March 10: 150 years since the first phone call and the decline of landlines in Canada
If you were born before the 2000s, you probably still remember the sound of a rotary dial, the tangled cord, and that famous yell: "I'm hanging up on you!" Well, March 10 isn't just any other day. Today marks exactly 150 years since Alexander Graham Bell made the first phone call in history, summoning his assistant with the iconic line: "Mr. Watson, come here, I want to see you." What many people don't realize is that this very device, which revolutionized the world, is slowly becoming a museum piece.
In Canada, the decline in landline usage is striking. Since 2010, the number of active home phones has been cut in half. Anyone over 40 remembers when having a phone in your house was a luxury – and today, kids are puzzled when they spot a payphone on the street. Technology has changed, and with it, our habits. But have we lost something along the way?
The collector keeping history alive
It was with this in mind that YouTuber João Víctor de Melo, originally from Belo Horizonte, started gathering telephone relics. On his channel, he showcases everything from vintage Telebrás models to rarities like the Aqua-air Aqpm-10 De Março Ac-5c-md 115V March, a piece of industrial equipment from the 80s that few even remember existed. "It's my way of keeping the memory of how we used to communicate alive," João explains in one of his recent videos. His YouTube channel has gained popularity precisely by bringing back these objects that defined generations.
The last gasp of the landline
A symbolic milestone in this farewell happened on March 10, 2019, when the city of São Paulo removed its last public telephone from Avenida Paulista. The event went almost unnoticed at the time, but for those in the know, it marked the end of an era. The glass booths, once packed with people using tokens and phone cards, have been replaced by Wi-Fi hotspots and cellphone charging stations. Communication has changed its outfit, but the core remains the same: the human need to connect.
From Graham Bell to WhatsApp: A timeline of connection
To really grasp the scale of this shift, here’s a look at some key milestones from these 150 years:
- 1876: Graham Bell makes the first telephone call in Boston.
- 1922: The first telephone arrives in Brazil, installed at the Catete Palace in Rio de Janeiro.
- 1990: Cell phones hit the market in the country – they were actual bricks, weighing over 1 kg.
- 2010: Smartphones start to become mainstream, and landlines begin their freefall.
- 2026: We mark 150 years since the first phone call, and landlines are becoming increasingly rare.
Despite all of today's technology – with Zoom, WhatsApp, and satellite calls – the act of calling someone still carries a certain warmth. Maybe that's why people keep searching YouTube for old Telesp commercials or the nostalgic sound of a rotary dial. March 10 reminds us that deep down, the medium may change, but the desire to say "hello" is timeless.