How to Find Old Telephone Directories
- Many digital genealogy resources such as Heritage Quest provide online copies of old telephone books.
- See our genealogy page for help.
- Business Research
- See our business research page for information about finding current information about businesses.
- If you can’t find a directory for a small town try searching for larger towns in the area.
- Rand McNally Black and White Mileage Map: Idaho. Commercial Atlas of America page 360 [Idaho]. Rand McNally & Company, 1920.
- Search for phone books in libraries using WorldCat.
Online Information
- Telecommunications Relay Services Directory (FCC)
- Idaho Telephone Exchanges and Company Areas: Co-ops and Regulated Companies. Map. Idaho Public Utilities Commission. 2/4/16 (PDF) https://puc.idaho.gov/FileRoom/PublicFiles/maps/CITIES.pdf. Accessed December 23, 2020.
- Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Maps
Telephone and Telegraph Companies and Directory Publishers
The names below were collected from phone books, library catalog records, and R.L. Polk & Company’s 1906, 1910-1911, and 1916 Idaho State Gazetteer and Business Directories.
- Albion Telephone Co.
- American Business Directories, Inc.
- American Development
- American Directory Publishing Co.
- Asotin Telephone Co.
- AT&T
- Bear River Valley Telephone Co.
- Buena Vista
- BYU-Idaho Press
- Camas Prairie Mutual Telephone Co.
- Cambridge Telephone Company
- Carey Telephone Company
- Cascade Telephone Co.
- Cassia County Telephone Co.
- Cassia Independent Telephone Co.
- Catalist (US West Marketing Resources)
- Central Idaho Telegraph & Telephone Co.
- Century Telephone of Idaho, Inc.
- CenturyLink
- CenturyTel
- CenturyTel of Washington, Inc.
- Challis & Pahsimeroi Telephone Association
- Citizens Communications
- Citizens Telecom
Clearwater Telephone & Telegraph Co. - Clearwater Telephone Co.
- Continental System
- Continental Telephone Co. of the West
- Cox Communications
- Crocker Co.
- CTC Telecom
- Custer Telephone Cooperative
- Dex
- Dex Media, Inc.
- Dex One Corporation
- Dex Plus
- Downey Independent Telephone Co.
- Dvorak Telephone Co.
- Emmett Messenger-Index
- Empire Publishing Co.
- Farmers Mutual Telephone Co.
- Filer Mutual Telephone Co.
- Fremont Independent Telephone Co.
- Fronteer Directory Co.
- Frontier Communications
- Frontier Pages
- Gem State Rural Publishing Co.
- Gem State Utilities Corp.
- General Telephone & Electronics Co. (GTE Corporation)
- General Telephone Co. of the Northwest
- Gifford Farmers Mutual Telephone Co. Limited
- Gobble Agency
- GTE North
- GTE Northwest
- H.H. Bancroft and Co.
- Hagadone Directories, Inc.
- Harris InfoSource
- Herald Journal
- Hill-Donnelly
- Home Telephone Co.
- Idaho Business Directory
- Idaho Independent Telephone Co.
- Idaho Telephone Co. (Continental System)
- Impact
- Impact Directories
- Independent Long Distance Telephone Co.
- Independent Telephone Co.
- Indian Valley Telephone Co.
- InfoUSA Inc.
- Inland Telephone & Telegraph Co.
- Inland Telephone Co.
- Inter-Mountain Mutual Telephone Co.
- Intermountain Phone Books
- Interstate Consolidated Telephone Co.
- Interstate Telephone Co.
- Interstate Utilities Co.
- Johnson Publishing Co.
- Keithley & De Lashmutt Telephone Co.
- L.S. Knox
- Lemhi Telephone Co.
- Local Publications, Inc.
- Long Valley Mutual Telephone Co.
- Mackay Telephone Co.
- Malheur Bell
- Malheur Home Telephone Co.
- McCammon Telephone Co.
- MCI
- McLeodUSA Publishing Co.
- Meadows-Warren-Roosevelt Telephone Co.
- Medicine Lodge Telephone Co.
- Meridian Independent Telephone Co.
- Midland Telephone Co.
- Midvale Rural Telephone Co.
- Midvale Telephone Exchange, Inc.
- Moscow Rural Telephone Co.
- Moscow Telephone & Telegraph Co.
- Mountain Bell
- Mountain States Telephone & Telegraph Co.
- Mud Lake Telephone Cooperative
- Mutual Telephone Co.
- Names & Numbers
- Nez Perce Co-Operative Telephone Co.
- North Idaho Telephone Co.
- Oregon Telephone & Telegraph Co.
- Oregon Weekly (Oregon Japanese telephone directory)
- Oxford Rural Telephone Co.
- Pacific Coast
- Pacific Coast Publishing
- Pacific Northwest Bell Telephone Co.
- Pacific States Telephone & Telegraph Co.
- Pacific Telephone & Telegraph Co.
- Parma Telephone Co.
- PDC Pages (Phone Directories Co.)
- Phone Book Publishers
- Phone Directories
- Phone Directories Co., Inc. (PDC)
- Pocatello Tribune
- Polk (R.L. Polk)
- Postal Telegraph Cable Co.
- Potlatch Telephone Co.
- Project Mutual Telephone Cooperative Association
- PTI Communications
- Qwest Communications
- Qwest Dex
- Rand McNally & Company
- R.G. Bailey Printing Co.
- R.L. Polk
- R.M. Bell Telephone Co.
- R.M.B. Telephone Co.
- Red Rock & Salmon River Telephone Co.
- ReferenceUSA (infoUSA Inc.)
- Regional Telephone Directory
- Roberts Telephone Co.
- Rockland Telephone Co.
- Rocky Mountain Bell Telephone Co.
- Rocky Mountain Directory Co.
- Rogerson Telephone Co.
- Rural Telephone Co.
- Settlers Mutual Telephone Co.
- Silver Star Telephone Co., Inc.
- Smith Telephone Co.
- Southern Idaho Telephone Co. Ltd.
- Stites-Elk City Electric Light & Telephone Co.
- Sunset Telephone & Telegraph Co.
- TDS Telecom (Telephone and Data Systems)
- Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. (TDS)
- Telephone Utilities of Washington, Inc.
- The White & Yellow Pages
- Time Warner Communications
- Towne and Bacon
- Troy Telephone & Electric Co.
- Troy Telephone Co.
- TW Telecom
- Upper Valley Phone Books
- US West Communications
- US West Dex, Inc.
- US West Direct
- US West Marketing Resources
- Valley Telephone Co.
- Verizon
- West Dex
- Western Union Telegraph Co.
- White & Yellow Pages
- Yellow Book USA, Inc.
- Yellow Pages, Inc.
- Yellowbook
- Yellowbook, Inc.
- Yellowstone Power & Telephone
- Ziplocal
This page updated by rjoiner on January 7, 2021.