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History of Brazoria Telephone Company

Brazoria Telephone Company was bought by Mr. & Mrs. Charles Hendrix and their daughter and son-in-law, Mr. & Mrs. Ed Pewitt in 1946, and remains in the Hendrix family to the present. In 1946 the telephone company consisted of 100 magneto telephones with grounded lines. The company progressed through the years by adding digital trunking cable and building two new central office buildings in 1981. In 1985 Mr. Charley was honored by being inducted into the Texas Independent Pioneer Association Hall of Fame. Not to be forgotten is the contribution of Mrs. Beulah Hendrix, “Boo”, as her friends call her. She spent most of her 82 years in the telephone industry beginning as a 17-year old girl and took a job as an operator in Atlanta, Texas. This was the continuation of a family tradition, as her mother had been an operator in the 1890s and early 1900s. After meeting and marrying Mr. Hendrix in Atlanta, Boo and Mr. Charley continued their partnership in both life and the telephone industry, with Mrs. Hendrix serving in many capacities within the company, including office manager, personnel manager, and often serving as operator as well. She remained active in the company throughout her 44 years with Brazoria Telephone Company. John H. Greenberg, grandson of Charles and Beulah Hendrix, became president in 1983. After becoming President, John continued the legacy of his Grandfather, witnessing: the change to digital equipment in 1983; the installation of fiber to Angleton, Sweeny, and Old Ocean in 1986; a large, buried cable project started in 1987; remodeling of the Brazoria Central Office and construction of a new Service Center in 1988; and the construction of a 600-foot tower in 1989. John passed day-to-day leadership of Btel to his son, Charlie Greenberg, who became president in August, 2013. Btel plans to continually improve and expand its services now and in the future. The current innovation is deploying fiber to the homes and businesses within the Btel serving area. Btel’s customer assistance and quality of service are now, and always will be, Btel’s primary focus.

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