Area codes 706 and 762 are telephone

area code A telephone numbering plan is a type of numbering scheme used in telecommunication to assign telephone numbers to subscriber telephones or other telephony endpoints. Telephone numbers are the addresses of participants in a telephone network, rea ...

s in the

North American Numbering Plan The North American Numbering Plan (NANP) is an integrated telephone numbering plan for twenty-five regions in twenty countries, primarily in North America and the Caribbean. This group is historically known as World Zone 1, World Numbering Zone ...

(NANP) for the northern and west central parts of

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, but excluding

metropolitan Atlanta Metro Atlanta, designated by the United States Office of Management and Budget as the Atlanta–Sandy Springs–Roswell metropolitan statistical area, is the most populous metropolitan statistical area in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), ...

. The numbering plan area (NPA) is divided into three disconnected geographical regions. A small section is in west-central Georgia, in the region around Columbus. This is bordered by

area code 334 Area code 334 is a telephone area code in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for southeastern Alabama. It was created on January 15, 1995, in an area code split from area code 205. It was the first new area code in Alabama since the announce ...

to the west in

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

area code 478 Area code 478 is a telephone area code serving part of the state of Georgia, in the United States. It covers Macon and central Georgia ( Warner Robins, Swainsboro, Wadley, Milledgeville, Hawkinsville, Eastman, Cochran, Dublin, Perry). It w ...

to the east,

area code 229 Area code 229 is a telephone area code in the North American Numbering Plan for the southwest corner of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The numbering plan area includes the cities of Albany, Georgia, Albany, Valdosta, Georgia, Va ...

to the south, and metro Atlanta's

404 404 may refer to: * 404 (number) * AD 404 * 404 BC * HTTP 404, the HTTP error response status for "Not Found" Cars * Peugeot 404, a large family car * Bristol 404, a luxury car * Unimog 404, an offroad-capable truck Highways * A404(M ...

678 __NOTOC__ Year 678 ( DCLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 678 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Euro ...

, 770, and

470 __NOTOC__ Year 470 ( CDLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Severus and Iordanes (or, less frequently, year 1223 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination ...

. It does not border the

landline A landline is a physical telephone connection that uses metal wires or optical fiber from the subscriber's premises to the network, allowing multiple phones to operate simultaneously on the same phone number. It is also referred to as plain old ...

area of 404, only the

cellphone A mobile phone or cell phone is a portable telephone that allows users to make and receive calls over a radio frequency link while moving within a designated telephone service area, unlike fixed-location phones ( landline phones). This radio ...

area. Additionally, the Yatesville rate center is in area codes 706 and 762, but not adjacent to any other rate centers in 706/762. The Yatesville rate center shares a small border with 770 to the north, but is almost surrounded by 478 to the south, east, and west. The major section of 706 wraps around from

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

in northwest Georgia, east through the mountains past Dahlonega, meeting its narrowest point at Toccoa, then broadening south to

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

and Augusta. It touches Alabama's

area code 256 Area codes 256 and 938 are telephone area codes in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for North Alabama, as well as some eastern portions of the state. The two area codes form an overlay plan for the same numbering plan area. Area code 256 ...

/ 938 and

334 __NOTOC__ Year 334 ( CCCXXXIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Optatus and Caesonius (or, less frequently, year 1087 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination ...

on the far west,

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

area code 423 Area code 423 is a telephone area code in the North American Numbering Plan for the U.S. state of Tennessee. It comprises two disconnected areas of East Tennessee (as well as portions of Van Buren County, Tennessee, Van Buren and Sequatchie Count ...

on the northwest,

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

area code 828 Area code 828 is a telephone area code in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for most of the western third of the U.S. state of North Carolina. The numbering plan area (NPA) comprises the Blue Ridge Mountains and most of the Foothills. T ...

and

Upstate South Carolina The Upstate, historically known as the Upcountry, is a region of the U.S. state of South Carolina, comprising the northwesternmost area of the state. Although loosely defined among locals, the general definition includes the 10 counties of the ...

