1951 – New Co-op is Formed to Make the Dream of Telephone Service A Reality

In the late summer of 1950, a small group of residents residing in Alleghany, Ashe and Watauga counties pursued the dream of providing telephone service to every resident of the ’lost province,’ areas that other telephone companies chose not to serve. In the vanguard of this group was Mr. G.W. Edwards, who later became president of SkyLine. Under the date of December 30, 1950, Articles of Incorporation were written for a cooperative association to be known as ’SkyLine Telephone Membership Corporation.’ On January 4, 1951, SkyLine Telephone Membership Corporation became official after receiving its charter from the N.C. Secretary of State. As early as January 1951, SkyLine started construction and began purchasing equipment through a loan of $1,060,000 from the Rural Electrification Administration (REA). At this time, the membership drive began.

1954 – Initial Operations Begin in Watauga & Ashe in 1954 and 1955

First telephony operations commenced in July 1954 upon SkyLine’s purchase of the Watauga Telephone Company, a magneto telephone system which had served a large area of Watauga County for about 50 years. About 140 telephones were in operation at the time of this purchase. Operations began in Ashe County in September 1955 by purchase of the Riverside Telephone Company which operated and maintained approximately 40 telephones on lines from the West Jefferson exchange of Central Telephone Company.

June 1957 – First Long-Distance Calls

In June, SkyLine members were able to call residents served by Central Telephone in West Jefferson. Members also could make long-distance telephone calls for the first time.

March 1957 – Initial Dial Operations Commence

In March, initial dial service was provided by SkyLine upon completion of the Sugar Grove exchange in Watauga County with 260 working telephones. Dial service in Ashe began in June with the completion of the Baldwin (98 telephones), Creston (95 telephones) and Lansing exchanges (200 telephones). The Nathans Creek exchange was added in 1958 with 200 telephones.

October 1957 – SkyLine Schedules First Annual Meeting of Members

SkyLine organized its first Annual Meeting at Parkway Theatre in West Jefferson in October, but no business could be conducted for lack of a quorum of members present.

December 1958 – SkyLine Acquires Central Telephone in Sparta, NC

In December 1958, SkyLine acquired Central Telephone Company’s Sparta facilities, which allowed SkyLine to serve residents of the town of Sparta. At the time of the acquisition, the Sparta exchange served approximately 450 telephones through a magneto or crank system. Upon conversion to dial operation in 1960, Sparta became the last of the magneto systems in North Carolina to give way to the modern dial system. Sparta continues to be the only municipality that the cooperative serves.

December 1961 – SkyLine Merges with Cherokee Telephone

On December 16, SkyLine’s Board of Directors approved a merger with Cherokee Telephone Membership Corporation. The merger included certain telephone exchanges, lines and facilities in Avery and Watauga counties in North Carolina and in Johnson County, Tennessee. Cherokee had served those counties since 1954. As a result, two new exchanges, Banner Elk, North Carolina and Shady Valley, Tennessee were added.

1963 – SkyLine Headquarters Finds Its Permanent Home

In April, SkyLine moved from its second office location where it was sharing facilities with Central Telephone on Third Avenue in West Jefferson to a new office building on Highway 194, SkyLine’s current corporate office location. Quick Fact: SkyLine’s first location was in the old Ashe FCX building on Main Street (now home to Regency Properties).

1966 – Party Lines Move from Eight to Four; Direct Trunking in Ashe Begins

President G.W. Edwards announced completion of further outside plant construction, at a cost of $750,000, which provided basic cable facilities for reducing the number of party lines from eight to four and providing one and two-part service at a reasonable rate. Manager John McGuire announced that demand for telephone service in rural areas continued to be strong with over 400 applications for service on hand. The cooperative planned to provide direct trunking between SkyLine’s Ashe County exchanges rather than switching through the West Jefferson exchange of Central Telephone Company. This change allowed dialing all telephones in Ashe County by the listed number rather than by the ’code’ arrangement at that time.

1970 – Customer Growth Leads to Construction of New Facilities in Avery

A new building to house the new central office switching equipment for the Banner Elk exchange was completed. The original central office to provide service in this area consisted of 100 lines. With this facility, the company could accommodate a maximum of 1,800 subscribers. Construction also commenced on the new exchange to serve Beech Mountain, bringing the total number of exchanges to 12.

1976 – Expansion Announced for SkyLine Headquarters Office

In July SkyLine announced plans to expand its headquarters building in West Jefferson. Approximately 7,500 square feet of floor space for offices for the 19 employees who worked in the headquarters building, a new board room and a conference room with a seating capacity of 75. The expansion project was completed in 1977.

1976 – Central Offices Expand Floor Space to Accommodate Customer Growth

The company’s Baldwin Central Office expanded by 1,200 square feet of floor space, to add 400 new lines and 500 new telephone numbers; the Creston Central Office expanded by 1,200 square feet to add 400 new lines and 400 telephone numbers, and an addition to the Lansing Central Office was completed to accommodate 500 new lines and 300 new telephone numbers. At that time, the company served approximately 5,000 subscribers in Ashe County.

