PUBLISHING THE TELEPHONE BOOK IS A REAL JOB
The item sets out the scale of compiling and printing the telephone directories used throughout the Bell System, including the weight of the paper, its annual cost of about $2,440,000, and the freight cars and truck loads needed to move paper and finished books. It adds that if all the listings in the system were divided into volumes the size of the current New York City directory, which contains 2,412 pages, many such volumes would be needed, while a single combined book would be nearly eleven feet thick.
Few people recognize the magnitude of the work involved in the compilation and printing of the telephone directories in use throughout the country in the Bell System.
There are approximately 1,800 different directories published and, based on the average of two annually for each directory area, this necessitates the printing of 25,000,000 copies. The paper used, including the cover stock, weighs approximately 60,629,000 pounds and represents an annual cost of about $2,440,000.
To haul this paper from the mills to the printshop by railroad would require approximately 1,000 freight cars of 60,000 pounds capacity. This would be the equivalent of 20 solid trains of 60 cars each. The task of delivering the printed directories to the subscribers would require the equivalent of 6,000 5-ton truck loads and the services of several thousand men. Approximately 35,000,000 lines of subscribers' listings and advertising must be taken care of in one year.
Taking the current New York City telephone directory as an example, if all the listings in the Bell System were contained in one book, it would require 87,500 pages, 9 inches by 11 inches, and would be nearly eleven feet thick. Or, if the listings were divided into volumes the size of the present New York City directory, which contains 2,412 pages, it would require 37 such volumes to cover the entire system.
Not only is the printing and com-
Reproduced unchanged from The Broad Ax, November 6, 1926, page 2.
This text reflects the language, attitudes and errors of its time. A Century Late publishes it as a historical document.
Text: read from the Library of Congress scan by A Century Late, within the article boundaries of American Stories (Dell et al., 2023), DOI 10.57967/hf/0757.
Yesterday's paper
November 5, 1926. The original articles, with the text exactly as it appeared and scans of the original newspaper pages, from that day’s editions of the following publications:Douglas Daily Dispatch, The Coconino Sun, Daily Kennebec Journal, Evening Star, and The Independent.
Receive the original news from the press of 100 years ago, daily, weekly or monthly. Subscribe by December 1, 2026 and get
20% off for life!
Today's paper
November 6, 1926. The original articles, with the text exactly as it appeared and scans of the original newspaper pages, from that day’s editions of the following publications:Imperial Valley Press, Douglas Daily Dispatch, The Broad Ax, The Indianapolis Times, Daily Kennebec Journal, Brownsville Herald, Evening Star, The McCarthy Weekly News, and The Daily Worker.
You do.
PUBLISHING THE TELEPHONE BOOK IS A REAL JOB
The item sets out the scale of compiling and printing the telephone directories used throughout the Bell System, including the weight of the paper, its annual cost of about $2,440,000, and the freight cars and truck loads needed to move paper and finished books. It adds that if all the listings in the system were divided into volumes the size of the current New York City directory, which contains 2,412 pages, many such volumes would be needed, while a single combined book would be nearly eleven feet thick.
Few people recognize the magnitude of the work involved in the compilation and printing of the telephone directories in use throughout the country in the Bell System.
There are approximately 1,800 different directories published and, based on the average of two annually for each directory area, this necessitates the printing of 25,000,000 copies. The paper used, including the cover stock, weighs approximately 60,629,000 pounds and represents an annual cost of about $2,440,000.
To haul this paper from the mills to the printshop by railroad would require approximately 1,000 freight cars of 60,000 pounds capacity. This would be the equivalent of 20 solid trains of 60 cars each. The task of delivering the printed directories to the subscribers would require the equivalent of 6,000 5-ton truck loads and the services of several thousand men. Approximately 35,000,000 lines of subscribers' listings and advertising must be taken care of in one year.
Taking the current New York City telephone directory as an example, if all the listings in the Bell System were contained in one book, it would require 87,500 pages, 9 inches by 11 inches, and would be nearly eleven feet thick. Or, if the listings were divided into volumes the size of the present New York City directory, which contains 2,412 pages, it would require 37 such volumes to cover the entire system.
Not only is the printing and com-
Reproduced unchanged from The Broad Ax, November 6, 1926, page 2.
This text reflects the language, attitudes and errors of its time. A Century Late publishes it as a historical document.
Text: read from the Library of Congress scan by A Century Late, within the article boundaries of American Stories (Dell et al., 2023), DOI 10.57967/hf/0757.
Reproduced unchanged from The Broad Ax, November 6, 1926, page 2.
This text reflects the language, attitudes and errors of its time. A Century Late publishes it as a historical document.
Text: read from the Library of Congress scan by A Century Late, within the article boundaries of American Stories (Dell et al., 2023), DOI 10.57967/hf/0757.
