February 8, 20179 yr In the 50's and 60's I believe phone numbers were the designated area where you lived and the 5 numbers following. I lived in the Okolona area of Louisville and our word prefix was Woodland. The number was WO9-****, when those numbers were used it went to WO4-****, In the mid to late 60's it went away and people said 969-****, just because you didn't have to look up the corresponding letters with numbers. I distinctly remember having to memorize my phone number and address in 1st grade in 1960 and it was WO9-6471. Some of the exchanges I remember are Emerson (3-6), Juniper (5-8), Twinbrook (8-9), Glendale (4-5) and Melrose (6-3). I also remember standing in line at the phone with my siblings when we spoke with my grandparents out of state--------so as to have no wasted time on the phone. Long distance calls were expensive.
February 8, 20179 yr I am older than dirt and it doesn't bother me one bit, that I knew all of them. :-) I had a ball growing up and wouldn't change a thing in my life, whether it was good or bad!
February 8, 20179 yr I remember the telephone party lines. There were usually 4 or 5 houses on a line. My aunt would eavesdrop on her neighbors. She would put her hand over the part you talk into so they couldn't hear her breathe. If you walked into the room while she was doing that she would throw a hissy fit, making all kinds of gyrations with her arms and hands, like a mime doing an acting routine. She would have this look on her face like, "If you kids make a sound I'm going to skin you alive!"
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