TABLE ROCK & THE telephone
Telephone wires long ago.
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may 31, 1897 nebraska state journal
1898 - and so it begins:
the nebraska state journal, october 1, 1898
1899 - final preparations
April 6, 1899 Argus
April 6, 1899
1901 -- now 74 phones in use
March 21, 1901
1901 - lighting hits the exchange, knocks out most of the lines
August 12, 1901 Lincoln Journal Star, page 7
1905 - telephone rules & explanations
February 9, 1905 Argus
February 9, 1905 Argus
site of the first telephone exchange -
w. c. fellers' store
south side of the square before the 1920 fire, w. c. fellers' store is the large light-colored building, considered the grandest around
The first telephone office has been said to have been on the second floor of the State Bank of Table Rock. However, the Argus of that time reports that it was in W. C. Fellers' store. The office over the bank came later. Note the town well at the location of the water fountain pagoda, which was built in 1926. By the time this photograph was taken in about 1912, the telephone exchange had been moved to the bank, but you can see W. C. Fellers store here. We think it is the one with the flag.
Another view of the W. C. Fellers store, 1912.
1906
The telephone company in 1906. Erma Mitchell (operator) with Chester Fisher, M Purcell, & Lou Billings. Photo 196, color added by Steve Bixenmann.
Have fun with a few excerpts of this photo:
The original photo
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a girl who would be a hello girl:
This is Della Purcell and brother Mylum in about 1888. Later, after she was married and had two little girls, she ran the Table Rock telephone office and also lived there. Photo and story from descendant Terry Hunt Korell. Della also worked at the Dawson telephone exchange. Here are Della and Stella McCoy in front of the Dawson telephone exchange building in 1908.
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Photo 1839, a family photo shared by Historical Society member Terry Hunt Korell.
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1907 - forces of men deal with downed lines
July 15, 1907 Argus
circa 1908 -- the exchange was now
above the bank
Photo 408. This is a postcard. The Society has a couple of versions and has seen others. The oldest postmark is 1908 but some are as late as 1914.
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Lifetime Historical Society member Larry Layden had this to say when he saw this photo:
The telephone exchange occupied the second floor of this corner building above the bank. Notice the wooden trough like connection between the building and the telephone pole. This no doubt provided protection for the bundle of telephone wires entering the exchange. There is a shelf/seat attached to the pole for the lineman to use while testing and splicing the wires. I have seen pictures like this in books describing telegraph wiring. There were so many wires at some locations that up to 24 cross arms were carried on each pole. |
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1909 - not a table rock story, but in the table rock argus
April 29, 1909 Argus
April 29, 1909 Argus
1911 --
if you have some news, call the argus -- phone number 14
August 17, 1911
1911 - ordinances give monopoly
The ordinances of 1911 recognize the monopoly of the Table Rock Telephone Company. This ordinance was an accumulation of all ordinances to date and was probably not new, given the 1906 picture above. In any event, the Table Rock Telephone Company was permitted to operate "within the corporate limits" of the town "with all the necessary buildings apparatus, instruments, poles, lines, guy wires, and cities" needed for a "suitable and sufficient" system. And they were given a right of way to set poles and string wires.
1912 - everyone in the county: pick up your phone!
October 1912 -- if the telephone rings five times, everyone in Pawnee County needs to pick up their phone:
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J. Pete Hedgpath, a fan of our Facebook page, does not hail from Table Rock, but he grew up in a similar environment, with a dearly-loved wife who was of Czech descent, and enjoys talking about the old days. When Pete saw this article, he commented -
My late wife grew up with the "party line" culture..She was quite gregarious and used to just pick up the receiver to visit with the operator, but she never told me about the "alarm system"..but it sure sounds like the "real thing" It's right in there with "ya gotta do with whacha got"... |
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Ray Musil of Dubois, whose extended layers of generations ran from Dubois up to Table Rock, commented,
When my mom was growing up, there was a certain ring that was the operator with news of the local area, such as who was ailing, who had a baby, etc. That was social media of that era. |
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Terri Kallio, a descendant of Table Rock people adds,
I remember my Mom saying their phone was - 3 long rings and a short. Not sure why I remember it but, I do..... |
1912 - the telephone exchange when it was on the 2nd floor of the bank. take a look at the ladies sitting in the windows -- probably "hello girls" on and off duty
During a 1912 carnival -- are those "Hellow Girls" in the windows over the bank? Had the exchange moved by that time? It seems likely. It's no clear on on this picture, but there is a wooden trough feeding telephone cable into the bank from that giant pole on the corner.
