The objects in this case belonged to David Smith who worked as an electrical engineer in the Bell System at the Whippany, Basking Ridge, and Holmdel locations from 1970 until 1983.

Collection of Marna Golub-Smith.

The back says:

General Services

Word Processing Center

Telephone Dictation Instructions

1. Identify Yourself by Name, Department and Location.

2. Specify Type of Letter of Memorandum and the Number of Copies Desired.

3. Pronounce Words Clearly, Spelling Out Proper Names and Unusual Words.

4. Dictate Punctuation, Paragraphs, Beginning and End of Parenthesis and Quotations, etc.

5. Specify Complimentary Closing, Signature and Title.

Collection of Marna Golub-Smith.

This corporate puzzle was given to the Bell System employees as a way to demonstrate how well the Bell System worked together.

Collection of Marna Golub-Smith.

Wall Street Journal

The various Baby Bells continued to split and combine after the divestiture. This infographic gives an idea of the complexity of the telecommunications industry after the divestiture. This chart was created ahead of the merger of AT&T and TimeWarner. In October 2021 it was revealed that AT&T had a role in creating and funding One America News (OAN), a network known for far-right conspiracy theories. Court records revealed that 90% of OAN’s revenue comes from DirecTV (purchased by AT&T in 2015) and other AT&T-owned platforms. AT&T denies funding or owning any part of OAN.