The Hotel Pennsylvania

[mostakimvip04]

Its history dates back to the early 1930s when seven-digit dialing replaced earlier five-digit and two-letter formats. At that time, telephone exchanges were often named after geographical areas, and callers would "dial" the first two letters of the exchange name followed by five digits. "PEnnsylvania 6" corresponded to the numerical equivalent of 736 on the phone dial, making the number 212-736-5000 in today's format (with 212 being the area code for Manhattan).

designed by prominent architects McKim, Mead & White, opened in 1919 and was once one of the largest hotels in the world. Its telephone number gained widespread guatemala phone number list fame, notably being immortalized in a popular song of the same name by Glenn Miller and his Orchestra. This cultural reference further cemented its place in history. For many years, calling the number would even play a brief recording of the song before connecting to an operator.


While the Hotel Pennsylvania itself closed its doors on April 1, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and was subsequently demolished in 2023 to make way for a new office tower, the developer has stated intentions to retain the iconic phone number. This commitment aims to preserve a piece of New York City's telecommunications history.

The evolution of telephone numbers in America began in 1879 in Lowell, Massachusetts, where numbers first replaced the need for callers to ask operators for subscribers by name. The North American Numbering Plan (NANP), which governs telephone numbering in the United States, Canada, and several Caribbean nations, has undergone various modifications over the years to accommodate network growth, including the introduction of area codes in the 1940s and 1950s.


The continued existence and recognition of "Pennsylvania 6-5000" as a continually assigned number highlight its unique legacy in the annals of global communication. Despite the physical demise of the hotel it served, the number itself remains a testament to the enduring nature of early telephone infrastructure and its cultural impact.