1913, here's the phone book. what was your ancestor's number?
If you had family in Table Rock in 1913, and if they had a telephone, what was their number? 6, 12, 222?
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Telephone numbers -- one and two digits. In 1911, the Argus's phone number was 14. In 1920, the Nemecek Garage and Machine Shop had the phone number of 65. In 1930, C. W. Wood insurance agency's phone number was 2.
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1913 - from the local directory, directions about how to use your phone
1916 - new telephone girls!
October 1916 - two new "telephone girls" -- Mrs. Clara Goodenkauf and Mabel Linn -- are learing their jobs, i.e., "the art of prompt and efficient service."
A photo taken in 1916 has Miss Mabel Linn in it -- she is the 3rd from the left, and did not graduate until 1919.
Taken in 1916, Photo 6357: Bess Shorter, Ruth Andrew Pousch (Class of 1919), Mabel Linn Pugh (Class of 1919), Irene Freeman, Dorothy Phillips Wilson (Class of 1918), Ruth Marshal, Neta Gallas Morrison (Class of 1920), Leora Carter, Laura Kovanda McGinnis (Class of 1920), Grace Scott Taylor (Class of 1920), and Dorcas Fellers Mills (Class of 1919)
1917 - save batteries, limit your calls!
November 16, 1917 Argus. The United States declared war on Imperial Germany in April 1917 and troops were getting ready to head Over There.
1919 - crank telephones jokingly affected people like cell phones affect some today
May 23, 1919 Argus
1920 -- need to talk to dr. harmon? phone # 39
Need a mechanic? call clay nemecek, phone # 65
March 5, 1920
October 1920
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In the background of this circa very early 1930s picture is the building that housed Clay Nemecek's Garage & Machine Shop. It had been built as a livery stable in 1902. Nemecek sold out to a fellow named Brace and after a disastrous fire in 1930, Brace sold to Rudy V. Karas, who operated a car dealership & garage for many years. In the 1980s, it became Sitzman Repair. To reach the present garage, you need to "dial" 402-839-2585.
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1921 -- what's your phone number? lots more names in the exchange by now.
A May 20, 1921 article begins with a statement that these are the people who the "telephone girls" talk to everyday. On examination, it turns out that it's probably a list of everyone on the exchange. A free phone book.....
