The February 1, 1883 Ringgold Record states, "Mount Ayr and Tingley are connected by telephone." No futher information has been found until 1903 when the Tingley Telephone officers were named as Geo. SWAIN, president; J. O. IMUS, secretary; A. R. HASS, treasurer; Luke SHAY, W. H. POLLOCK, and J. P. FIFE, directors.

The April 16, 1903 Vindicator states, "A new telephone company, the Tingley and Southern, has been organized for the purpose of constructing a line to run south from Tingley along the east road. The shareholders are N. B. SWEENEY, Wm. BLAUER, S. K. McKEE, Fred BLAUER, G. LUPHER, A. D. LUPHER, B. J. HOUSE, O. C. HOUSE, C. D. JOHNSTON, John LONG, Wm. TAPP, L. E. BORDER, Benj. LORIMOR, G. Q. IMMERZEEL, J. A. BUCHANAN, and one share will also go to the M.E. parsonage. Those who were on the Tingley and Beaconsfield line sold their shares in the new line which would give them better service."

W. A. ELDER was one of the early owners of the telephone switchboard system in Tingley. It is not known how long it was located in his drugstore, but it was sold with the drugstore in January, 1904, to C. Horton COYE, a young druggist from Carson, Iowa.

In February, 1906, a new telephone line, the Tingley and Northwestern, was established with the members being Z. I. GROUT, G. L. SHAW, Will McCULLEY, C. A. BURNS, and Joe SHEPHERD. The shareholders on each line maintained their line by cutting away limbs of trees that interferred with the wire, straightened the poles, wire, etc.

The line north of Tingley was called the Tingley and Melrose Telephone Company. Some of the shareholders on this line were Rome FLEMING, Hugh KENDALL, Jasper WILSON, John DEWEY, E. S. GREEN, Clarence WEBB, and Will KENDALL.

In January, 1911, C. Horton COYE traded his telephone system, drugstore, and residence to O. W. ROUSH of Alexandria, Nebraska, for Mr. ROUSH'S 200 acre farm northeast of Tingley, occupied by James LEE. Several Tingley citizens today can remember going on the walk along the east side of ROUSH'S drugstore that led to the door at the back where the switchboard was located. ROUSH'S drugstore was located where the vacant lot is today west of the fire station.

  In October, 1916, a new Bell Telephone line was constructed from Afton to Mount Ayr, and Tingley and Ellston were connected on the east-west line. A party of about 42 men engaged in the construction of the line were encamped near W. A. ALLEN'S northwest of Tingley. Their camp looked like a miniature city. A few Tingley young men were among the number employed. The Bell Telephone Co. connected their line to the Tingley Central.

In January, 1917, James A. VerPLOEGH of Pella became owner of the Tingley Telephone Exchange. Mr. VerPLOEGH was not only a telephone operator but an expert electrician.

In June, 1917, Mr. VerPLOEGH built a new one-story, white stucco building on the lots north of HEYER'S store for the telephone office (just north of the present day post office building.) H. H. DUFTY had the contract for construction. The switchboard and office equipment were moved to the new building the latter part of January, 1918.

In 1942 Jim VerPLOEGH became ill with leukemia. To keep the telephone business going, a son Howard and his family returned to Tingley to manage the business.

Mr. and Mrs. Dale H. PETERS of Ainsworth, Iowa, purchased the telephone business from Jim VerPLOEGH and moved to Tingley August 30, 1945. Mr. PETERS died suddenly from a heart attack on November 9, 1950. Mrs. PETERS sold the business to Harry and Coyla ARCHIBOLD in August, 1951.

In April, 1961, the State of Iowa passed a law that formed the Iowa Telephone Company. The ARCHIBOLDS sold the Tingley Telephone Company in 1961 to the Iowa Telephone Company (Continental Telphone Company in 1983), they taking possession in April, 1962.

On April 21, 1962, the Tingley community had a party at the Legion Hall honoring the ARCHIBOLDS and the local telephone operators, Marjorie PETERSOHN, Mabel CLYMER, Viola VerPLOEGH, and Dolores BISCHOFF, as a farewell to the local switchboard and over a half a century of personal service to its patrons.

  NOTE: James A. "Jim" VerPLOEGH was born in 1888, and died in 1956. Viola M. VerPLOEGH was born in 1892, and died in 1971. They were interred at Tingley Cemetery.

Coyla D. (ROSENGRANT) ARCHIBOLD was born August 18, 1914, and died November 9, 2000. Harry F. ARCHIBOLD was born October 5, 1904, and died in January of 1973 at the age of 68 years. They were interred at Tingley Cemetery.

Marjorie B. PETERSOHN was born October 23, 1893, and died in March of 1984. She was interred at Tingley Cemetery.

  SOURCE: Tingley, Iowa Centennial: 1883 - 1983. Pp. 59-60. PSI, Inc. Belmond IA. 1983.
Courtesy of Mount Ayr Public Library, September of 2011

Transcription by Sharon R. Becker, September of 2011