In 1920, Pacific Telephone and Telegraph (PT&T) installed a local radio-telephone system to connect the island with the mainland.  Fifty-two persons were part of the initial subscribers to this service. Within a few years it was realized the radio didn't offer much privacy so PT&T installed two 23-mile long submarine cables to the island in 1923. A new central office was built in Avalon and the cables were terminated at the San Pedro central office. At the time, the cables were the first to be built in the United States and first to be voice-only. At the central office, a manual switchboard was installed to serve the island residences.

Over the next fifty years, various technologies of microwave radio were installed to supplement the two submarine cables.

Manual switchboard service remained until 1978, when Pacific Telephone converted the manual service to a 1.6 million dollar remote electronic switch hosted from San Pedro. This was the last central office in the entire Pacific Telephone territory and entire Bell Telephone system that was still "manual" when it was converted.

Remote switch now hosted by Torrance office.

This is the office that routes the calls made by the "Fresh Prince"!

Bel Air was constructed in 1955, to relieve General Telephone's "West Los Angeles" office.

Note bank of payphone along wall near entrance door.

Original office installed to serve the sparse Beverly Hills region during the 1910s.  Office converted to dial in the late 1920s when part of the Southern California Telephone Company. New building built in the 1970s.

The Beverly Hills office also provides foreign exchange service for the 323 area code.

Old Exchanges: BRighton 0, CRestview 1, CRestview 3, CRestview 4, CRestview 5, CRestview 6 and TRemont 8

Replaced the original El Segundo office in 1999. Original office had the Centrex service for the Hughes & Aerospace Complex and also served as the Centrex for the Los Angeles AFB.

Original office built in the 1920s by Southern California Telephone Company. The building on left side of picture added by Pacific Telephone & Telegraph in the mid 1950s to relieve the Los Angeles 13 "Plymouth" office. Became Pacific Bell, SBC and now AT&T.

The Gardena office also provides foreign exchange service for the 323 area code.

The Hawthorne office was built in 1950 by Pacific Telephone & Telegraph to relieve the Inglewood office. Also provided Los Angeles foreign exchange service in the 1960s.  Became Pacific Bell-SBC-AT&T.

The Hawthorne office also provides foreign exchange service for the 323 area code.

Old Exchanges: OSborne 5, OSborne 6, OSborne 9 and SPring 2

Original Southern California Telephone office built in the 1920s.  Became dial in 1939. Remodeled and expanded in the 1980s (Note Pacific Bell "orange" accents).

The Inglewood office also provides foreign exchange service for the 323 area code.

Constructed in the late 1940s by Pacific Telephone Company to relieve the Torrance office. Became Pacific Bell, SBC and now AT&T.

Los Angeles 07 or the "Airport" office was built in the late 1950s to relieve the Inglewood office from the telephone growth in the Westchester area and in 1960, to replace the "LAX" office and take over service of the LAX Centrex system. The office was once a Serving Test Center for many of the FAA circuits feeding the airport.

This was one of the few local offices that had microwave transmission TN (11 gHz) which connected it to the Madison Complex in Downtown Los Angeles (Via Baldwin Hills) and the Gardena Tandem office. An interesting story about the microwave route to the Madison Complex has to do with the building of the ARCO Towers downtown in the 1970s. On its original location, the south tower would have just blocked the path from Madison to Airport. Negotiations between Pacific Telephone and the developer got the building moved ten feet, so the shot wouldn't be blocked.  Many more such negotiations took place as high-rise development continued downtown, until finally, there was no alternatives left.  During the 1980s, microwave traffic from the Airport office was rerouted through Topanga Ridge. (See Southern California Microwave Sites) Microwave service was retired in the early 1990s. Today the office handles the FAA circuits from LAX Airport and the high telephone traffic of the airport commercial/hotel area.

The "Airport" office also provides foreign exchange service for the 323 area code.

Old Exchanges: MIssion 5, 6 and ORchard 0

San Pedro was built by Southern California Telephone Company in the 1920s to provide service to the Los Angeles Harbor region.  The office went dial in 1945, and subsequently became the host office for the remote switch at Avalon on Santa Catalina Island about 25 miles off the coast. Avalon was connected by both radio and coax cable and eventually microwave service hence tower on building. 

Built by Southern California Telephone Company in the 1930s and became dial in 1950. Wall at entrance facade shows inlaid "classic" bell system logos. Became Pacific Telephone & Telegraph office, Pacific Bell, SBC and now AT&T.

The Torrance office is host to the Avalon remote switch on Catalina Island.

Placed into service in 1967 to relieve Beverly Hills office and serve the new "Century City" commercial development.  This was the first central office in Pacific Telephone territory to utilize the new Electronic Switching System (ESS) equipment.  Became Pacific Bell, SBC and now AT&T.

The "Century City" office also provides foreign exchange service for the 323 area code.

The Westwood office was built in the late 1950s to relieve General Telephone's West Los Angeles XF Main office.  This office handled UCLA telephone traffic until replaced by the "University" office. Became GTE and now Verizon California.

Bundy was constructed in the mid 1970s to relieve both the West Los Angeles XF Main and Santa Monica offices

Built in the early 1940s by Pacific Telephone & Telegraph to relieve San Pedro and provide service to the northern Los Angeles harbor area and Wilmington. Became dial in 1945 and relieved the Compton office in the late 1950s in providing service to the Carson area. Became Pacific Bell, SBC and now AT&T.

The Wilmington office also provides foreign exchange service for the 323 area code.