AT&T built thousands of microwave relay towers as part of its Long Line communications network in the 50s and 60s. Although they haven’t been used as part of it in nearly forty years, many remain standing across Indiana. One is just outside of Wheatfield.
The tower in Wheatfield appears to have been built in 19631. It’s missing its iconic KS-15676 horn antennae, but the tower still rises an impressive 268 feet2. When in use, it relayed a signal from Grant Park, Illinois twenty-five miles southeast to Monon3.
After the Long Lines program ended, AT&T deaccessioned most of its towers around the year 2000. Today, T-Mobile uses Wheatfield’s tower for cell phones4.
Sources Cited
1 Parcel 37-16-32-000-011.000-033 (2024). Office of the Assessor. Jasper County [Rensselaer]. Web. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
2 Transmitter Characteristics (n.d.). Antennasearch. Web. Retrieved August 23 2024.
3 Long Lines Map and Information (n.d.). Web. Map. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
4 (See footnote 2).
