The Southwestern Bell Telephone Company building in Ash Grove is shown here in February 1965, as construction was underway on a new addition to the company’s headquarters in Ash Grove as part of a major storm-proofing project extending between Springfield and Fair Play.
The work was one component of a $1 million effort to place long-distance lines underground, a change that officials explained would protect communication infrastructure from lightning, wind, ice and hunters. The project required improvements not only at the Ash Grove site but also at Walnut Grove and at several repeater huts positioned along the route.
Similar photographs of the construction at the Ash Grove building were published in the Springfield Leader & Press on Feb. 7, 1965…