By Stephen D. Bowling

As a child, the voice of John Doyle regulated my world.

The standing rule at our house was that we could not go out to play in the snow unless the temperature was 32 degrees.  Young eyes across Breathitt County looked out the windows at undisturbed layers of snow.  Only repeated calls to the magic number could release us from the in-house confinement to our much-anticipated snow time.  So, we called and called until Doyle said the magic numbers: 32 degrees.

But every other kid in Breathitt County was dialing too, and we often only got a busy signal.

Yet, we called 666-4212 over and over again.

It was the magic number in Jackson, first installed in September 1962 as a free community service by the Board of Directors of the First National Bank.  Concerned about competition from the newly established Citizens Bank & Trust Company, the FNB implemented the call line and added several other enhancements to its customer service.

The new service was live on Monday, September 10, 1962, and a special advertisement in The Jackson Times announced the new number.  Those seeking the “correct time” to set their mantle or pocket watches by could dial 2401 and listen to the automated time twenty-four hours a day.  By 1964, the phone system required the addition of the 666 to the number as it expanded and upgraded for long-distance calls without operator assistance.

In its 53rd year of service to the area, the bank signed a contract with Audichron Company of Atlanta, Georgia, to provide the service to the people of Jackson. 

John Leonard Franklin invented the time management system using two 78 rpm records in 1931.  The records contained a short “commercial message” and the accurate time.  The popular service offered by businesses nationwide soon evolved with technology.  A “solid state” version, also known as the “digital system,” was developed, and services were improved.

The Audichron Company installed a “digital system” in Jackson in 1962, and it experienced numerous upgrades through the years.

After less than a month of service, the First National Bank line added the current temperature to the information offered to those who dialed the magic number.

The installation of the call system at Jackson in 1962 was a huge success, providing the advertising boost the bank’s board had sought.  Bank President J. Phil Smith announced in January 1963, just four months after the line went live, that the Southern Bell Telephone Company had reported 25,457 calls to the line in November alone.  The phone company informed Smith that the December numbers would “far exceed those of November.”

Smith said that he and the bank were happy and wanted to “express gratification over the public acceptance and use of the modern device.”

For those in Jackson, the large sign outside the bank on Main Street also offered a peek at the temperature.  In the 1950s, the bank installed a tall, golden sign in front of its Main Street office, which displayed the time and temperature in Fahrenheit for shoppers and travelers.  The sign was later modified in the 1970s to include the Celsius scale as the nation considered converting to the Metric System.    

On March 7, 1977, First National Bank opened a new branch on Highway 15 near the Old Country Inn.  The new location, known as the Parkway Branch, was opened to provide greater convenience to customers who did not want to come into town and “fight the traffic for a parking location.” The new location also included a time and temperature sign. 

The branch relocated in 1985 to a new building near the current site of the Jackson Post Office and opened on December 30.  The tradition of displaying the time and temperature on a digital sign was continued at that site.

The sign on Main Street underwent numerous redesigns and eventually remained a simple black-and-white metal sign.

For nearly twenty years, John Doyle was the voice of the system and was the most recognized voice in the world.  It is estimated that his voice was heard by the equivalent of every person on earth nearly twenty times over by 1983, when one estimate noted that roughly ten million people listened to his voice daily.

In 1983, First National Bank added a new feature to the popular local phone number.  The new service added the current weather forecast to the time and temperature as presented by the voice on the line.

“Having first brought our community the Time and Temperature Service in 1962, we have witnessed the continuing popularity of a quick call to get the current time and temperature with calls averaging over 125,000 per month,” FNB President J. Phil Smith said.  He noted to The Jackson Times that because of the “tremendous success” of the line, the bank’s board was “pleased to offer the addition of the weather forecast to our community, all in one simple phone call.”

The new system relied on information from the National Weather Service at the Julian Carroll Airport by a staff meteorologist from the Audichron Company in Atlanta.  The automated system also had a feature to provide frequent updates during times of severe weather.

Callers in Jackson noticed one major change.  John Doyle’s soft and soothing voice was replaced by Jane Barbe, who was one of three voices that replaced Doyle with the new service.  Barbe trained under Doyle, and her voice had been shared on other lines for more than 17 years.  Known for her singing and acting, including several appearances on television shows, Barbe was the new voice of the time, temperature, and now the weather in Jackson.

“Giving the time, weather, and temperature is just one more way of showing we are proud to be of service to our friends in the Jackson area,” J. Phil Smith said of the new feature.

Over the years, the line was flooded with calls from students hoping to hear encouraging news about snow and ice that might lead to the cancellation of school.

By 1987, more than 3,000 calls to 666-4212 were received daily. At its peak, the bank reported an average of 4,700 calls a day, which would spike to above 10,000 when it snowed. Collers frequently heard only the busy signal.

For the next thirty-two years, the service continued, and the calls continued to come.  The voice on the other end of the call dispensed accurate time, temperature, and weather forecasts to millions of listeners during its fifty-seven-year run.

The exact date the service was discontinued is not known.

On August 14, 2019, the First National Holding Company of Jackson, the parent company of the First National Bank, announced the sale and merger of the bank with the Citizens Deposit Bank and Trust, Inc. of Vanceburg, Kentucky.  The new company assumed operations, and not long after, the line just went dead.

A long-running Jackson tradition has come to an end, and generations will no longer experience the excitement of dialing a number to check the time, weather, and especially the temperature.  Now we look at our cell phones and digital watches, but something is missing without the voice of John Doyle or Jane Barbe.  

A call to the number today is answered with an apology and a message stating that the number has been disconnected.  

It is, however, comforting that Jayne Barbe is the voice that tells you that the service is no longer available.  At least she is still with us- for now.

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© 2025 Stephen D. Bowling