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Last names, as spelled in the list: Albin, Alderman, Andrew, Asher, Ault, Aylor, Babcock, Bain, Barnard, Barrett, Beck, Bedea, Bethe, Binder, Blecha, Bonham, Bowen, Boyles, Brock, Broyles, Burow, Carmichael, Carter, Chambers, Clark, Cochran, Cook, Cotton, Covault, Cramer, Crisler, Daily, Davis, Day, Dow, Dudar, Duncan, Fellers, Fencl, Fisher, Flider, Foal, Fountain, Frank, Freeman, Fritch, Furrow, Fuller, Gallas, Gates, Gilbert, Gilmore, Glenn, Gold, Goodenkauf, Greiner, Griffing, Groff, Gutzmer, Halverstadt, Hamilton, Hanna, Hansen, Harlow, Harman, Harms, Hastings, Hays, Herrick, Heuke, Hickmanm Hill, Hitzman, Hnizda, Hoton, Howe, Hruska, Hunzeker, Ilkenhons, Irwin, Jasa, Jennings, Johnson, Jones, Keiser, Kalina, Karas, Kent, Katalik (not Kotalik, but in alphabetical order for Kotalik), Kovanda, Kloepfel, Kreifle, Krofta, Kubick, Kucera, Lane, Layman, Linn, Madden, Marble, Martin, McCrea, McCourtney, McLaughlin, Mertes, Messenger, Michael, Miller, Morris, Morton, Morris, Nemechek, Nedved, Nickelson, Norris, Paben, Parker, Pattison, Petrasek, Petersen, Pettit, Phillips, Plihal, Pohlman, Price, Purcell, Raitora, Reuter, Ritchie, Rabstejnek, Sandusky, Schurr, Scott, Sedlak, Sherman, Shepherd, Shelenbargar, Shorter, Shubert, Smith, Snoble, Snyder, Sochor, Staford, Stalder, Stech, Stehlick (not Stehlik), Stepan, Strejc, Svanda, Swanson, Taylor,Tenk, Tickey, Tibbets, Tomek, Trout, Trump, Uhlir, Vitek, Vondrasek, Vrtiska, Werner, White, Wiar, Widdifield, Wilcox, Wilkin, Wood, Woods, Wopata, Whisler, Zelenka, and Zink
Businesses: Burlington Station, CB&Q Station, Central Granaries, Communitgy State Bank, R. C. Cotton Store, Farmers Union, Fellers Store, Dr. L. D. Harman, High School, Hnizda store, Lincoln Hotel, Masonic Hall, Dr. McCrea, Meat Market, Murphy Motel, Nemechek garage, Norris Store, Odd Fellow Hall, Dr. Plihall, Purcell Brothers Store, Standard Oil Co., State Bank, Table Rock Brick & Material Co., Table Rock Lumber Co., Table Rock Poultry Co., Town Hall, Trout & Phillips Store, Wood Produce Co., Woods Truck & Tractor Co. |
1917 -
the table rock telephone company wants you to reduce use of telephone to save batteries, material needed for war effort
November 16, 1917
1925 - the table rock telephone company wants you to pay your bill. or else.
May 1, 1925
1927 - lincoln telephone & telegraph buys table rock's exchange
July 1927, Lincoln Telephone & Telegraph buys our exchange, and Table Rock is praised. The Table Rock "exchange" is purchased from the Table Rock Telephone Company. The Table Rock exchange had 300 customers. The central office had a switch board that accommodated two operators, a Stromsburg-Carlson switchboard this article proudly states. They called it "Central" and when talking to the operator would say "Central," not operator. The Table Rock Telephony Company had at least five employees, as five were named as going over to the new owner - the Chief Operator Miss Pearl Freeman; Uarda Freeman (I believe the mother of Tom and Rob Freeman); Miss Ora Sherman; and the relief operator, Edna Griffing.
The premise of the remainder of the article is that Table Rock is a great place. It is an "alert, energetic little town."
The premise of the remainder of the article is that Table Rock is a great place. It is an "alert, energetic little town."
1930 - need insurance? phone # 2
January 1930
1933 - need a permanent? Phone number 8.
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One might say "Dial 8," but this was before rotary dial phones. And now you would "press" 8 -- if you could call someone with a single digit number instead of the full 10-digit number required now.
July 7, 1933
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The Lincoln Hotel was the original name for this hotel. You can see an area where windows were bricked in, one above the other, to the right of the middle door. There used to be a mezzanine there, reached by a short flight of steps. Local lore says that it is where a barbershop was. It is likely that the beauty shop was there in 1933.
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1930s-ish
1941 - no, do not pick up your phones all at once!
December 1941 -- The telephone company pleads -- not everybody at once, please! It was kind of the 21st Century version of crashing the server.
1942 - the exchange now located in the building on the east side of the library
In these two photographs from History Nebraska (formerly the Nebraska State Historical Society), the telephone exchange office can be seen in the west side of the building next to the library. The interior photographs below seem to indicate that the exchange occupied the entire building -- in particular, you can see two sets of windows in the view looking out the front of the building. In the photograph of the exterior, the door on the right, though, says barber shop on it. We have no present explanation. Perhaps the barber shop had moved out, and the telephone exchange just moved in, and the sign hadn't been changed yet?
