were put up and taken down in relation to each call a particular operator was handling, so each operator knew what the ones coming from her position were for.
For the most part the lights were steady rather than blinking (flashing), so it was more about paying attention to whether they were on or off.
An805Guy 2 years ago
I worked on that cord board for 9 years. I never passed a call to any other operator. We were measured on tone of service and how many calls you took in an hour. The goal was 40 completed tickets per hour. When we converted to a computerized system, that increased to 180 - 200 calls per hour. I have many nightmare stories... - roc
popparoc46 4 years ago
I agree..It was rare that someone else took over your call. Time and charges could always wait. If you were experienced, you would be very fast and could do multiple calls at once. I liked cord boards, now everything is done by computers .
flyboy3480 3 years ago
Here in Ontario, we still have 50 (or so) operators that answer calls. Much is completed by computers, but there are still 50. Thirty years ago, there were 5000.
oh well. - roc
popparoc46 3 years ago
Only 50? Wow..I worked for AGT in Calgary in the 70's during the cord era and after and remember those long rows of operators.
yvrflyer 3 years ago
Yes, me too! We used to have 400 operators here in London alone. Then they garbaged us in 2001 and centralized to Ottawa and Montreal. Montreal still has about 150 operators left. The end of an era. Sad! - roc
popparoc46 3 years ago
can people still do the switchboard in Kentucky? do they still have jobs like that?
iPikee 3 years ago
The cord board doesn't exist anymore in North America and the job has been deregulated and centralized. Too bad..
-roc
popparoc46 3 years ago
what does roc mean?
iPikee 3 years ago
It is the first part of my name. My family and friends call me "Roc".
popparoc46 3 years ago
The job has been centralized, but not deregulated. And there were still a very few cord boards remaing, for certain types of special calls that couldn't be automated, before I retired a few years ago.
An805Guy 2 years ago
Is that the actual phone operator that you hear on the phone sometimes when you're using the phone!
lararoxx 4 years ago
This is a training film for telephone operators from 60 years ago! Today, all that stuff is done by computers.
scotpens 4 years ago
i would have pulled my hair out of my head .oh my god. what a job!!!and they had to be fast !!! i dont think may people could do it today. the women were cracker jacks
bearcub410 4 years ago
Wow... it's amazing how all that actually worked with the technology of its day, and they all seemed to understand exactly what needed to go where and how. Well done Miss Kelly! :)
welcomestranger 4 years ago