Hello, In this morning's MassMoments e-mail there is a story about the "telephone operators" in the 1910 to 1920 timeframe: http://www.massmoments.org:80/moment.cfm?mid=119 How many remember the old (historic?), black telephones we used as children? :o) I don't have the best of memories, but I think we had a "dial" phone in Arlington. (I don't remember the phone in the Winchester farmhouse in 1940's.) But, one of my aunts moved to Littleton, MA, and we visited her a lot each summer in 50's. She still had the old, black phone with no dial. My aunt had to contact the Operator and ask her to make the call for her. Remember when the "old" telephone numbers? And, nowadays, why do we still say we need to "dial" the phone? :o) Why don't we say we have to "push" the phone? :o) Betty (near Lowell, MA) (In the Winchester HUTCHINSON Farmhouse in 1940's was my great-grandmother, Mrs. Louise (RICE) KIDDER. When my aunt married my father's uncle, she moved into that farmhouse ~1950. She remembers that her mother-in-law used to get telephone calls for -another- Mrs. KIDDER. It turned out that the other family -- was that of the family which had a daughter-in-law - who owned and operated "Priscilla's of Boston." The famous, bridal-gown designer !) (Don't forget the "party lines." ) (One ring or 2 rings, etc.)