13 Adams Street, Newton, New Jersey
The Sussex Telephone Company was incorporated on July 29, 1897 with a capital stock of $3,000. Its object was the construction and operation of a telephone line between Pennsylvannia and New Jersey providing regional service in Sussex and Warren Counties. The incorporators were: E.E. Hall of Brooklyn, New York; James B. Van Etten and John P. Van Etten of Conashaugh, Pennsylvannia; James N. Miller of Layton, New Jersey; and Edgar J. Wright of Newton, New Jersey. The Sussex Company expected to have the main line between the Delaware River and Newton via Branchville hung by August of the same year. Their central office was first located in the Swayze Building [Sussex County Family Court] on High Street, nearly opposite Park Place. On July 31, 1897, the newspapers reported that E. J. Wright, representing the Sussex Telephone Company, was in Newton drumming up local support for the line which the Company had already constructed from Dingman, Pennsylvannia to Layton; from Milford, Pennsylvannia to Hainsville, and Flatbrookville to Millbrook with service to the Delaware Water Gap and Port Jervis. With completion of the main line, Newton was to be the center with connections to Deckertown, Hainesville, Montague and intervening points. The price was projected at $24 per year for the use of the instruments and no extra charge for service over the entire system. Lafayette was connected to Newton by a phone line in April 1898. By the end of June, 1898, the Company employed managers to maintain night and day service and the Sussex Register noted that "Telephone poles have grown so numerous around the park that if the town ever has another public display of fireworks they may be utilized as a support for set pieces."

Long distance service already existed in Newton at the tine of the Company's formation and competition for service was intense. On June 30, 1897, the Hudson River Telephone Company announced its intention to open an exchange in Newton with about 40 local instruments and lines connecting Lafayette, Branchville, Beemerville, Deckertown, Hamburg, Franklin, Ogdensburg and Sparta. The Sussex Telephone Company achieved dominance of the regional market largely through the "vision and enterprise" of a Layton physician, Dr. James N. Miller, its president and owner. It was later said that his "foresight and strong character...gave the county its first telephone communication." [Sussex Register, January 3, 1929]

James Nelson Miller, the son of Ebenezer and Hannah (Gandy) Miller, was born at the family's homestead on Long Island. In 1881, he graduated from the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University. He established a practice at Layton, New Jersey. In 1885, he married Mary E. Creveling of Layton. His skills were widely recognized and he was elected president of the Sussex County Medical Society. He retired from medical practice in 1898.

The establishment of the Sussex County Telephone Company was largely the result of his efforts and he long served as its president and proprietor. As a shareholder and secretary of the Dingman's Chancer & Delaware Bridge Company, he was instrumental in building Dingmans Bridge in 1899 and 1900 (having previously acquired the rights and franchise of the old company). He and his wife resided at 24 Linwood Avenue in Newton. [Northwestern New Jersey, A. Van Doren Honeyman (Editor), Lewis Publishing Company, Inc.: New York, 1927, Volume IV, pp. 364-365.] On January 3, 1929, the Sussex Register credited "Dr. James N. Miller, a pioneer in the telephone field..." with giving "Sussex County its first telephone service over thirty years ago." The editor noted that by "Courageously pursuing a conservative policy from the very start he more than held his own against the ruthless competition of the earlier years and developed the Sussex Telephone Company to such a degree that the Bell Company, in 1911, offered him a contract for furnishing toll connections."

In 1911, the Sussex Telephone Company installed an advanced switchboard and cable plant in Newton and converted its network from grounded lines to magnetic circuits. The original magneto telephones were then abandoned in favor of more modern instruments. Telephone poles, wires, switchboards and telephones were entirely replaced over several years in order to modernize the entire system. Because of these improvements and the ever increasing demand for service, the Company expanded rapidly after the First World War. While there were only 450 subscribers to the system in 1912 when August Burkart became the Company's manager, the number of subscribers exceeded 2,000 by 1929. By 1927, improvements in technology and the growing number of users urged the installation of a larger and more advanced switchboard and cable plant, but Dr. Miller's poor health led to a postponement of the plan. In the interest of the community and the Company, Dr. Miller sold the Sussex Telephone Company to the United Telephone Company on January 1, 1929.

