A NEW CENTURY

In 1906, Lowell Carpenter purchased the telephone exchange, and in 1910 the switch board was moved into the Carpenter Residence. Lowell Carpenter was one of Steamboat Rock’s barbers. Upon the office being moved, the hours of telephone service were from 9-11 a.m. and 5-7 p.m. only. Sundays were not mentioned. Lulu Cartwright assisted at the telephone office. 

There is no record of how many homes had telephone service in the early years, and to what extent the service extended into the country. 

The quality of the early country telephones, even up until World War II and after, was just about one step removed from Mr. Bell’s first effort. 

But that thin wire, sometimes banging on fence posts and often needing repair, did connect the community. A “line call” or “general ring” would alert everyone to a local problem taking place like a fire or school closing, or birth of a baby. 

The fidelity of the early phone service was unbelievable by present-day standards. Of course, the dry-cell batteries may have been weak. But even under the very best of circumstances, you often shouted your message and each conversation was interrupted many times by “Speak up, I can’t hear you.” Afterward, folks wondered if there had been complete understanding on either end of the line. 

That doesn’t mean there wasn’t “visiting” on country lines; there was. People were lonesome and it was a “contact with the outside world.” But it took effort. 

Oh yes, you always gave the phone a wide berth during thunderstorms; lightning would come in and give you a solid little jolt! 

Mr. Sentman once wrote in his Pilot Newspaper, “An electric wire came in contact with a telephone wire Sunday and made things lively around the telephone office, which lasted for about an hour before it was found and removed.”