TELECOM Re: Spring ahead, fall back

To this day Verizon continues to provide those services, at least those shown (215). Some cities put them on 976 lines and charged extra, but the 215 services are charged as any other call. The weather says Verizon, but the time does not. I believe in NYC, NYNEX provided weather service for many years, though it no longer does.

Back in the early 1960s Bell of Pa sponsored the local news weather forecast and at the conclusion the forecaster (a real college physics professor) put up a card with the phone number on it while he told viewers of the service. (Back then the number was WE 7-1212. When they went to WE 6, for a long while one could dial either exchange. Also, one could dial the exchange and any four digits and still reach the weather or time forecast, that no longer is true.)

As an aside, other 215 recorded announcement services or radio call-in were once assigned to a special exchange for that purpose, COlfax (263). Apparently this was to isolate the exchange in case of a high volume of calls.

That apparently wasn't the case if the service was free, which is was with Pacific Bell (AT&T) until two months ago.