On the left side of the photograph, the large window was for the public ladies restroom that was so proudly built in the 1920s as part of the library project. The wood came from the old Presbyterian church. The restroom had two rooms. The front portion, at the window, was a sitting room, with the toilet room in the back. Thus, on Trade Day, the ladies had a place to go, perhaps with their children, to have a respite from the heat or cold, and to rest while their husbands chewed the fat elsewhere.
On the left side of the photograph, the large window was for the public ladies restroom that was so proudly built in the 1920s as part of the library project. The wood came from the old Presbyterian church. The restroom had two rooms. The front portion, at the window, was a sitting room, with the toilet room in the back. Thus, on Trade Day, the ladies had a place to go, perhaps with their children, to have a respite from the heat or cold, and to rest while their husbands chewed the fat elsewhere.
Photo 8030, the telephone exchange building, shared by History Nebraska.
In this photograph showing the interior windows, there is a wall on the far left. That would leave a walkway for the entry of the door on the east side. Perhaps the barbershop was in the back part of the building, entered by a short hallway. A hallway or an entryway, perhaps enclosed, seems the only explanation for the wall.
Photo 8028 - inside the telephone exchange office. The unidentity of the operator is unknown. Through the window you can see the roof of the Diehm filling station. Photo shared by History Nebraska.
Photo 8029 - in the back of the exchange office. The woman's identity is unknown. Photo shared by History Nebraska.
1947 - calling grandpa
They still had the switchboard then. I remember the crank phone at Grandmother’s. You could crank it and say, “I want to talk to Grandpa” and they knew where you were calling from and who to connect you to to."
Marty Siemsen
Helen Siemsen came to live with her parents Edgar and Frances Norris when her husband went overseas during World War 2. She was pregnant, and thus Marty Siemsen came to be the last of the family born here. Marty must have been very young when using the crank phone. In 1948, there was a transition to dial phones, when he was 2. However, the telephone operators still worked the exchange until it went digital years later.
1948 - dial phones!
January 15, 1948
1957 - new telephone building
July 1957 -- the new telephone building is going up, a frame building south of the Odd Fellows building. By this time, the switchboard had been in the "building west of the barbership." (From S. Cerra: Which barbershop? Wasn't L. J. Wenzbauer's shop in the hotel at that time?)
1960s?
In this undated holiday gift of business numbers, Floyd Vrtiska memorializes Table Rock businesses of all sorts. Four digit phone numbers!
Some names offer no explanation. Dr. Glider was the chiropractor. Dr. Uhri was the vet. Charles Harlow? Clarence Schuetz? Don't know! Thanks to Kim Vrtiska for posting this on Facebook!
Some names offer no explanation. Dr. Glider was the chiropractor. Dr. Uhri was the vet. Charles Harlow? Clarence Schuetz? Don't know! Thanks to Kim Vrtiska for posting this on Facebook!
1976 - the new telephone building of 1956 is replaced by another new telephone building
June 17, 1976
The new telephone office of 1976 in a photo taken in March 2020
1983 - digital phones coming to table rock - a trade publication article
1998 -- calling from a pay phone (or "the" pay phone)
Jen Haubrich posted a fun story on our Facebook page in April 2020 after it was noted that the pay phone up town still has a dial tone.
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Back in about 1998, I was dating Ted and we went camping at Indian Cave. Only when Ted goes camping he really hikes into the woods, it’s not just off the roads like a lot of people. Now there was a storm coming, but we planned on being gone before it got there. But the storm came early and we were scrambling to pack up everything and get out of there. And ended up crawling up mudslides and getting totally wet and covered in mud. |
2020 -- that pay phone is still there!
Taken April 22, 2020
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2020 - Harry Greibling demonstrates use of an "old style" phone from the museum
Photo 11045
the era of the smart phone
but still table rock is home
