Meet Our Staff

Lori has been with Farmers Telephone Co. since 2000 and provides assistance on your land lines, cable & home internet. Mandy has been with U.S. Cellular since 2006 & came to Farmers Telephone in 2014 to help with all of your cellular needs!

A Brief History of the Telephone Company

1885 - The first telephone was installed in the Theodore Hill Drug Store. This was the only telephone in Batavia until 1889 when A.V. Beeman, who operated a furniture store and funeral home, had telephones installed in his home and store so he could call home and see when supper would be ready.

1905 - The Batavia Telephone Company was organized and granted permission by the town to put up poles and wires. A cordboard was purchased and located in the old Stever Home and later was moved to a building on Main Street. This building burned in 1919.

1919 - A Franchise was granted to Farmers Telephone Company, who purchased the existing plant from the Batavia Telephone Company.

1934 - A connection to the Bell Telephone System provided long distance service to the Batavia subscribers.

1954 - Conversion from magneto to rotary dial.

1966 - A new building was constructed at 3rd and Collins Street to house a new 150 line North NX2A Common Control Switch. 100% touch tone dialling was installed, and the rural lines were upgraded from 8 to 4-party, with some private lines.

1976 - An REA loan provided for all-buried, filled cable plant, conversion to 100% single party lines and "one-plus" long distance dialing for all subscribers.

1984 - Conversion from manual billing to a computer billing system.

1988 - A new headquarters building and switching center was constructed at Hwy 34 and Davis Street.

1989 - A Northern Telcom Digital Switching System was cut into service, with custom calling provided to all subscribers at no additional charge. Long Distance Equal Access through Iowa Network Services was also offered to all subscribers.

1990 - Farmers Telephone Company turned up the first Cellular RSA in Iowa, and one of the first in the nation, in a joint venture with United States Cellular (now known as US Cellular).

1991 - Cut over fiber optic cables March 21 1991 mentioned in the Iowa history book "Lines between two rivers";

1992 - Farmers Telephone Company formed a subsidiary, Iowa Rural TV, to provide wireless cable television to a  40 mile radius around Batavia. The service includes 3 local television channels to an area where normal off-air  reception is poor.

1995 -Internet, e911, cell phones from B band to A band, SS7 connectivity date: April 1998.

1996- Connected to the S.E. Iowa fiber loop.

1999 - Two new cellular tower sites installed. 

 2000 - New addition to building. 

 2001 - Highway bypass cable relocation.

 

Farmer's Telephone Company - Batavia presently serves 250 subscribers over a 60 square mile area in and around  Batavia, Jefferson Co.

Member of USTA, ITA, RIITA, INS, NECA, NTCA.