
A Piece of Utica History is Now Just Another Thing of the Past
There once was a time that when people in the Mohawk Valley needed to know the exact time and temperature, and a quick forecast, they picked up the phone and called the Savings Bank of Utica Time and Temp (which later became affiliated with M&T Bank). The number was easy to remember: 315-797-6111. The familiar voice would bark out a bank promotional message and would then say, "Savings Bank of Utica Time is _____. Current Temperature is ____ degrees." Now, we've reached the end of an era and the "Time and Temp" number has been disconnected.
Last year, we called the number while on the radio airwaves and for some reason the time was like 75 minutes behind. Clearly we knew the novelty of calling "time and temp" was coming to an end.
At some point in the 80s and 90s, the number became the go-to number for young women being bothered by a guy in a bar asking for her phone number. Instead of giving out their real number, they would give the annoying guy the "time and temp" number. At the very least, that would buy the annoyed woman some time and it would certainly keep the annoying man somewhat informed, at least of the time and temp.
In the 1990s, I left Utica and worked at a radio station in Providence, RI. They had the same practice we had here. Before you give the weather forecast on-air, call "Time and Temp" and get the current temperature, or at the very least, the temperature the automation system was reporting. What was interesting about the connection was the "Time and Temp" number in Providence featured the same male voice we had in Utica. It was clearly a promotional service usually used by banks, but any business could sign up for the market exclusive service.
The number we would call in Providence was 401-272-1212. Believe it or not, that number is still in service, still accurate, and it's sponsored by an internet provider, although the format is much different. The time and temp service used by businesses was a company called WeatherFone and they almost exclusively provided the service for banks. Surprisingly, we found the company is still in business today. Their website address is cleverly listed as www.TimeandTemperature.com.
As for Utica, today when you call 797-6111 you get the old fashioned female operator message, "We're sorry, your call can not be completed as dialed. Please check the number and dial again." I wonder how long before that operator error message becomes a thing of the past. I'll bet its end is right around the corner.
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