ABOUT TRICOUNTY TELECOM

Rural living has its advantages; but attracting a telephone company wasn't one of them for some parts of Beaufort, Hyde and Washington Counties even 75 years after the telephone industry began.

The unserved areas were scattered and sparsely populated and, therefore, considered undesirable by existing telephone companies. However, there was a job to be done and community leaders investigated all avenues in efforts to obtain telephone service.

The original organizational committee to obtain telephone service for the area now generally served by Tri-County Telephone Membership Corporation was established on March 13, 1950, and included:

  • Foye H. Mason (chairman)
  • T. Ralph Tyer, Jr.
  • Carl S. Heynen
  • Harry Adams
  • Cleve Smithwick
  • Mrs. Golden Williams
  • Mrs. R. S. Respess, Jr.

As a final resort, a group of rural people incorporated Tri-County Telephone Membership Corporation on December 11, 1952.

Low interest loan funds were obtained from the Rural Electrification Administration (REA), an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. These funds, along with the voluntary efforts of many local people and assistance from the North Carolina Rural Electrification Authority, resulted in telephone service being initiated for 197 subscribers on May 17, 1955.

More than 500 people packed the auditorium at the Pinetown School to celebrate the event with Tri-County President T. Ralph Tyer, Jr. serving as moderator. John A. Winfield, director of the Division of Markets for the N.C. Department of Agriculture made a long distance call at the meeting to Senator W. Kerr Scott in Washington, D.C. to mark the occasion. Many other dignitaries also participated.

The cooperative grew slowly, but steadily.
Milestones were:

  • 500th telephone line installed November 1963
  • 1000th telephone line installed May 1970
  • 1500th telephone line installed May 1975
  • 2000th telephone line installed March 1980
  • 3000th telephone line installed November 1994
  • 3500th telephone line installed November 1999
  • "Private line" service provided to every Tri-County Telephone member January 1975
  • First FTTH (Fiber To The Home) installed in June 2009

From the beginning until 1971, Tri-County was operated under a management contract with Woodstock Electric Membership Corporation (later changed to Tideland Electric Membership Corporation), and its offices were located in Woodstock's office building. From November 1971 through April 1972, Tri-County operated under a management contract with Star Telephone Membership Corporation. Then, on May 1, 1972, Tri-County became completely independent. Approximately one year later, Tri-County moved into its own new office building where it is presently located on Highway 99 South, approximately 2 miles from Belhaven. Tri-County was always an entirely separate corporation with its own board of directors.

Tri-County managers through the years include:

  • William W. Bulluck, from early organization until June 1969 (16 years)
  • Glen A. Carowan, June 1969 until November 1971
  • Alfred G. Kohler, November 1971 through April 1972
  • Cecil O. Smith, Sr. became the first full-time manager May 1972, until he retired in March 1992
  • Dennis M. Wallace, Jr., has served from March 1992 til October 2008
  • Lyman M. Horne, 2009 through 2010
  • Gregory S. Coltrain, 2011 to present

Many other people, too numerous to mention, played important roles in the history of Tri-County. We should mention, however, three former directors: Sam R. Respess, Hassel Ray Osborne, and Carmer H. Wallace, who each served for nearly 20 years.

In 1992, Tri-County Television Membership Corporation was established to run and oversee the development of its newest community venture, television. Tri-County Television brought television to the door steps of many of the same customers it had been serving for years. The television company was established as a cooperative just as the telephone company and maintained that status until 1996, then becoming Tri-County Communications, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary company of Tri-County Telephone Membership Corporation. At the Annual Meeting of Members held May 7, 2005, in conjunction with the cooperative’s 50th Anniversary, a new name, TriCounty Telecom, was introduced. The name reflects a growing business that continues to adapt to rapidly changing technology and seeks to seamlessly serve its customers.

In an effort to continue providing its customers with the latest in telecommunications technology, Tri-County Communications began offering paging services in 1995 with coverage areas ranging from Raleigh east to nationwide. Then in December 1997, local Internet access was offered to residents of the three county areas.

As technologies continue to change and develop, TriCounty Telecom will continue to offer its customers the latest in telecommunications services.

  • Portal for local news and events launched July 2001
  • goTriCounty.com Portal for local news and events launched July 2001
  • goFAST DSL - High Speed Internet launched December 2002
  • Web Hosting and Design services launched January 2003
  • Wireless Broadband launched September 2006