Editing Area codes 201 and 551

{{Short description|Area codes in New Jersey, United States}}
[[File:USA telephone area code map - New Jersey.svg|thumb|Numbering plan areas and area codes of New Jersey]]

[[Image:Area code 201.png|thumb|right|300px|Map of numbering plan area 201/551]]
'''Area codes 201 and 551''' are telephone [[area code]]s in the [[North American Numbering Plan]] (NANP) in the [[U.S. State]] of [[New Jersey]].  Area code 201 was the area code assigned to the entire state of New Jersey in 1947, when the North American area code system was formed. After splits in 1956, 1991, and 1997, it is assigned to the northeastern portion of the state, including most of [[Hudson County, New Jersey|Hudson]] and [[Bergen County, New Jersey|Bergen]] counties, bordering [[New York City]]. Major cities in the numbering plan area include [[Bayonne, New Jersey|Bayonne]], [[Jersey City, New Jersey|Jersey City]], [[Hoboken, New Jersey|Hoboken]], [[Hackensack, New Jersey|Hackensack]], [[Secaucus, New Jersey|Secaucus]] and [[Englewood, New Jersey|Englewood]]. Area code 551 was added to this numbering plan area in 2001 in formation of an [[overlay plan|overlay]]. Area code 201 is also assigned for wireless services in some rate centers in the [[area code 973|973]] and [[area code 908|908]] numbering plan areas, such as [[Newark, New Jersey|Newark]], [[Morristown, New Jersey|Morristown]], and [[New Brunswick, New Jersey|New Brunswick]].

==History==
Area code 201 was the first numbering plan area (NPA) code of the [[original North American area codes|original 86 area codes]] when the [[American Telephone and Telegraph Company]] (AT&T) devised the nationwide numbering plan in 1947. It was also the first area code with [[Direct Distance Dialing]] (DDD) service, when in 1951 the first direct-dialed long-distance call was made from [[Englewood, New Jersey]] to [[Alameda, California]].<ref name="History" />

[[File:New Jersey NPAs July-1963 New Jersey Bell Morris County directory cover.png|thumb|Division of New Jersey into two numbering plan areas in 1956. However, it was not until July 1963, when New Jersey customers were required to dial the area code when calling to a location in the state, but outside of their own numbering plan area.]]
Area code 201 was originally assigned to the entire state of New Jersey,<ref>{{cite web
|url=http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/VA-news/VA-Pilot/issues/1995/vp951101/11010459.htm
|title=Now you can call
|publisher=[[The Virginian-Pilot]]|date=1995-11-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080316221411/http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/VA-news/VA-Pilot/issues/1995/vp951101/11010459.htm|archive-date=2008-03-16|access-date=2023-02-28|quote=When the first area code, 201, was introduced in New Jersey in 1951, phone-numbering experts thought there would be enough codes with a middle digit of '0' or '1' to last well into the next century}}</ref><ref name="History">{{cite web
|url=http://www.corp.att.com/attlabs/reputation/timeline/51trans.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070107101205/http://www.corp.att.com/attlabs/reputation/timeline/51trans.html|archive-date=2007-01-07
|title=1951: First Direct-Dial Transcontinental Telephone Call|publisher=AT&T|access-date=2007-05-12}}</ref> despite the state's dense population, the highest in the nation. The bulk of New Jersey's population is concentrated in the large metropolitan area west of [[New York City]] in the northeast and the suburbs of [[Philadelphia]] in the southwest. The geographic coverage of numbering plan areas was based on several criteria. A numbering plan area could only have a maximum of 540 central offices;<ref>AT&T (1955), ''Notes on Nationwide Dialing''</ref> larger states needed to be divided. In addition, the call routing infrastructure had to be suitable to be centrally coordinated by only one toll center without expensive back-haul arrangements. For the latter reason, by 1956, 201 was reduced to northern New Jersey,<ref>{{cite book
|title=Notes on Distance Dialing
|author=Department of Operation and Engineering
|publisher=American Telephone and Telegraph Company
|date=September 1956
|section=Section II
}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web
|url=https://archive.org/details/brooklynnewyorkc1957newy/page/n1/mode/2up?q=area+code+201&view=theater
|title=Brooklyn Telephone Directory 1957
|publisher=New York Telephone Company
|date=1956-10-01
|access-date=2023-02-15}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal
|title=New Numbers for Tomorrow's Telephones
|last=Sinks
|first=William A.
|journal=Bell Telephone Monthly
|volume=38
|issue=4
|page=6
|date=Winter 1959
}}</ref> while the area from the state capital, [[Trenton, New Jersey|Trenton]], southward, including the southern [[Jersey Shore]] and the New Jersey side of the lower Delaware Valley, received [[area code 609]]. This separated the two population centers into distinct call routing systems for out-of-state long-distance calls. Despite the division with two area codes, all calls within the state of New Jersey were dialed without area codes until July 21, 1963,<ref>{{Cite news
|title=Area Code Stickers To Go On 'Phones
|date=1961-07-06
|publisher=The Hackettstown Gazette
|page=3
|location=Hackettstown, NJ
}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book
|title=Nationwide Direct Distance Dialing
|date=1961-03-26
|publisher=New Jersey Bell
|type=company guide
|page=2
}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=New Jersey Bell customers will begin using area codes|publisher=[[Red Bank Register]]|date=1963-06-20}}</ref> when office code protection was ended.

