Polk County's oldest public utility, the Livingston Telephone Company was organized Aug. 3, 1903, with S.H. Smith as president. The locally owned, independent telephone exchange operated a 24-hour switchboard on the second floor of a building at 315 N. Jackson. the system started with 40 hand-cranked telephones in service. By the time creosoted poles were installed in 1909, there were 124 telephones in use. In 1959 the exchange was converted to a fully automatic dialing system. (1985)