Lackawaxen Telephone

Lackawaxen Telecommunications Services marks its birth in 1905, when it was first organized under the name of the Hawley and Lackawaxen Telephone Company. Even before the turn of the century, area residents had begun to organize in response to the need they saw in the community for a communications system. Consequently, some of the leaders and orig... inal investors in the young phone company were storeowners, woodsmen, farmers, and members of the Forest Lake Club. One of these original backers was Andreas Solversen, of Rowland, grandfather and great grandfather, respectively, of Richard Solversen, Sr. and Jr., both of whom played instrumental roles in the creation of this rural communications provider. Originally, the company had two exchanges; one in a house in Bohemia, and the other in the Lackawaxen area. Eventually, the Bohemia exchange was discontinued, and the final location of the other original exchange was on the riverbank, just before the approach to the Lackawaxen Bridge. In 1953-54, E.Y. Stroud, of Dingmans Ferry, PA, acquired controlling shares in the company. Under his leadership, Lackawaxen Telephone restructured its finances through its participation in the new federal telephone loan program made possible by the Rural Electrification Administration (REA) in Washington, D.C. This expansion enabled the company to complete its cutover from the old magneto hand-crank system to modern dial tone in January 1957. During the 1955 flood, the operator on duty in Lackawaxen was forced to leave her post as the dangerous floodwaters approached. Her decision to flee proved a wise one, as the flood washed away the entire exchange. By working with the Bell company nearby, Richard Solversen, Sr. secured an old magneto switchboard that he set up in the barn of G.W. Rowland (the site of the Rowland General Store). When he and others realized that Rowland represented the most central location in the companys territory, they decided to place the new exchange in the location that serves to this day. Following the ...Read More