Before cellphones, before dial-up, if you wanted to make a phone call, you talked to an operator. That operator sat in front of a wall covered in... Jun 19, 2017 — Before cellphones, before dial-up, ...

Before smartphones, landline telephones were the way most people kept in touch. And until direct dialing became common, a switchboard operator's assistance was often needed to help with long-distance ...

Before smartphones, most people kept in touch using landline telephones. And before direct dialing was common, some calls were handled by switchboard operators. During the 1950s, more than 220,000 ...