Contel Federal Systems Inc history

Expansion was stepped up in 1926, when Odegard secured an option to purchase Associated Telephone Company of Long Beach, California.

In January 1930 a new subsidiary, Associated Telephone Investment Company, was established.

The company was reorganized that same year and resurfaced in 1935 as General Telephone Corporation, operating 12 newly consolidated companies.

In 1940 LaCroix was elected General Telephone's first chairman, and Harold Bozell, a former banker for Associated Telephone Utilities, was named president.

Bozell retired in 1951 and Donald Power, a former executive secretary for Ohio Governor John Bricker, was named president.

In 1960 the subsidiary GT&E International Incorporated was formed to consolidate manufacturing and marketing activities of Sylvania, Automatic Electric, and Lenkurt, outside the United States.

One of the company's first acquisitions was Central Western Company, which merged with Telephone Communications in 1961 to form the new parent Continental Telephone Company.

Also during 1965 Continental acquired 65 more telephone companies and again doubled its size.

By 1969 GT&E was serving ten million telephones.

Power retired in 1971, and Warner was named chairman and chief executive officer.

Warner retired in 1976 and Brophy was named to the additional post of chairman.

Continental's first diversification move came in 1979, with the acquisition of Executone, Inc., a New York-based communications equipment maker.

In July 1980 Continental entered the satellite business through a joint venture with Fairchild Industries, and a communications partnership firm, American Satellite Company, was formed to operate a network of earth-based stations that provided voice and data services.

Continental also entered the credit card authorization business in 1981, with the purchase of National Bancard Corporation.

Following AT&T's 1982 announcement that it would divest 22 telephone operating companies, GT&E made a number of reorganizational and consolidation moves.

In December 1983 Vanderslice resigned as president and chief operating officer.

Beginning in 1986 GTE spun off several operations to form joint ventures.

In 1988 GTE divested its consumer communications products unit as part of a telecommunications strategy to place increasing emphasis on the services sector.

In March 1990 the largest merger in the history of the telecommunications industry united two former United States competitors, GTE Corporation and Contel Corporation, under the GTE name.

Following action or review by more than 20 governmental bodies, in March 1991 the merger of GTE and Contel was approved.

When Charles Lee succeeded James (Rocky) L. Johnson to become CEO in 1992, his first order of business was reduction of that obligation.