For over thirty years, area code 201 served Bergen, Hudson, [[Ocean County, New Jersey|Ocean]], [[Essex County, New Jersey|Essex]], [[Union County, New Jersey|Union]], [[Morris County, New Jersey|Morris]], [[Passaic County, New Jersey|Passaic]], [[Hunterdon County, New Jersey|Hunterdon]], [[Somerset County, New Jersey|Somerset]], [[Middlesex County, New Jersey|Middlesex]], [[Monmouth County, New Jersey|Monmouth]], [[Sussex County, New Jersey|Sussex]] and [[Warren County, New Jersey|Warren]] counties.

As the [[Central Jersey|central region of New Jersey]] grew during the 1980s, the northeastern section of the state lost sizable portions of its population due to the decline of its major cities, including [[Newark, New Jersey|Newark]], [[Paterson, New Jersey|Paterson]], [[Clifton, New Jersey|Clifton]], and [[Elizabeth, New Jersey|Elizabeth]]. On June 8, 1991, [[area code 908]] was created by a split of numbering plan area 201; it primarily serves the north-central regions of the state.<ref name="Verizon2">{{Cite web|url=http://www.verizonnj.com/about/community/nj/about/history/1985_1998.asp
|title=About Verizon New Jersey: Years 1985 to 1998|date=2007-11-13|access-date=2023-02-28
|publisher=[[Verizon Communications]]|archive-date=2007-11-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071113172317/http://www.verizonnj.com/about/community/nj/about/history/1985_1998.asp}}</ref>

Within four years, 201 was close to exhaustion once again due to the proliferation of [[cell phone]]s, [[pager]]s and [[fax machine]]s. On June 1, 1997, Essex and Passaic counties, home to Newark and Paterson, respectively, the state's largest and third-largest cities, as well as Morris and Sussex counties were split off with [[area code 973]].<ref name="Verizon2" /><ref>Newman, Andy. [https://www.nytimes.com/1997/06/02/nyregion/new-area-codes-introduced.html?sq=area+code+732&scp=3&st=nyt "New Area Codes Introduced"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', June 2, 1997. Accessed January 23, 2008.</ref> This left Hudson and Bergen counties, the two most densely populated counties in the state and the closest to New York City, as the only counties in the 201 plan area.

Although the 1997 split was intended as a long-term solution, demand for new numbers continued in Hudson and Bergen counties, and another area code became necessary. [[Verizon]], the dominant telephone company in New Jersey, lobbied for an [[overlay plan|overlay]] rather than a split. Overlays were a new concept at the time, and were controversial because they required implementation of [[ten-digit dialing]]. However, Verizon wanted to spare its customers the burden of changing telephone numbers.

Area code 551 was created in 2001 to overlay 201, along with area codes [[Area code 862|862]] and [[Area code 848|848]], which overlay area codes [[Area code 973|973]] and [[Area code 732|732]], respectively.<ref>McKay, Martha. [http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-8382118_ITM "New Jersey Assigned New Area Codes."], ''[[The Record (Bergen County)]]'', April 18, 2001. Accessed August 11, 2001. "The new New Jersey area codes – 551, 356, and 848 – were announced this week and will be introduced next year in the regions currently served by 201, 973, and 732, respectively."</ref>  With the implementation of the overlays on December 1, 2001, [[ten-digit dialing]] became mandatory in Northern New Jersey.

==See also==
{{Portal|New Jersey}}
*[[List of New Jersey area codes]]
*[[List of North American Numbering Plan area codes]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Area code footer|Map=NJ}}
{{Area code box|State=NJ
| This=201/551
| N=[[area codes 845 and 329|845/329]]
| S=[[area codes 973 and 862|973/862]], [[area codes 718, 347, and 929|718/347/929]], [[area code 917|917]]
| E=[[area codes 212, 646, and 332|212/646/332]], [[area codes 718, 347, and 929|718/347/929]], [[area code 914|914]], [[area code 917|917]]
| W=[[area codes 973 and 862|973/862]]
| S1=NY}}

{{Coord|40.8678|-74.4379|display=title}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Area Codes 201 And 551}}
[[Category:Area codes in the United States|201]]
[[Category:Area codes in New Jersey|201]]
[[Category:Bergen County, New Jersey|201]]
[[Category:Hudson County, New Jersey|201]]
[[Category:Essex County, New Jersey|201]]
[[Category:Passaic County, New Jersey|201]]
[[Category:Telecommunications-related introductions in 2001]]
[[Category:Telecommunications-related introductions in 1947]]