Area code 314

The area code 314 serves the independent city of St. Louis, Missouri, and most suburbs in neighboring St. Louis County.

314 is surrounded by area code 636 within Missouri. Across the Mississippi River in Illinois, 314 is bordered by area code 618.

History

Area code 314 was one of the original area codes created in October 1947. It originally covered most of the eastern half of Missouri, from the Illinois border to Jefferson City. It stretched along nearly the entire width of the state along the Mississippi River. It was split on January 7, 1996, when most of the western and southern portion was assigned to area code 573, leaving 314 to cover most of the immediate St. Louis metropolitan area.

The creation of 573 was intended to be a long-term solution. Within only two years, however, 314 was close to exhaustion once again due to the proliferation of cell phones, fax machines and pagers. The supply of numbers was further limited because the St. Louis LATA extends across much of the southern portion of Illinois, meaning several numbers that were part of Illinois' 618 weren't available for use. As a result, 314 was reduced to its current size on May 22, 1999, when area code 636 was assigned to St. Louis' outer western suburbs. Before the introduction of number portability, 314 was used for all cell phones on the Missouri side of the St. Louis area.

In 2000, the Missouri Public Service Commission announced plans to add area code 557 as an overlay of the 314 area code, but soon postponed indefinitely the May 5, 2002, implementation date when the commission found no immediate need for more phone numbers. It may be reinstated when the time comes.

See also

• List of NANP area codes
• North American Numbering Plan

External links

• NANPA Area Code Map of Missouri
• List of exchanges from AreaCodeDownload.com, 314 Area Code

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Coordinates: 38°37′N 90°13′W / 38.62°N 90.22°W / 38.62; -90.22