1977 – Touch-tone Services Introduced

SkyLine introduced touch-tone or push-button dialing service to all of its Ashe County exchanges following a successful offering in previous months to customers in Sparta. According to a news release, ’the installation of the necessary equipment for touch-tone dialing has meant a great deal of investment for SkyLine; however company officials feel that the service can be of great benefit to our members, not only in convenience but in time saved.’

1978 – SkyLine Reaches a Milestone 20,000th Telephone Installation

In 1978, SkyLine completed its 20,000th telephone installation at the home of Mrs. Ida Duvall in Baldwin. President Frank James and General Manager John McGuire joined installer Ernest Severt for this historic occasion.

1984 – The Break-up of AT&T

The telephone industry made a drastic change in 1984 with the historic divestiture of American Telephone and Telegraph (AT and T). Competition and technology replaced regulatory agencies as the driving forces in the telecom industry.

1987 – The SkyLine Scholarship Program Begins

In 1987, the Board of Directors established the SkyLine Telephone Scholarship program for children of SkyLIne members who plan to attend a four-year college/ university. Since that time, more than 200 local students have received support from this program to further their education. Following college, many of these students have returned to their home communities to live, work and raise their own families. The paths that several of these students pursued led to such roles as teacher, school administrator, nurse, banking executive, engineer and CPA, just to name a few.

1988 – A Milestone Year in Technological Advances for SkyLine

One of the co-ops major achievements occurred in 1988, when SkyLine provided an all-digital network to its members with the conversion of the Scottville exchange from electromechanical technology to digital technology. Also in 1988, SkyLine began the placement of fiber-optic cable into its network. The introduction of fiber-optic cable has brought enhanced communications services, greatly expanded calling capability and reliability.

1990 – Introduces the First Wireless Service in this Region

1990 brought historic expansion to SkyLine when it joined with three other regional telephone cooperatives to form a wireless company, Carolina West Cellular (now Carolina West Wireless). The new subsidiary extended cellular telephone service to a six-county region, including SkyLine’s North Carolina service area beginning in the fall of 1991.

1992 – Co-op Camp Sponsorship Provides Additional Opportunities for Local Youth

SkyLine signed up to be a local sponsor of the state Co-op Council’s summer leadership program for area youth. The cooperative continues to sponsor several students to attend the five-day summer program at White Lake. Students are also eligible to be selected to attend the national co-op conference and vie for the Jim Graham Cooperative Leadership college scholarship.

1993 – SkyLine Introduces Advanced Calling Features

In 1993, SkyLine made significant upgrades to its central office equipment and software with the addition of SS7 (Signaling System 7) Network technology. This new technology brought advanced calling services to members including Caller ID, Call Trace, and Call Return, to name a few, and allowed for faster delivery of local and long-distance dialing.

1993 – SkyLine Creates Recycling Program to Benefit Local Schools

SkyLine established a Directory Drive Program in 1993 to encourage recycling and benefit local public schools. Since its inception, the program has collected more than 300,000 directories, and SkyLine has donated in excess of $87,000 to participating schools for their efforts.

1994 – SkyLine Creates Revolving Loan Fund to Encourage Economic Development

In 1994, SkyLine received a $400,000 grant from the Rural Utilities Service (RUS) to establish a revolving loan fund program. Alleghany County was the first area to benefit through site improvements made to the new Alleghany County Industrial Park. In 1998, this program also helped the Alleghany Economic Development Corporation to provide similar site development activities for the new Magnolia Manufacturing industrial site. The zero-interest loan program focuses on helping businesses/organizations that create/retain jobs locally and provide essential community services.

1995 – SkyLine Employees Support American Cancer Society

In 1995, SkyLine employees became actively involved in the American Cancer Society’s (ACS) Relay for Life program. On average, SkyLine employees across the region contribute several thousand dollars per year through various fund-raising activities. SkyLine’s corporate culture encourages employees to give back to the community through the organizations that mean the most to them. As a result, SkyLine employees are involved in a variety of organizations, such as the American Heart Assoc., youth sports leagues, volunteer fire departments, school PTOs and committees, community theatre and other arts organizations.

1995 – Local Access to the Internet Announced

In late 1995, SkyLine was the first area business to introduce local dial-up access to the Internet. The initial basic plan gave customers ten hours of access each month for only $20 or unlimited access for $40. Later the plans were merged for unlimited access at $19.95 per month.

1995 – SkyLine Extends Reach of Youth Programs

Following the passing of longtime co-op president and educator Frank James, the Board of Directors renamed its scholarship program the Frank James-SkyLine Scholarship and expanded it by awarding five additional scholarships to community college-bound students. By 2000, the Board of Directors made the annual scholarships renewable by four and two years, respectively. In 1996, SkyLine continued its focus on youth by joining with the National Telephone Cooperative Association’s (NTCA) Foundation for Rural Service to sponsor a local high school student for the annual youth tour to Washington, D.C.

