A "Nutty" Story!

  Welcome to September everybody!
  Welcome to September the first!
  And welcome to "Emma Mills Nutt Day!"
  What do you mean you never heard of her?!
  Emma is, or rather was, famous!
  She was the world's first female telephone operator!
  And here, as the late Paul Harvey used to say, is the
rest of the story.
  In January of 1878 the Boston Telephone Company
began hiring boys as telephone operators.
  You see kids, back in those days, telephones were
attached to your wall by wires. If you wanted to talk
with someone else you had to reach an operator, then
give that operator the telephone number of the person
you were trying to reach.
   But a problem quickly developed. Seems the telephone
boys didn't have a lot of patience (a problem that has
somehow been transferred to the caller these days). The
guy's attitude and behavior, including cursing, wasn't
going over very well with the phone company.
   So, on September 1st., 1878, the company hired
Emma Mills Nutt! A few hours later her sister, Stella,
was hired too making her the second female telephone
operator in the world.
   They were hired by the way by a fellow named
Alexander Graham Bell! Ring a "bell?"
   Emma may have made history....but not a fortune!
She was paid $10 a month for a 54 hour work week! 
   But the popularity of her voice began a trend and, ever
since, the female voice has been the preference
of companies everywhere.
   Even today it's usually a woman's voice that tells
you to "Press 1 for checking, Press 2 to check your
balance" and on and on.
   Now they've got me wondering if Emma or her
sister may have been the first to say "The number
you are calling is no longer in service."
   Isn't it nice when you're able to speak with
someone like Emma...or any other live body on
the other end of your call?
   I suspect, if Emma and her sister were still alive,
they'd think today's telephone system is...well
frankly....Nuts! How appropriate!
   Hope you'll take a moment to honor Emma
today....and that all your NEWS is good!

Emma Nutt









Emma &  Stella Nutt
working next to male
telephone operators.







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