Pomeroy Downtown Historic District Building #7

Historic District Downtown Building Inventory

Telephone Exchange Building (Site ID 7)
Historic, Non-Contributing Building

## North Seventh Street

The building was constructed circa 1930 for use as the Telephone Exchange Building. The previous site for the telephone company was at 666 Main Street. The building is currently used as temporary housing for Asotin County Mental Health Association.

The one-story building has a side-facing clipped gable roof covered with asphalt composition shingles, a tall exterior brick chimney on the north side, combination of one-over-one double-hung wood sash windows and new fixed-pane aluminum sash windows, stucco exterior walls, and a small hip roof porch covering the northern entrance on the front (west) side. Another entrance is located on the south side of the front elevation. A slightly sloped shed roof has been added over three-quarters of the front side. This newer porch is supported by metal round columns. A concrete disabled ramp with a metal railing has been added to the front elevation to accommodate its new use as a duplex, and an addition built on the north side (1980s). The building is in fair condition with major alterations

Cultural Data based on
research by Donovan & Associates

Razing of the old store building north of Pomeroy State bank began Wednesday morning, preparatory to the erection of a modern stucco, bungalo-type telephone office combined with living quarters for the switchboard help.

-- Down Memory Lane from March 20, 1958, looking back at March, 1933

Photo of the telephone exchange building in Pomeroy, Washington, apparently taken in 1935

Photo from Charles Nelson on Facebook

In a photo taken in June, 1933, here is the brand new Telephone Exchange Building located on Third (now Seventh) street in downtown Pomeroy.

News from March, 1952, as seen in the "Down Memory Lane" column of March 27, 1957:

Expected expenditure of about $150,000 by the Pacific Telephone & Telegraph company for the proposed extension of service in the area north of Pomeroy to the Snake river was revealed Monday afternoon at a special meeting in the courthouse.

A front page story in the August 30, 1956, issue of the EW had some exciting news:

Phone Company Plans $208,000 Job

Extensive telephone construction Activity to serve farmers south and west of Pomeroy will begin here by late fall, Pacific Telephone manager Don Berthiaume announced today [August, 1956].

A $120,000 rural telephone improvement program will be undertaken as a result of discussions which have been under way for some time. Farmer line facilities will be replaced with modern cable and wire.

The first project provides for four and six-tenths miles of cable contaning 26 pair of wires east from Pomeroy along U. S. highway 410. Aerial wire will be built from this cable along the present long distance route to Dodge to the Tucannon river about four miles and to a small area one mile west of Dodge. Existing poles will be utilized wherever possible.

Bury Cable on Second Project

The second project, costing some $88,000, provides for construction on 87 miles of lines into the rural areas south and west of Pomeroy. Some 83 miles of this will go on existing poles. Eight miles of new pole lines will be built and about four and one-half miles of cable and wire will be buried.

A cable containing 16 pair of wires will extend facilities from Pomeroy south toward Columbia Center. From this point aerial wire totalling 47 miles will weave throughout the southern sector of the exchange. Another 12 miles of aerial wire will be placed from one mile west of Pomeroy's base rate area into the northwestern area. The town of Marengo and a section due south will be served by 26 miles of cable and wire.

From Dec. 20, 1956, the phone company gave fair warning. Call Early!

Telephone Exchange Expects 2400 Calls

Christmas means a festive holiday for most Pomeroy families but it means the busiest day of the year for long distance telephone operators.

Switchboard lights will replace Christmas tree lights for these girls who will spend part of their holiday helping St. Nick distribute a flood of Yule-tide messages.

According to Frances Fanning, Pacific Telephone's chief operator, a staff of two will be on duty Christmas eve and five will take over Christmas day. She said approximately 2400 calls are expected to flow in and out of Pomeroy during the two-day period.

Mrs. Fanning suggested that if possible, Christmas calls be placed at least a day ahead of time and preferably earlier to insure completion. Out-of-state calls are expected to be the heaviest at this time and delays may be encountered. She also urged residents to call by number as an important step toward speeding up that special long distance greeting.

From the front page of the East Washingtonian, March 27, 1958:

Helping Injured Man Gets Lineman Award

Quick thinking and knowledge of first aid used in aiding an injured Peola farm worker, has won recognition for Pacific Telephone head lineman, Thomas H. Bruce, who received an honorable mention certificate from the Theodore N. Vail committee. The Vail awards are presented for noteworthy public service by telephone employees throughout the nation.

photo of Thomas Bruce, Pacific Telephone head lineman

Thomas H. Bruce

Last August [1957], while working on an aerial cable near Peola, on property owned by Ed and John Rimmelspacher, Bruce was approached by a jeep driven by Ed Rimmelspacher. The driver said he had a badly injured man with him and wondered if Bruce had any knowledge of applying a tourniquet.

The injured man, Donald J. Johnson of Lewiston, Idaho, was spending his vacation on the Rimmelspacher ranch. While cleaning a combine which had become plugged with straw, his right arm slipped, hit a straw-spreader blade and was bleeding badly.

Bruce directed them to drive to the company truck where he secured a first aid kit. He applied a compress and tourniquet to Johnson's arm, then asked that Rimmelspacher get his car which would be more comfortable and faster for the 26-mile drive to Pomeroy.

Johnson had lost a great deal of blood but was delivered to the Garfield County hospital where eight stitches were taken in his arm.

Bruce is credited with preventing further complications and possibly saving the life of the injured man.

From a story in the November 3, 1960, issue of the East Washingtonian:

Telephone Co. Pays $3,923 Bill

Pacific Telephone-Northwest held on to its title of "The Largest Property Taxpayer in Washington State" Monday, Oct. 31, as it delivered a check for $1,961.65 to Garfield County Treasurer David Taylor Jr. The check covers the telephone company's last half 1960 account—a total of $3,923.31.

Telephone manager Gordon Davenport said the amount was only part of the company's 1960 real and personal property taxes in the state, amounting to more than four million dollars. This year's state-wide property taxes show an increase of almost $250,000 over 1959.

Pacific Telephone-Northwest pays real and personal property taxes in 38 Washington state counties—all but Island county. Monday's largest payment, $937,113.01, went to King county; the smallest, $343.96, to Pend Oreille county.

Property taxes are only one of the many on the company's operations in Washington, Davenport said. Last year (1959), the firm's total tax bill was more than $39,100,000.

The average Pacific Telephone-Northwest customer in Washington paid taxes of $61.75 as a part of his telephone bill during 1959.

Wandering Pomeroy's Main Street

← Masonic Temple

ONB Bank Building →

POMEROY WEATHER

Area Traffic Cameras
Alpowa Summit
Delaney (20+ miles W on Highway 12)
SE Washington Traffic Alerts

This Web site has been financed by Castlemoyle Books and Gifts for the Pomeroy Historic Preservation Committee.
The Committee gratefully acknowledges donations of time, photographs, scans, and other
assistance from the Garfield County Museum and individual citizens of Pomeroy and Garfield County.