University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Archives Department.

Ozaukee-Washington Telephone Company.

Records, 1901-1929.

Milwaukee Manuscript Collection 3

2.4 cubic ft. (6 boxes)



ABSTRACT:  Records of a defunct telephone company serving Ozaukee and Washington counties, including financial records, minutes, correspondence, employee records, plus brief records of predecessor companies in the area, including the Freistadt and Cedarburg Telephone Company. The files provide a general overview of a small business, reveal the expansion of telephone service in the Ozaukee and Washington counties area, and document the process of larger companies supplanting smaller companies.

ACCESS RESTRICTIONS: There are no access restrictions on the materials, and the collection is open to all members of the public in accordance with state law. However, the researcher assumes full responsibility for conforming with the laws of libel, privacy, and copyright which may be involved in the use of this collection (Wisconsin Statutes 19.21-19.39).

SCOPE AND CONTENT: The collection consists of the records of the Ozaukee-Washington Telephone Company and fragmentary records of the various phone companies which preceded it. Since these telephone firms often shared directors and stockholders, the same volumes were sometimes used to record identical information for the succeeding firms. The collection is arranged by record type in three series: Minutes, Financial Records, and a General File. In those instances where specific corporate names were identified, that information is listed in the Container List. The collection provides a general overview of a small business, reveals the expansion of telephone service in the Ozaukee-Washington area, and documents the process of larger companies supplanting smaller companies.

Minutes of the Freistadt and Cedarburg Telephone Company and the Ozaukee-Washington Telephone Company comprise the first series. Miscellaneous articles of incorporation, by-laws, and stock registers listing stockholders and shares held are also included.

Financial Records comprise the largest part of the collection and consist of ledgers, journals, check books, and income tax returns.

The General File consists of correspondence, employee records, an installation book, legal records, licenses, stock certificates, and miscellany. General correspondence includes routine inquires from stockholders, suppliers, and subscribers. The work of Wisconsin's regulatory agencies are reflected in both the files for the Industrial Commission and Railroad Commission. The former documents the Industrial Commission's efforts to raise the wages of an Ozaukee-Washington telephone operator while the latter reveals the Railroad Commission's efforts to settle disputes both between companies and between companies and customers. The installation book lists customers in the Mequon, Grafton, and Freistadt areas and provides a record of the expansion of telephone services. Legal records consist of contracts and agreements while the miscellany includes resolutions, insurance policies, reports, and rules.

NOTE TO RESEARCHERS:  Researchers will find additional information on these telephone companies in the public records found in the State Archives. The Secretary of State records include a series titled "Papers of Defunct Telegraph and Telephone Companies, 1851- " (Series 360) which includes articles of incorporation, annual reports, and dissolution records. The index numbers to access these files are as follows:

ADMINISTRATIVE HISTORY: The Ozaukee-Washington Telephone Company was incorporated in Wisconsin on 1 March 1911. Prior to its existence, other smaller telephone companies had served portions of the area which the Ozaukee-Washington Telephone Company eventually came to serve. For example, the Mequon Telephone Company (incorporated July 1902-dissolved 16 June 1910), the Grafton Telephone Company (incorporated January 1904-dissolved 14 March 1911), and the Freistadt and Cedarburg Telephone Company (incorporated 1909-dissolved 14 March 1911) had provided telephone service to their respective areas. However, with their dissolutions Ozaukee-Washington became the primary telephone company in the region.

In October 1925 the officers of the Ozaukee-Washington Telephone Company elected to sell the firm to the Wisconsin Telephone Company, and the former corporation was dissolved on 3 August 1926.

COLLECTION CITATION: This collection should be cited as:

Ozaukee-Washington Telephone Company. Records, 1901-1929. Milwaukee Manuscript Collection 3. Wisconsin Historical Society. Milwaukee Area Research Center. UWM Libraries. University of Wisconsin--Milwaukee.

ACQUISITION:  Presented by Roy Suelflow, St. Louis, Missouri, 1974 (accession number M74-352).

PROCESSING:  Processed by Christine Rongone, January, 1980.

MARC RECORD SEARCH TERMS: The following terms were used in the online bibliographic MARC record to this collection:

MILWAUKEE MANUSCRIPT COLLECTION 3 BOX FOLDER
Financial Records, Cash Journal, December 1913-December 1919 1 6
Financial Records, Cash Received, Freistadt & Cedarburg Telephone Company, 1911-1918 4 1
Financial Records, Cash Received, Freistadt & Cedarburg Telephone Company-Eastern Division, 1911-1918 4 2
Financial Records, Cash Received, Grafton Telephone Company, 1919-1921 5 1
Financial Records, Check Book, November 4, 1911-October 12, 1915 2 1
Financial Records, Check Book, 1917, 1929 2 2
Financial Records, Income Tax Returns, 1909-1911, 1924-1927 2 3
Financial Records, Ledger, Freistadt & Cedarburg Telephone Company, 1902-1908 1 4
Financial Records, Journal, January 1908-March 1919 1 5
Financial Records, Subscribers Ledger, 1907-1909 2 4
Financial Records, Subscribers Ledger, 1922-1924 5 2
Financial Records, Subscribers Ledger, 1925-1926 6 1
General File, Correspondence, General, 1911-1922 2 5
General File, Correspondence, Specific, Accidents, 1913, 1920 2 6
General File, Correspondence, Specific, Industrial Commission of Wisconsin, March-August, 1920 2 7
General File, Correspondence, Specific, Railroad Commission of Wisconsin, 1907-1921 2 8
General File, Correspondence, Specific, Wisconsin Telephone Company, Correspondence, 1912-1921 3 1
General File, Correspondence, Specific, Wisconsin Telephone Company, Monthly Statements, 1923-1924 3 2
General File, Employee Records, Monthly Time Book, January 1909-June 1912 3 3
General File, Employee Records, Time Book, January 1909-August 1919 3 4
General File, Employee Records, Time Cards, February 1924-December 1925 3 5
General File, Installation Book, Freistadt & Cedarburg, 1901-1919 3 6
General File, Legal Records, 1908-1919 3 7
General File, Licenses, 1910-1917 3 8
General File, Miscellany, ca. 1909-1921, undated 3 9
General File, Stock Certificates, 1901-1910 3 10
Minutes, Ozaukee-Washington Telephone Company, Fragments, 1911, 1925 1 3
Minutes, Freistadt & Cedarburg Telephone Company, Minute book, March 27, 1901-August 6, 1910 1 1
Minutes, Ozaukee-Washington Telephone Company, Minute book, February 16, 1911-October 26, 1925 1 2

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Last edited on Wednesday, December 15, 2004.
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