On This Day in Telephone History June 28TH 1895 ‘Number Please?’ becomes a thing
In a letter from J. W. Thompson, City Manager for the Chicago Telephone Company, to Miss Mesick, Chief Operator, Main, says, "In answering calls the query 'Number Please?' spoken in a pleasant tone of voice and with rising inflection must be invariably employed." This is the earliest official instruction we have found for this phrase which became known all over the world. It was not recommended for the whole Bell System until about 1904, and probably not used by all companies until nearly 1912. The earliest response of telephone (boy) operators appears to have been, "What do you want?" or sometimes, "Hello!" but there is no telling exactly. Telephone directories of the early Eighties, in giving instructions how to use the telephone, tell subscribers that the operator will respond with "Number?" or "What number?"