Area code 901

Area code 901 serves Memphis, Tennessee, and most of its inner-ring suburbs. Geographically speaking, it is the smallest area code in the state.

History

Original assignment
Area code 901 as of 1947-1954.

901 was one of the original area codes created under the North American Numbering Plan in 1947, and covered the entire state of Tennessee.

Splits and overlays

1954 split

In a flash-cut split sometime during 1954, area code 901 was restricted to West Tennessee, while the eastern two-thirds of Tennessee—essentially, the part of the state east of the Tennessee River—became area code 615.

2001 split
Area code 901 (dark blue) as of post 2001.

Despite the presence of Memphis, the state's largest city at the time, West Tennessee is not as densely populated as the state's other two Grand Divisions. As a result, 901 remained the sole area code for West Tennessee for 47 years. However, by the turn of the millennium, 901 was close to exhaustion due to the Memphis area's rapid growth, as well as the proliferation of cell phones and pagers. Additionally, the Memphis LATA extends some distance into northern Mississippi, meaning several numbers on the Mississippi side of the Memphis area (part of area code 601 before 1999 and area code 662 since 1999) weren't available for use. On September 17, 2001, area code 731 was assigned to most of West Tennessee outside the immediate Memphis area. Currently, area code 901 serves Fayette, Shelby and Tipton counties, an area largely coextensive with the inner ring of the Memphis area.

Despite the Memphis area's rapid growth and the continued proliferation of cell phones, 901 is nowhere near exhaustion. It is currently one of the few urban area codes that has not been overlaid, making Memphis one of the largest cities where seven-digit dialing is still possible. Under current projections, it will likely stay that way until 2047 at the earliest.[1]

Major cities in area code 901

Fayette County

Shelby County

Tipton County
gollark: ∞≠0therefore ∞=1.
gollark: Does that have an underline for you?
gollark: __∞__
gollark: ***∞*∞**∞*∞*
gollark: ***6‰***

See also
  • List of NANP area codes

References
  1. https://www.nationalnanpa.com/pdf/NRUF/2019-2-NPA-Exhaust-Projections-Final.pdf
Tennessee area codes: 423, 615/629, 731, 865, 901, 931
North: 731
West: 870 area code 901 East: 731
South: 931
Mississippi area codes: 228, 601/769, 662
Arkansas area codes: 479, 501, 870

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.