📞 From Rockland to the World
When you think of the first independent telephone company in Michigan, you might assume it started in a big city—Detroit, Grand Rapids, maybe Ann Arbor. But in fact, it all began in Rockland, a small town of a few hundred residents in Ontonagon County in the Upper Peninsula. And it started thanks to the vision of one man: Linus Stannard.
Stannard had been inspired after witnessing Alexander Graham Bell demonstrate his groundbreaking invention at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876. Excited about the potential of this strange new device, he returned home and convinced friends to join him in building their own private telephone line.
Michigan’s First Telephones Installed
In 1877, the first telephones in Michigan were installed. One in Stannard’s home and general store. Another in the home of his friend Benjamin Chynoweth. Soon, evening gatherings became the highlight of Rockland’s social scene. Locals would marvel at the “six-inch square box with a hole in the center” that allowed voices to travel between homes.
Recognizing the promise of this new technology, Stannard, Chynoweth, Lawrence Collins of Greenland, and James Mercer of Ontonagon pooled resources to extend the line from Rockland to Greenland and Ontonagon. During the winter of 1877–1878, iron wires strung on cedar poles connected the three towns. They created Michigan’s first true rural telephone network.
On October 27, 1879, the State of Michigan granted the group an official corporate charter. They called it the Ontonagon Telegraph Company. Telegraph was used since “telephone” was not yet a commonly used word. This marked the beginning of Michigan’s first independent telephone company. A phone company that has been in continuous operation ever since.
Company Continued to Grow
Over the decades, the company grew right alongside the community. In 1907, Ontonagon residents were finally connected to the rest of the world through a long-distance connection at Bruce Crossing to Iron Mountain. Headquarters moved from Rockland to Ontonagon in 1932, and the company reached 5,000 customers by 1980.
Along the way, technology transformed how residents connected. Operators gave way to direct dialing in 1962, party lines disappeared in 1976, and by the 1980s the phone had become a household necessity. The company changed hands several times but remained family-owned for most of its existence. It eventually became part of Hiawatha Communications in 1998.
More than Telephones
Today, the Ontonagon County Telephone Company isn’t just about telephones anymore. As part of the Jamadots network, it provides internet, TV streaming, and media services to Ontonagon County and beyond. Not bad for a company that started with two friends chatting across town through a wooden box with a hole in it.
So the next time you pick up your phone, think of Rockland—a tiny Upper Peninsula town that proved innovation doesn’t always begin in the big cities. Sometimes, history is made in the most unexpected places.