Yesterday's paper
November 5, 1926. The original articles, with the text exactly as it appeared and scans of the original newspaper pages, from that day’s editions of the following publications:Douglas Daily Dispatch, The Coconino Sun, Daily Kennebec Journal, Evening Star, and The Independent.
Receive the original news from the press of 100 years ago, daily, weekly or monthly. Subscribe by December 1, 2026 and get
20% off for life!
Today's paper
November 6, 1926. The original articles, with the text exactly as it appeared and scans of the original newspaper pages, from that day’s editions of the following publications:Imperial Valley Press, Douglas Daily Dispatch, The Broad Ax, The Indianapolis Times, Daily Kennebec Journal, Brownsville Herald, Evening Star, The McCarthy Weekly News, and The Daily Worker.
You do.
PUBLISHING THE TELEPHONE BOOK IS A REAL JOB
The item sets out the scale of compiling and printing the telephone directories used throughout the Bell System, including the weight of the paper, its annual cost of about $2,440,000, and the freight cars and truck loads needed to move paper and finished books. It adds that if all the listings in the system were divided into volumes the size of the current New York City directory, which contains 2,412 pages, many such volumes would be needed, while a single combined book would be nearly eleven feet thick.
Few people recognize the magnitude of the work involved in the compilation and printing of the telephone directories in use throughout the country in the Bell System.
There are approximately 1,800 different directories published and, based on the average of two annually for each directory area, this necessitates the printing of 25,000,000 copies. The paper used, including the cover stock, weighs approximately 60,629,000 pounds and represents an annual cost of about $2,440,000.
To haul this paper from the mills to the printshop by railroad would require approximately 1,000 freight cars of 60,000 pounds capacity. This would be the equivalent of 20 solid trains of 60 cars each. The task of delivering the printed directories to the subscribers would require the equivalent of 6,000 5-ton truck loads and the services of several thousand men. Approximately 35,000,000 lines of subscribers' listings and advertising must be taken care of in one year.
Taking the current New York City telephone directory as an example, if all the listings in the Bell System were contained in one book, it would require 87,500 pages, 9 inches by 11 inches, and would be nearly eleven feet thick. Or, if the listings were divided into volumes the size of the present New York City directory, which contains 2,412 pages, it would require 37 such volumes to cover the entire system.
Not only is the printing and com-
Reproduced unchanged from The Broad Ax, November 6, 1926, page 2.
This text reflects the language, attitudes and errors of its time. A Century Late publishes it as a historical document.
Text: read from the Library of Congress scan by A Century Late, within the article boundaries of American Stories (Dell et al., 2023), DOI 10.57967/hf/0757.
Reproduced unchanged from The Broad Ax, November 6, 1926, page 2.
This text reflects the language, attitudes and errors of its time. A Century Late publishes it as a historical document.
Text: read from the Library of Congress scan by A Century Late, within the article boundaries of American Stories (Dell et al., 2023), DOI 10.57967/hf/0757.
Yesterday's paper
November 5, 1926. The original articles, with the text exactly as it appeared and scans of the original newspaper pages, from that day’s editions of the following publications:Douglas Daily Dispatch, The Coconino Sun, Daily Kennebec Journal, Evening Star, and The Independent.
Receive the original news from the press of 100 years ago, daily, weekly or monthly. Subscribe by December 1, 2026 and get
20% off for life!
Today's paper
November 6, 1926. The original articles, with the text exactly as it appeared and scans of the original newspaper pages, from that day’s editions of the following publications:Imperial Valley Press, Douglas Daily Dispatch, The Broad Ax, The Indianapolis Times, Daily Kennebec Journal, Brownsville Herald, Evening Star, The McCarthy Weekly News, and The Daily Worker.
You do.
PUBLISHING THE TELEPHONE BOOK IS A REAL JOB
The item sets out the scale of compiling and printing the telephone directories used throughout the Bell System, including the weight of the paper, its annual cost of about $2,440,000, and the freight cars and truck loads needed to move paper and finished books. It adds that if all the listings in the system were divided into volumes the size of the current New York City directory, which contains 2,412 pages, many such volumes would be needed, while a single combined book would be nearly eleven feet thick.
Few people recognize the magnitude of the work involved in the compilation and printing of the telephone directories in use throughout the country in the Bell System.
There are approximately 1,800 different directories published and, based on the average of two annually for each directory area, this necessitates the printing of 25,000,000 copies. The paper used, including the cover stock, weighs approximately 60,629,000 pounds and represents an annual cost of about $2,440,000.
To haul this paper from the mills to the printshop by railroad would require approximately 1,000 freight cars of 60,000 pounds capacity. This would be the equivalent of 20 solid trains of 60 cars each. The task of delivering the printed directories to the subscribers would require the equivalent of 6,000 5-ton truck loads and the services of several thousand men. Approximately 35,000,000 lines of subscribers' listings and advertising must be taken care of in one year.
