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Emma Nutt (July 1860 – 1915) became the world's first female telephone operator on September 1, 1878, when she started working for the Edwin Holmes Telephone Despatch Company (or the Boston Telephone Dispatch Company) in
"EMMA", a synthesized speech attendant system created by Preferred Voice and Philips Electronics is named in her honor.
1 September is unofficially commemorated as ''Emma M. Nutt Day''.
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...
, U.S.
Life and career
In January 1878, the Boston Telephone Dispatch Company had started hiring boys as telephone operators, starting with George Willard Croy. Boys (reportedly including Nutt's husband) had been very successful astelegraphy
Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas p ...
operators, but their attitude (lack of patience) and behavior (pranks and cursing) were unacceptable for live phone contact, so the company began hiring women operators instead. Thus, on September 1, 1878, Nutt was hired, starting a career that lasted between 33 and 37 years, ending with her retirement sometime between 1911 and 1915. A few hours after Nutt started working, her sister Stella became the world's second female telephone operator, also making the pair the first two sister telephone operators in history. Unlike her sister, Stella only remained on the job for a few years.
The customer response to her soothing, cultured voice and patience was overwhelmingly positive, so boys were soon replaced by women. In 1879 these included Bessie Snow Balance, Emma Landon, Carrie Boldt, and Minnie Schumann, the first female operators in Michigan.
Nutt was hired by Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham Bell (, born Alexander Bell; March 3, 1847 – August 2, 1922) was a Scottish-born inventor, scientist and engineer who is credited with patenting the first practical telephone. He also co-founded the American Telephone and Te ...
, who is credited with inventing the first practical telephone; apparently she changed jobs from a local telegraph office. She was paid a salary of $10 per month for a 54-hour week. Reportedly, she could remember every number in the telephone directory of the New England Telephone Company.
Commemoration
"EMMA", a synthesized speech attendant system created by Preferred Voice and Philips Electronics is named in her honor.
1 September is unofficially commemorated as ''Emma M. Nutt Day''.
See also
*Telephone switchboard
A telephone switchboard was a device used to connect circuits of telephones to establish telephone calls between users or other switchboards, throughout the 20th century. The switchboard was an essential component of a manual telephone exchange, ...
*Directory assistance
In telecommunications, directory assistance or directory inquiries is a phone service used to find out a specific telephone number and/or address of a residence, business, or government entity.
Technology
Directory assistance systems incorporate ...
*International operator services
International operator services (IOS) allow travelers to place an international call using a live telephone operator who speaks their language and accepts all forms of payment for connecting the call from anywhere in the world, to anywhere in the ...
*Long-distance operator
In telephony, the long-distance operator is a telephone operator available to assist with making long distance telephone calls (or ''toll calls'' in British English), answering billing questions, making collect call
A collect call in Canada a ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nutt, Emma 1860 births 1915 deaths People from Boston Hello Girls Switchboard operators