NellMinow (@nellminow.bsky.social)

Phone numbers used to start with letters. Long before everyone’s phone fit in their pocket, phone numbers began with letters — specifically, the first two letters of the telephone exchange name. These exchange names, sometimes drawn from local neighborhoods or landmarks, served as mnemonics to help people — operators and callers alike — remember and route phone numbers. For example, the Ricardos’ phone number on I Love Lucy was MU 5-9975. “MU” was for Murray Hill, which evoked a familiar locality and was used for the whole east side of Manhattan’s telephone exchange. When an exchange name was written out, the first two letters were usually capitalized, as in, “MUrray Hill 5-9975.” The corresponding digits for “M” and “U” on the telephone dial were 6 and 8, so the operator could reach the Ricardos at 68 5-9975. The first phones were connected to one another with wires, but as the ...Read More https://historyfacts.com/us-history/fact/phone-numbers-used-to-start-with-letters/?lctg=0a0972fd-4d48-4388-9354-d346c2f9a3a6