Taking the current New York City telephone directory as an example, if all the listings in the Bell System were contained in one book, it would require 87,500 pages, 9 inches by 11 inches, and would be nearly eleven feet thick. Or, if the listings were divided into volumes the size of the present New York City directory, which contains 2,412 pages, it would require 37 such volumes to cover the entire system.
Not only is the printing and com-
Reproduced unchanged from The Broad Ax, November 6, 1926, page 2.
This text reflects the language, attitudes and errors of its time. A Century Late publishes it as a historical document.
Text: read from the Library of Congress scan by A Century Late, within the article boundaries of American Stories (Dell et al., 2023), DOI 10.57967/hf/0757.
Reproduced unchanged from The Broad Ax, November 6, 1926, page 2.
This text reflects the language, attitudes and errors of its time. A Century Late publishes it as a historical document.
Text: read from the Library of Congress scan by A Century Late, within the article boundaries of American Stories (Dell et al., 2023), DOI 10.57967/hf/0757.
Yesterday's paper
November 5, 1926. The original articles, with the text exactly as it appeared and scans of the original newspaper pages, from that day’s editions of the following publications:Douglas Daily Dispatch, The Coconino Sun, Daily Kennebec Journal, Evening Star, and The Independent.
Receive the original news from the press of 100 years ago, daily, weekly or monthly. Subscribe by December 1, 2026 and get
20% off for life!
Today's paper
November 6, 1926. The original articles, with the text exactly as it appeared and scans of the original newspaper pages, from that day’s editions of the following publications:Imperial Valley Press, Douglas Daily Dispatch, The Broad Ax, The Indianapolis Times, Daily Kennebec Journal, Brownsville Herald, Evening Star, The McCarthy Weekly News, and The Daily Worker.
You do.
PUBLISHING THE TELEPHONE BOOK IS A REAL JOB
The item sets out the scale of compiling and printing the telephone directories used throughout the Bell System, including the weight of the paper, its annual cost of about $2,440,000, and the freight cars and truck loads needed to move paper and finished books. It adds that if all the listings in the system were divided into volumes the size of the current New York City directory, which contains 2,412 pages, many such volumes would be needed, while a single combined book would be nearly eleven feet thick.
Few people recognize the magnitude of the work involved in the compilation and printing of the telephone directories in use throughout the country in the Bell System.
There are approximately 1,800 different directories published and, based on the average of two annually for each directory area, this necessitates the printing of 25,000,000 copies. The paper used, including the cover stock, weighs approximately 60,629,000 pounds and represents an annual cost of about $2,440,000.
To haul this paper from the mills to the printshop by railroad would require approximately 1,000 freight cars of 60,000 pounds capacity. This would be the equivalent of 20 solid trains of 60 cars each. The task of delivering the printed directories to the subscribers would require the equivalent of 6,000 5-ton truck loads and the services of several thousand men. Approximately 35,000,000 lines of subscribers' listings and advertising must be taken care of in one year.
Taking the current New York City telephone directory as an example, if all the listings in the Bell System were contained in one book, it would require 87,500 pages, 9 inches by 11 inches, and would be nearly eleven feet thick. Or, if the listings were divided into volumes the size of the present New York City directory, which contains 2,412 pages, it would require 37 such volumes to cover the entire system.
Not only is the printing and com-
Reproduced unchanged from The Broad Ax, November 6, 1926, page 2.
This text reflects the language, attitudes and errors of its time. A Century Late publishes it as a historical document.
Text: read from the Library of Congress scan by A Century Late, within the article boundaries of American Stories (Dell et al., 2023), DOI 10.57967/hf/0757.
Reproduced unchanged from The Broad Ax, November 6, 1926, page 2.
This text reflects the language, attitudes and errors of its time. A Century Late publishes it as a historical document.
Text: read from the Library of Congress scan by A Century Late, within the article boundaries of American Stories (Dell et al., 2023), DOI 10.57967/hf/0757.
Yesterday's paper
November 5, 1926. The original articles, with the text exactly as it appeared and scans of the original newspaper pages, from that day’s editions of the following publications:Douglas Daily Dispatch, The Coconino Sun, Daily Kennebec Journal, Evening Star, and The Independent.
Receive the original news from the press of 100 years ago, daily, weekly or monthly. Subscribe by December 1, 2026 and get
20% off for life!
Today's paper
November 6, 1926. The original articles, with the text exactly as it appeared and scans of the original newspaper pages, from that day’s editions of the following publications:Imperial Valley Press, Douglas Daily Dispatch, The Broad Ax, The Indianapolis Times, Daily Kennebec Journal, Brownsville Herald, Evening Star, The McCarthy Weekly News, and The Daily Worker.