Trivia on Area Codes

The tables below show the original area codes in 1947.
The blocks with asterisks were filled in by 1959.
The blocks with INT were filled in the interim years from 1960 until the breakup.
The ones labelled BRK were used after the breakup of Bell Telephone.

200	201	202	203	204	205	206	207	208	***
300	301	302	303	304	305	306	307	***	***
400	401	402	403	404	405	406	BRK	***	INT
500	501	502	503	504	505	***	***	BRK	***
600	601	602	603	604	605	***	***	***	***
700	701	702	703	704	***	BRK	***	BRK	INT
800	801	802	803	INT	***	***	INT	***	***
900	901	902	BRK	INT	BRK	INT	***	BRK	BRK

210	211	212	213	214	215	216	217	218	***
310	311	312	313	314	315	316	317	***	319
410	411	412	413	414	415	416	***	418	419
510	511	512	513	514	515	***	517	518	***
610	611	612	613	614	***	616	617	618	INT
710	711	712	713	***	715	716	717	BRK	BRK
810	811	812	***	814	815	816	***	BRK	***
910	911	***	913	914	915	916	BRK	***	***

The X10 area codes were not originally used, and all but one was initiated after the breakup of Bell Telephone in 1984. Obviously the X11 was reserved for codes (like 911 and 411). When Bell Telephone broke up there were only 12 unused area codes (but extending to X10 provided a few more for a few years).

TRIVIA QUESTIONS
1) The four simplest area codes to dial with a rotary phone were 212, 213, 312, and 313. Who got these area codes?
2) What was the significance of middle digit 0 or middle digit 1 when they were introduced?
3) What is different about the bolded area codes?
4) After Bell Telephone broke up two new area codes were issued that caused massive controversy (718 and 818). Why?
5) After the breakup of Bell the 12 remaining codes were used. The X10 provided another eight (710 was used for a now aborted plan for the federal government).
In 1992 area code 917 involved something new. What was it?

I love NANP stuff.

And duh, writing NANP triggered number 3 -

Quote: AcesAnd8s

I love NANP stuff.

Question #4 refers to something that they had not been required to do until then.

Question #5 was a good answer, but it could be more complete. It invented a new irritation. What was that?

I can take a WAG on 4

Probably horrible guesses.

Quote: tringlomane

Probably horrible guesses.

No to #3, but good guesses on the other ones.

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My county got an overlay area code, so I have to dial 10-11 digits for anyplace within town. The new area code has nothing at all to do with the above charts. With a smartphone, that can dial 10-11 digits for me the 2nd time.
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https://www.localsyr.com/news/local-news/whatever-happened-to-the-680-area-code-your-stories/
Jan 30, 2020 - SYRACUSE, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) — Thursday afternoon, a man named Tom called NewsChannel 9 with a simple question: “What happened to the 680 area code?”

If you recall, that area code was assigned as a second area code for Central New York. Nearly three years ago, state officials asked for the second area code after predictions that 315 would run out.

According to North American Numbering Plan Administrator, the area code 315 has no unused central office codes left.

Central office codes, also known as exchanges, are the fourth, fifth and sixth digits of a ten-digit telephone number.

By comparison, area code 680 has more than 700 unused codes available, the equivalent of more than seven-million phone numbers, according to NANPA.

There’s no one entity that keeps track of how many numbers there are. Numbers are assigned by the thousands to phone providers.

As far as 718 goes, it was the first time NYC was split up and companies that were in the other Boros didn't want to lose the prestigious 212 area code. It also meant that companies in the new 718 had to change their advertising, their business cards, repaint trucks and vans, etc, etc.