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Our Story Began in 1950: A Legacy Rooted in Connection

  • On September 21, 1950 South Central Rural Telecommunications Cooperative (SCRTC) was incorporated.
  • A month later, on Halloween, the first meeting of Incorporators was held, along with the first board meeting and the adoption of bylaws.
  • The Ross brothers of Cave City became the first to join, with a $35 membership.

Building a Strong Foundation

  • 1952: SCRTC purchased from Southern Continental Telephone for $92,500 for the exchanges in Horse Cave, Cave City, Munfordville, Hiseville, and Hardyville, of approximately 1200 subscribers. A year later, the first Annual Meeting was held on August 5, 1953, with 160 people attending.
  • 1955: Completed dial telephone system with approximately 1,700 telephones.
  • 1965: Converted the 8-party rural service into a 4-party system.
  • 1968: The 10,000th telephone was installed in Mrs. Myrrell Bunnell’s residence.
  • 1976: System-wide single-party upgrade began, and the 20,000th telephone was installed.
  • 1978: Largest electronic switch was placed into service, and the touch-tone service became available in Munfordville and Glasgow Exchanges.
  • 1985: Single-party upgrade was completed. The Co-op had 17,000 members.
  • 1991: SCRTC, along with 4 other partners, became the largest cellular network in Kentucky.
  • 1995: September 1995 began providing Internet service.
Historic photo of a man at a switchboard
Historic photo of a man adjusting equipment
1970s photo of man checking a server unit
Two men working on plans at a table

Embracing Technology & Expanding Services

  • 2003: Opened SC Telcom, LLC (CLEC) office in Glasgow, offering telephone and video services to Glasgow city.
  • 2006: SCRTC deployed an ad-insertion platform to broadcast TV commercials over 12 cable networks.
  • 2008: First Fiber to the Home deployment, which uses optical fiber to provide high-speed broadband.
  • 2014: CLEC expansion into Greensburg, Hodgenville, Nolin Lake area, and portions of Monroe County.
  • 2017: Name changed to South Central Rural Telecommunications Cooperative, Inc.
  • 2017: In cooperation with Bluegrass Cellular partners and Bluegrass Networks, received a contract with Kentucky Wire, which allowed us to expand into Smiths Grove (Warren County) and Brownsville (Edmonson County)
  • 2018: First bundle packages without phone, including Internet-only options.
  • 2021: Video streaming platform is offered as an alternative to traditional TV.

Continuing the Legacy of Connection

Today, SCRTC currently employee 139 employees and covers over 1,700 square miles throughout 11 counties in South Central KY. The cooperative (ILEC) and South Central Telcom (CLEC) service approximately:

  • 16,000 Telephone Lines
  • 10,500+ TV Households
  • 24,000 Broadband Internet Customers.
Historic photo of telecommunications board
A man working on wires in a server