's area code 864 to the north-northeast, and

midlands The Midlands is the central region of England, to the south of Northern England, to the north of southern England, to the east of Wales, and to the west of the North Sea. The Midlands comprises the ceremonial counties of Derbyshire, Herefor ...

area codes 803 and 839 Area codes 803 and 839 are telephone area codes in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for the central part of the U.S. state of South Carolina. The numbering plan area (NPA) is anchored by the city of Columbia, the state capital. It also in ...

to the east, and middle Georgia's 478 and metro Atlanta as above.

History

When the North American Numbering Plan was created in 1947, the entire state of Georgia was assigned area code 404. On July 1, 1954, the southern portion of the state, from Macon southward, was split off with

area code 912 Area code 912 is a telephone area code in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Georgia. The numbering plan area contains Savannah, Richmond Hill, Hinesville, Vidalia, Metter, Reidsville, H ...

. Area code 404 was limited to the northern half of the state, from the Tennessee and North Carolina state lines as far south as Columbus and Augusta. This configuration remained in place for 38 years. In 1992, almost all of the old 404 territory outside the Atlanta area was split off as area code 706. Originally, 706 consisted of a horseshoe-shaped region that completely wrapped around the inner ring of Atlanta. It also included a number of southern

exurb An exurb (or alternately: exurban area) is an area outside the typically denser inner suburbs, suburban area, at the edge of a metropolitan area, which has some economic and commuting connection to the metro area, low housing-density, and rela ...

s of Atlanta. However, the residents of these areas felt chagrin at no longer being associated with 404. Shortly after 706 commenced service,

BellSouth BellSouth, LLC (stylized as ''BELLSOUTH'' and formerly known as BellSouth Corporation) was an American telecommunications holding company based in Atlanta, Georgia. BellSouth was one of the seven original Regional Bell Operating Companies after ...

returned several of these areas to 404. The boundary was redrawn in such a way that isolated Columbus and the surrounding area from the rest of the 706 territory, making 706 one of the few area codes that is not contiguous. BellSouth and the

Georgia Public Service Commission The Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) is a statutory organ of the state government of Georgia; elected among five commission districts, the board consists of a Chairman, a Vice-chairman, and three Commissioners. PSC regulates telecommuni ...

knew that due to Atlanta's explosive growth, 404 was still on the brink of exhaustion even after the creation of 706. They had already planned to introduce 770 as the area code for Atlanta's suburban ring later in the 1990s. However, the return of the southern exurbs forced the GPSC to put 770 into service in 1995, a few years sooner than planned. In June 2005, the GPSC announced that 706 had nearly exhausted its capacity for new

telephone exchange A telephone exchange, telephone switch, or central office is a central component of a telecommunications system in the public switched telephone network (PSTN) or in large enterprises. It facilitates the establishment of communication circuits ...

prefix A prefix is an affix which is placed before the stem of a word. Particularly in the study of languages, a prefix is also called a preformative, because it alters the form of the word to which it is affixed. Prefixes, like other affixes, can b ...

es. On June 24, 2005, the

NANPA The North American Numbering Plan (NANP) is an integrated telephone numbering plan for twenty-five regions in twenty countries, primarily in North America and the Caribbean. This group is historically known as World Zone 1, World Numbering Zone ...

assigned area code 762 for this purpose. However, the Columbus area was not large enough for its own area code, but was too large to stay in 706. For this reason, it was decided to make 762 an overlay, with permissive dialing allowed on September 3. On April 1, 2007, ten-digit dialing became mandatory in the 706/762 territory. Despite the rapid growth in 706/762's main section (particularly the northern portion), it is nowhere near exhausting. Under current projections, it is expected to remain in its unusual, non-contiguous state until after 2049. Prior to 1990, area code 706 was used for dialing parts of the Baja California areas of

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

from the United States.

Service area

The 706/762 overlay serves the following counties:

Banks A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. As banks ...

Burke Burke (; ) is a Normans in Ireland, Norman-Irish surname, deriving from the ancient Anglo-Norman and Hiberno-Norman noble dynasty, the House of Burgh. In Ireland, the descendants of William de Burgh (''circa'' 1160–1206) had the surname'' de B ...

(part with

), Chattooga, Catoosa,

Chattahoochee The Chattahoochee River () is a river in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern United States. It forms the southern half of the Alabama and Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia border, as well as a portion of the Florida and Georgia border. It ...

