AT&T - Norway, Illinois Facility Badge

[Fabius]

I picked up this badge on eBay from a fellow telephone badge and pin collector. A quick check with Google shows that there are 5 small towns in the US named Norway located in the following states: Illinois, Maine, Michigan, Iowa and South Carolina. None of them seem to have or had any AT&T facility requiring the use of badges. I guess my next step is to send copies of the badge to the local historical societies in these towns. Does anyone have any ideas?

There are many organizations past and present that could of used the abbreviation ATT (such as American Tax Technicians) but none that used AT&T.

[Sargeguy]

There is a Cold War-era facility in Norway, IL that seems to be the most likely fit.  Your badge seems a little older than 1953, but who knows?
https://www.flickr.com/photos/coldwararchaeology/sets/72157625547709831/

[unbeldi]

There is a Cold War-era facility in Norway, IL that seems to be the most likely fit.

Seems reasonable, the Norway, IL facility was one of the test beds for CCIS toll signaling in the 1970s. An AT&T badge would imply some kind of Long Lines facility. Several articles in the Bell records discuss it, e.g., BSTJ 57(2) 449-465 (February 1978) and I seem to remember another article with pictures of the transmission towers.

[Sargeguy]

Here is a little more info and more pictures:

http://long-lines.net/places-routes/NRWYILNO/index.html

[Fabius]

WOW! Great information. Thanks. From the information it seems the site first opened in 1953 as a microwave repeater, which probably had no employees stationed there. But it became a pretty large facility including a Bell System Class 1 office. This size of a faculty would of issued badges. I will send a picture to the county historical society and see if they have any information. 

The c clasp saddle back pin/clasp (see picture) is characteristic of an earlier badge but who knows how long that style was used.

[G-Man]

Several years ago a TCI telephone show was held at a similar ex-AT&T, facility owned by TCI member John LaRue of the JKL Museum.

In addition to the Lyons show, a few years ago, John has also hosted a tour after a TCI show, at another ex-AT&T underground facility that he owns in San Jose, California.
At the time, his curator, Wayne Merrit, posted the following to the TCI list:

Apr 11, 2010
The Lyons, Nebraska regional telephone show planning is progressing well.
Tables number in the 20s and closing in on the 30s. And, like the show 2
years ago, there are a lot of people signed up who are not members of the
clubs. They are coming for the tour of the building. So far I have over 40
non members signed up. So it looks like a sales opportunity to me. Cut off
for table reservations is Sat., April 24th.

Lyons is a very unique site... a very interesting piece of cold war
history. Don't miss seeing this 100,000sq.ft. underground fortress.

Details are at: www.lyonsshow.com

Wayne Merit

[dsk]

Nice to hear about Norway's that popular. 
We had a Bell telephone company here once, but never AT&T as far as I did know.

dsk

[Fabius]

Nice to hear about Norway's that popular. 

dsk

The locations in the USA named Norway are so named because of the Norwegian settlers in those areas. Norway, Illinois has a plaque presented by King Olav V commemorating the Norwegian settlers who first settled in that area

[Sargeguy]

Norway, Maine is one of several towns (Denmark, Sweden, Poland, Peru) in the area named after foreign countries.  No one really knows why but it is unlikely that it had anything to do with immigrants.

[Fabius]

How Norway Maine got its name is a mystery. The town records were destroyed in a 1843 fire. 

Denmark Maine on the other hand was named after the Kingdom of Denmark It was incorporated as Denmark on February 20, 1807, and named in a show of solidarity with Denmark. That country's capital, Copenhagen, was attacked in 1801 and 1807 by the British Royal Navy.

Great postal cover with the Bell Company logo.