First 9-1-1 Call

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The first 9-1-1 emergency services telephone call was made from the office of the mayor on February 16, 1968.   Earlier in the year, AT&T, which had a near monopoly in the telephone industry at the time, had announced its plans for launching the service from an Indiana exchange.  The Alabama Telephone Company, an independent entity, resolved to beat the telecommunications giant to the mark and chose the Haleyville exchange to launch its successful effort.  With much fanfare, Alabama House Speaker Rankin Fite placed the first 9-1-1 call in the nation to U.S. Congressman Tom Bevill, who answered in the Haleyville police station.

[2015: 1901 11th Avenue, Haleyville]