Clarke Clarke is a surname which means "clerk". The surname is of English and Irish origin and comes from the Latin . Variants include Clerk and Clark. Clarke is also uncommonly chosen as a given name. Irish surname origin Clarke is a common surname ...

, Columbia, Dade, Dawson, Elbert, Fannin, Franklin, Floyd, Gilmer,

Glascock Glascock may refer to *Glascock (surname) *Glascock County, Georgia in the United States *Glascock Prize The Glascock Poetry Prize is awarded to the winner of the annual Kathryn Irene Glascock Intercollegiate Poetry Contest at Mount Holyoke College ...

Gordon Gordon may refer to: People * Gordon (given name), a masculine given name, including list of persons and fictional characters * Gordon (surname), the surname * Gordon (slave), escaped to a Union Army camp during the U.S. Civil War * Gordon Heuck ...

, Greene, Habersham, Hancock,

Harris Harris may refer to: Places Canada * Harris, Ontario * Northland Pyrite Mine (also known as Harris Mine) * Harris, Saskatchewan * Rural Municipality of Harris No. 316, Saskatchewan Scotland * Harris, Outer Hebrides (sometimes called the Isle ...

Hart Hart often refers to: * Hart (deer) * Hart (surname) Hart may also refer to: Organizations * Hart Racing Engines, a former Formula One engine manufacturer * Hart Skis, US ski manufacturer * Hart Stores, a Canadian chain of department store ...

, Heard,

Jackson Jackson may refer to: Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson South, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson oil field in Durham, ...

Jasper Jasper, an aggregate of microgranular quartz and/or cryptocrystalline chalcedony and other mineral phases, is an opaque, impure variety of silica, usually red, yellow, brown or green in color; and rarely blue. The common red color is due to ...

, Jefferson (part with

), Jenkins,

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the 16th president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln (na ...

, Lumpkin, Madison,

McDuffie McDuffie or MacDuffie is a surname of Scotland, Scottish and Ireland, Irish origin.Name Mean ...

, Meriwether,

Morgan Morgan may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Morgan – A Suitable Case for Treatment'', also called ''Morgan!'', a 1966 comedy film * ''Morgan'' (2012 film), an American drama * ''Morgan'' (2016 film), an American science fiction thriller * ...

, Murray,

Muscogee The Muscogee, also known as the Mvskoke, Muscogee Creek or just Creek, and the Muscogee Creek Confederacy ( in the Muscogee language; English: ), are a group of related Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands Here they waged war again ...

, Oconee, Oglethorpe, Putnam, Rabun,

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...

Stephens Stephens is a surname. It is a patronymic and is recorded in England from 1086. Notable people with the surname include: *Alexander H. Stephens (1812–1883), Vice President of the Confederate States *Alison Stephens (1970–2010), British mandoli ...

Talbot Talbot is a dormant automobile marque introduced in 1902 by British-French company Clément-Talbot. The founders, Charles Chetwynd-Talbot, 20th Earl of Shrewsbury and Adolphe Clément-Bayard, reduced their financial interests in their Clément ...

Taliaferro Taliaferro, also spelled Talliaferro, Tagliaferro, Talifero, Taliafero or Taliferro and sometimes anglicised to Tellifero, Tolliver ( ) or Toliver, is a prominent family in eastern Virginia and Maryland. The Taliaferros (originally , which means ...

Towns A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

, Troup, Union, Upson (part with

Walker Walker or The Walker may refer to: People *Walker (given name) *Walker (surname) *Walker (Brazilian footballer) (born 1982), Brazilian footballer Places In the United States *Walker, Arizona, in Yavapai County *Walker, Mono County, California * ...

Warren Warren most commonly refers to: * Warren (burrow), a network dug by rabbits * Warren (name), a given name and a surname, including lists of persons so named Warren may also refer to: Places Australia * Warren (biogeographic region) * War ...

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, Whitfield, and Wilkes

References

External links

List of exchanges from AreaCodeDownload.com, 706 Area Code

{{DEFAULTSORT:706 Area codes in the United States Area codes in Georgia (U.S. state)

History

Service area

See also

References

External links