1996 – SkyLine Employees Establish Crisis Relief Fund

In 1996, SkyLine employees established a crisis relief fund named Project Teamwork-Partners in Our Communities. Employees volunteer to donate $1 or more weekly toward this fund, which supports families across the service area with a variety of crisis-related needs and other organizations that may not fall under the cooperative’s corporate donation guidelines. Donations of more than $80,000 have allowed employees to reach out to those in our community at a critical time for help when it’s needed most. Over the years, employees have also organized projects, including a series of two cookbooks and motorcycle benefit rides, to help employees facing serious illnesses and to support the crisis fund.

1997 – Another Milestone Year for Telephone Access

In April, SkyLine surpassed 30,000 access lines served. Not surprisingly, the installation representing this milestone was for a second line, indicative of the subscribers of the late 1990s, who wanted either a telephone line for their children, a fax line or modem for Internet access.

1999 – SkyBest Communications is Established

In 1999, SkyBest Communications, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of SkyLine Telephone, was established to assume operations of SkyLine’s de-regulated businesses. This included product/service lines, such as residential customer premises equipment (CPE), leasing and sales, business systems sales and services, Internet access, pay stations, inside wire installations and maintenance.

1999 – SkyLine Opens New Customer Service Centers

in West Jefferson and Seven Devils In April and June 1999, Grand Opening ceremonies were held at the new Customer Center locations in West Jefferson and Seven Devils. The former area office locations are utilized by SkyLine as central offices for its switching equipment.

2000 – SkyLine Offers the Area’s First DSL Service

In the spring of 2000, FastZone DSL (high-speed Internet) service was introduced to SkyLine members. SkyLine was the first company in the region to offer high-speed Internet accessibility.

2001 – SkyBest Long Distance Is Introduced

In February, SkyBest introduced its own brand of long-distance service, an affordable and local alternative that featured two simple calling plans.

2001 – SkyLine Opens New Customer Service Center in Sparta, NC

SkyLine’s third in a series of groundbreaking ceremonies took place on October 4, 2000, for a new Customer Service Center in Alleghany County. This project was completed in March 2001, with Grand Opening ceremonies in early June.

2002 – SkyBest Communications Granted CLEC Status

In its role as a competitive local exchange carrier (CLEC), SkyBest was able to begin offering dial tone service to the West Jefferson/Jefferson communities of Ashe County, which had historically only been served by CenturyLink/Sprint/Centel/Central Telephone.

2004 – FTTP (Fiber-to-the-Premise) Plans Announced

On October 1, SkyLine Telephone Membership Corporation announced the company’s plans to deploy fiber-to-the-home services throughout its five-county service area. Then SkyLine Chief Executive Officer (CEO) John Dixon announced the company’s plans. ’We believe our future lies in a fiber-to-the-home network,’ Dixon said. ’Although our current backbone network is mostly fiber- based, we still rely on copper to deliver last-mile services to the home.’

2006 – Grant Program Supports Technology in Schools; New Scholarship Introduced

In February, SkyLine Membership Corporation announced a new educational grant program for area public schools designed to increase student access to technology in the classroom. Through the Technology Education Grant, SkyLine designated a total of $55,000 to be distributed among county school systems in the cooperative’s five-county service area. To date, the grant awards have totaled more than $250,000 and resulted in the purchase of numerous SMART Board interactive white boards and related equipment for area schools. In another partnership with NTCA’s Foundation for Rural Service SkyLine serves as a local sponsor of the $2,500 FRS Scholarship, which gives emphasis to those students who plan to return to a rural community following college. Two local winners, Justin Hodges and Michelle Rhodes, were announced in 2006.

September 2006 – Department of Defense Presents Freedom Award to SkyLine in Nation’s Capital

In September, the Department of Defense (DOD) honored the top 15 outstanding employers of National Guard and Reserve members with the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve’s (ESGR) 2006 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Awards dinner in Washington, D.C. SkyLine was among the honorees that included MGM MIRAGE, Starbucks and DuPont and public agencies such as the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the State of Vermont.

2009 – SkyBest TV is Offered Via the SkyLine Fiber-Optic Network

Digital Television service was launched in limited areas in July 2008 after many years of testing and field trials. In order to offer the best signal available, a Motorola head-end was installed at the SkyLine Headquarters, which provides superior quality standard-definition and high-definition channels.

2009 – SkyBest Security becomes available for North Carolina Customers

In 2009, SkyBest Communications added yet another new line of service — SkyBest Security. These state-of-the-art security systems help protect homes and businesses from burglary, fire and other dangers. In addition, SkyBest Security offers Medical Alert Monitoring that is perfect for customers with health concerns or who want to live independently longer.

2010 – SkyLine Awarded $28.9 Million for FTTP Project

At an official ceremony on August 16, 2010 at SkyLine’s corporate offices, State Directors with USDA Rural Development from North Carolina and Tennessee announced that SkyLine was the recipient of $28.9 million from the USDA Broadband Initiatives Program. The 70 percent grant / 30 percent loan was part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and will expand the provision of advanced fiber-to-the-premises services via a fiber-optic network in Alleghany, Ashe and Johnson counties.