 It was founded in 1895 to serve Malheur County, Oregon (then located in Sunset Telephone and Telegraph territory).A controlling interest was purchased by Rocky Mountain Bell Telephone Company in 1899, in exchange for Malheur's purchase of the toll line Rocky Mountain Bell laid to connect Malheur to the rest of the telephone network.It continued to remain an independent operation of The Mountain States Telephone and Telegraph Company, formed when Rocky Mountain Bell merged with several other telephone companies throughout the Rocky Mountain region.