Friday Feature: 1954 How to Dial Your Phone

by | Jan 16, 2026 | Ag History, Feature Video, General Agriculture

This week’s featured video is not specifically related to agriculture, but it does show how far technology has come in the last 75 years.  In 1954, Southern Bell created a movie short to provide instructions for people on how to dial a call directly using a rotary phone.  This is somewhat humorous today, but until the technology was developed and the infrastructure created, the only way to make a call was through a live operator.   How convenient this must have felt to call your friends and family directly using a rotary phone.  Many of us today that rely on smart phones don’t even dial a number for most calls, we just go to the contacts we have loaded and call people by name.  Or, you can even use artificial intelligence (A.I.) in your phone connected to your truck or car and never even hold the phone.  This video depicts a major technological breakthrough in communication, so I hope you enjoy a brief glimpse of significant point in history in 1954 when this short film was shared to teach consumers how to use their new rotary dial phones.

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If you enjoyed this video, you might want to check the other 350+ YouTube videos highlighted in the Friday Feature Archive

If you come across an interesting, inspiring, humorous or innovative video related to agriculture, please send in a link, so we can share it with our readers.  Use the share button from the YouTube or Facebook video you like and send the link via email to:  Doug Mayo

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