Mt. Horeb Telephone Company
In 1895 J.N. Dahlen, editor of the "Mt. Horeb Times," installed one telephone in the newspaper office. It was connected to a second phone in the Academy, five blocks away, by a wire strung on house tops and fence posts. Frank E. Bell of Baraboo promoted the first local telephone exchange in 1902, when he was granted a franchise by the village. In only one year, the original switchboard was found to be too small and was replaced. In January, 1903, the first public phone booth was east of Hoff's store. In 1903, Bell sold his interest to five prominent business and professional men of Mt. Horeb; Dr. N.C. Evens, George Britton, T.G. Lingard, H.L. Dahle, and J.N. Dahlen. The company has been owned and operated ever since by people with local connections, except for three years, 1917-1920, when the exchange was operated by the Commonwealth Telephone Company. The present organization was formed by selling stock to the public. Banford Dahlen, son of the founder, J.N. Dahlen, served as a lineman, general manager, and director over a span of 60 years. He retired in 1962 and was succeeded as general manager by L.M.(" Steve")Holum. An office on the second floor of the "Mt. Horeb Times" building on North Second Street served as the home of the new exchange until 1930, when a special telephone company building was erected across the street. An addition to house the new Strombert-Carlson dial equipment was built in 1958-1959, and all village telephones were converted to dial operation on August 23, 1959, with complete rural conversion by May 5, 1960. The company was able to buy adjacent property with frontage on Main Street for two major building programs. The corner building, which now houses the digital switchboard and is a work area for plant employees, was financed by a loan from an insurance company and erected in 1974. Construction of the newest building, which contains offices, a conference room, sales area, and storage space, was begun in 1980 and completed in March, 1981. In 1982, REA financing was acquired o retire outstanding debts assumed during previous improvements and to pay for recent rebuilding of the out side plant and for the digital switchboard. The REA requirement that all lines should be one-party lines was met in 1983. Expansion of territory and upgrading of the plant for the improvement of service has always been the active policy of the directors and managers of the company. Switchboards inadequate for the growing volume of service were replaced in 1903, 1917, 1930, 1959 and 1984. Mt. Horeb Telephone Company is a one exchange company within an area 100.7 square miles. It provides extended area service to Madison and several neighboring exchanges. The company's corner lot had belonged to the G.S. Gonsteads, who permitted it to be used for ice cream socials and band concerts. The loss of this centrally located village green was a disappointment to many. The most efficient and economical telephone system in the world had developed in America. Telephone companies were regulated by federal and state commissions. In 1984, with a new federal policy of deregulation following the break-up of American Telephone and Telegraph Company, changes by the Federal Communications Commission in the way telephone companies may earn revenues and receive settlements caused much confusion. Under the FCC plan, carriers such as AT&T and MCI pay access charges to local companies for the use of their facilities. Local subscribers started paying access charges also to help pay more of the cost of providing long-distance service. The former long-distance toll subsidy to local services ended. Though competition in long distance service lowered that cost, local access charges skyrocketed, creating a hardship for low-income subscribers and those who seldom make long-distance calls. The industry is in a period of transition, but through this era and in the future, Mt. Horeb Telephone Company hopes to serve efficiently the telephone communication needs of the community.