- Business - Janesville Sesquicentennial
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- Telephone war started before turn of century
- If you think it took the court-ordered breakup of American
Telephone & Telegraph Co. a couple
- of years ago to bring competition and cost-cutting to the
telephone industry, think again. In 1908, a local telephone company
had more customers than the Bell company.
- In March 1880, the first telephone exchange was opened here
by the Janesville Telephone Co.
- with 16 subscribers. That number grew to 58 by Jan. 1, 1881.
The exchange became part of the Bell system, and the Wisconsin
Telephone Co. was granted a franchise by the city in 1892.
- But in 1898, a movement began for an independent telephone
exchange, and the Rock County
- Telephone Co. was given a franchise and took away many of
Wisconsin Telephone's customers.
- However, both companies reduced prices and increased "their
patronage to marvelous degree,"
- according to a 1908 history of Rock County.
- In 1908, the Rock County Telephone Co. had about 1,500 subscribers
here, and the Bell affiliate,
- Wisconsin Telephone, had about 900.
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