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History of Reservation Telephone Cooperative

 

 

1940's
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  • October 28, 1949 - President Truman signs the telephone amendment to the Rural Electrification Act of 1935 to provide low cost loans to be used to improve and to provide telephone service to rural areas of America.

1950's
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  • July 7, 1950 - First public meeting to discuss the formation of our telephone cooperative takes place in Garrison.
  • January 1951 - Area residents and representatives from the telephone companies at Parshall, Plaza, Makoti, Ryder, Van Hook, and Sanish meet at Roseglen and decide to form a rural telephone cooperative named Reservation Mutual Aid Telephone Corporation.
  • 1952 - New Town exchange replaces the Van Hook and Sanish exchanges.
  • August 12, 1952 - Reservation Mutual Aid Telephone Corporation's first REA loan is obtained for $417,000.00.
  • August 14, 1952 - Freddie Ahlgren is named General Manager.
  • 1954 - 1958 - Telephone exchanges at Parshall, Plaza, Makoti, Ryder, Emmet, Roseglen, Arnegard, Keene, Norma, Spencer, Ross and Douglas are added.
  • 1958 - Reservation Mutual Aid Telephone Corporation headquarters building is built.
  • 1959 - Original nine member Board of Directors reorganize as a board of seven members. The name Reservation Mutual Aid Telephone Corporation changes to Reservation Telephone Cooperative (RTC). RTC begins offering mobile telephone service with towers at Keene, Parshall and Roseglen. IMTS (Improved Mobile Telephone Service) is offered over radio channels licensed by FCC (Federal Communications Commission).

1960's
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  • 1963 - Minuteman Missile installations began. RTC provides service to 7 sites.
  • 1967 - RTC's "Service Improvement Program" begins to bring one party service to all subscribers and replaces the open wire plant with underground facilities.

1970's
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  • 1971 - Squaw Gap exchange is added.
  • Dec. 15, 1971 - Squaw Gap is connected to the rest of the world by telephone. NBC (National Broadcasting Corporation) along with thousands of television viewers and Squaw Gap subscribers gather to witness the first telephone call made by RTC Board President Donnell Haugen and Squaw Gap resident Ray Macik to Washington D.C. where Secretary of Agriculture Earl Butz is on the line to congratulate them.
  • August 1972 - All subscribers now have private line service.
  • 1973 - 1974 - All exchanges are converted to direct distance dialing and automatic number identification.
  • 1974 - Mandaree exchange is added.
  • 1976 - First major addition to the headquarters building is completed. RTC becomes member of NCDC (North Central Data Cooperative) now known as NISC (National Information Solutions Cooperative). Phone billing is converted to computer.

1980's
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  • 1980 - RTC hires Gene Sloan as new General Manager. Freddie Ahlgren, RTC's first General Manager, retires ending a 28 year career (1952-1980).
  • 1981 - RTC gets into the cable TV business. Rolfson Construction plows coaxial TV cable in New Town and Parshall.
  • 1983 - Headquarters building is expanded to make room for the new digital switch.
  • 1984 - New digital switch is installed. AT&T Divestiture becomes a reality.
  • 1985 - RTC starts replacing the old rotary dial telephone sets using a modular connection.
  • 1987 - RTC plows coaxial TV cable in Plaza. RTC becomes member of North Central Regional Processing Center (NCRPC).
  • 1988 - RTC plows coaxial TV cable in Makoti.
  • 1989 - RTC plows coaxial TV cable in Ryder and purchases the cable TV system in Arnegard from a private individual. Payroll and labor accounting becomes automated with the aid of NCDC. RTC upgrades new digital switches and plows fiber optic cable as the backbone for the toll network.

1990's
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  • 1990's - College scholarship program implemented for high school seniors.
  • September 1995 - RTC announces it will offer Internet service.
  • 1996 - RTC becomes a member of Dakota Carrier Network (DCN).
  • June 1996 - RTC purchases the exchanges of Garrison, Max and Kenmare. RTC sells payphone business.
  • 1998 - Royce Aslakson, previously Office Manager, is promoted as Assistant General Manager.
  • August 1998 - RTC joins North Dakota Long Distance (NDLD) as a partner.
  • 1999 - RTC offers equal access giving RTC subscribers a choice of long distance carriers.
  • May 1999 - Cellular phone service makes IMTS obsolete and all three systems are shut down.

2000's
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  • 2001 - Gene Sloan, RTC's second General Manager retires after 21 years of service. RTC begins offering DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) service.
  • September 1, 2001 - Assistant General Manager Royce Aslakson is promoted to the General Manager position.
  • 2003 - RTC installs OC-48 Sonet Ring.
  • April 1, 2003 - RTC purchases Watford City and Alexander exchanges from Citizens Telecommunications Company.
  • September 1, 2003 - RTC purchases McKenzie Consolidated Telcom (MCT).
  • November 2, 2004 - RTC purchases the Alexander, Garrison, Kenmare, Max and Watford City cable TV systems from Midcontinent Communications, Inc.
  • April 28, 2005 - Ground breaking takes place for addition to headquarters building.
  • June 1, 2005 - RTC begins offering WildBlue Satellite Speed Internet service in partnership with National Rural Telecommunications Cooperative (NRTC).

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