Sixty and seventy years ago, AT&T built thousands of Long Line towers as part of its transcontinental microwave communications network. It’s been decades since they were used for their original purpose, but one still stands near the community of Lena in Parke County. The journey to find it took my mom and me through all of God’s creation, but we eventually found it.
The Long Line tower at Lena stands 163 feet tall1. When in use, it relayed a signal from Montclair, twenty-seven miles northeast, to Terre Haute, twenty-four miles southwest2. Today, the tower retains its iconic KS-15676 horn antennae.
AT&T deaccessioned most of its towers around the year 2000 after the Long Lines program ended, . Today, the Lena tower is owned by MTS, Incorporated3.
Sources Cited
1 Transmitter Characteristics (n.d.). Antennasearch. Web. Retrieved August 24, 2024.
2 Long Lines Map and Information (n.d.). Web. Map. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
3 (See footnote 1).
