What options were available to a person that is deaf or hard of hearing before the invention of the TDD?

The deaf people I knew had someone else make their phone calls for them, in effect “translating” the call as it happened. They also liked to conduct a lot of business in person, like paying their department store or utility bills at the store or company, so they could ask questions by writing notes and lip-reading replies.

Assume you mean communication options?

NOT MANY!!! Even the old fashioned TTY’s were horribly HUGE.