At that time, the United Telephone Company of Chicago, Illinois, was one of the large holding companies in the independent telephone field with operations in Texas, Missouri, Michigan, Minnesota, Iowa, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Ohio, Pensylvannia, New York, Louisiana and New Jersey. United Telephone was attracted to Newton by the opportunity of gaining access to a rapidly expanding market in the New York metropolitan area. In anticipation of the construction of the George Washington Bridge, most economists were then projecting a suburban real estate boom. United Telephone was interested in providing facilities for the profitable transmission of regional calls while maintaining good local service. To develop these dual services, August Burkart was retained as manager and the Sussex Telephone Company continued to operate under its own identity.

To modernize facilities at the Newton Exchange, the United Telephone Company signed a contract on April 7, 1929, with Stromberg, Carlson Telephone Company of Rochester, New York for "a super service switchboard." The new equipment enhanced service by introducing "revertive ringing -- that is the tone that one hears to indicate that the party which they have called is being rung" and "automatic ringing -- that is the intermittent ringing that persists until the called party answers or the calling party hangs up." Several thousand feet of underground cable were also laid in ducts to improve the quality of transmission. A new modern building was erected at 13 Adams Street in Newton to accomodate the proposed up-grade of the system.

The site of the new Telephone Building was deliberately chosen "just a step from the business district for the transaction of business and still off the main traffic lanes that do make considerable noise and interfere with service." It was the first commercial structure on an otherwise residential street. At the time of its construction, it was considered "an important addition to the town's business buildings."

Plans for the Sussex Telephone Building were drawn by the architectural firm of H. B. Brady, Inc. of Elizabeth, New Jersey under the personal supervision of its president, Mr. L. M. Dennis. The construction contract was awarded to William I. Houghton Company, Inc. of Newton.

The Telephone Building was built of brick with trimmings of cast stone, two stories in height over an excavated basement, at an expenditure of $50,000. The materials were considered fire-proof. The basement was especially engineered for the installation of underground cables and provided a battery cabinet at the rear to protect the equipment from damages caused by thermal changes. The basement also provided workshops and storerooms. On the first floor, the rear room was arranged for the installment of cable terminals, converters that rang the bells on the line, charging machines to rejuvenate the batteries and fine testing apparatus. There was also a desk for the Wire Chief or testman here. The front section of the first floor contained a large business office with a public telephone booth.

The Switchboard Room and conference rooms occupied the second floor. An operators' restroom or lounge on this floor was outfitted with an electric stove and other conveniences "in order that the operators may be able to enjoy at least a cup of coffee, if unable to get to their homes on account of storms, etc."

Throughout the structure, special attention was given to providing adequate lighting and ventilation for the comfort of workers and the public. The grounds surrounding the building were terraced and planted with shrubbery "that will make an attractive yard." The Company anticipated that: "This building will not only be one of service; but it will also add to the beauty of the clean town of Newton." [See Sussex Register, June 6, 1929]

As the new building neared completion, the Sussex Telephone Company began moving "from the quarters it has so long occupied in the Park Block [now Kymer] Building." At 11 p.m., on Saturday, January 4, 1930, "a new epoch in the business life of Newton was inaugurated by the opening of the new telephone building and equipment of the Sussex Telephone Company whereby better service will be given to the public." [Sussex Register, January 9, 1930] The opening of the new plant and equipment was witnessed by Mr. L. E. Winget, Assistant General Officer of the United Telephone Company of Chicago; by representatives of the Tri-State Associated Telephone Corporation servicing Port Jervis, Milford and Matamoras; and by engineers of the New Jersey Bell Telephone Company. The new facilities were described as "One of the Finest and Best Equipped in This Section of the State."

Copyright 2000 Kevin W. Wright. All rights reserved.