On this day in 1876, Alexander Graham Bell received a patent for the telephone. The rotary phone or dial telephone streamlined phone calls and reduced the need for operator assistance. The dial system, introduced by the Bell System, used a rotating dial to send electric signals corresponding to the numbers dialed, so you can reach the person you are trying to call directly instead of being routed to an operator line. Along with your phone, you are also given a telephone directory, or phone book,