Wisconsin Bell, Inc. is the name of the Bell Operating Company serving Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

. They were a wholly owned subsidiary of AT&T Inc..

Their headquarters is at 722 North Broadway, Milwaukee, WI. After the 1984 Bell System Divestiture

Bell System divestiture

The Bell System divestiture, or the breakup of AT&T, was initiated by the filing in 1974 by the U.S. Department of Justice of an antitrust lawsuit against AT&T. The case, United States v...

, Wisconsin Bell became a part of Ameritech

Ameritech

AT&T Teleholdings, Inc., formerly known as Ameritech Corporation , was a U.S. telecommunications company that arose out of the 1984 AT&T divestiture. Ameritech was one of the seven Regional Bell Operating Companies that was created following the breakup of the Bell System...

, one of the 7 original Bell Regional Holding Companies. The Wisconsin Bell name continued to be used until January, 1993, when they dropped all of their individual Bell Operating Company names in favor of using their corporate name, Ameritech, for marketing purposes.

In 1998, Ameritech

Ameritech

AT&T Teleholdings, Inc., formerly known as Ameritech Corporation , was a U.S. telecommunications company that arose out of the 1984 AT&T divestiture. Ameritech was one of the seven Regional Bell Operating Companies that was created following the breakup of the Bell System...

 sold 19 Wisconsin Bell exchanges, primarily located in central and northern Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

, to CenturyTel, now CenturyLink

CenturyLink

CenturyLink, Inc. is a United States telecommunications firm, headquartered in Monroe, Louisiana. The company, founded as Central Telephone & Electronics Corporation in 1968, later changed its name to Century Telephone Enterprises, Inc. in 1971, and then was called CenturyTel, Inc. from 1999 to 2010...

. Those exchanges were transferred to CenturyLink

CenturyLink

CenturyLink, Inc. is a United States telecommunications firm, headquartered in Monroe, Louisiana. The company, founded as Central Telephone & Electronics Corporation in 1968, later changed its name to Century Telephone Enterprises, Inc. in 1971, and then was called CenturyTel, Inc. from 1999 to 2010...

's subsidiary CenturyTel of the Midwest-Kendall

CenturyTel of the Midwest-Kendall

CenturyTel of the Midwest-Kendall, LLC is one of the CenturyLink operating companies in Wisconsin. The company's cities include Peshtigo, Kendall, and Marinette....

.

After being held by AT&T

AT&T

AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...

 (pre-1984), Ameritech

Ameritech

AT&T Teleholdings, Inc., formerly known as Ameritech Corporation , was a U.S. telecommunications company that arose out of the 1984 AT&T divestiture. Ameritech was one of the seven Regional Bell Operating Companies that was created following the breakup of the Bell System...

, and SBC, as of 2005, they are now part of the "new" AT&T.

Logos

	Wisconsin Telephone Co. In 1921, Wisconsin Telephone receives its own Bell logo. The logo contains "Wisconsin Telephone Co.", along with the standard "American Telephone & Telegraph Co." This particular logo is used until 1939.
	Ameritech Wisconsin In 1993, Ameritech chooses to do business as one "Ameritech", and drops the names of its Bells in advertising, and comes with a new logo. This logo remains until 2001.
	SBC Global Network In 1999, SBC acquires Ameritech. Shortly after, SBC begins attaching "SBC Global Network" to the ends of its subsidiary logos, resulting in this logo.
	SBC Ameritech Wisconsin In 2001, SBC proceeds to "unify" its companies by adding the "SBC" corporate logo to the operating company logos, and begins advertising Ameritech Wisconsin as "SBC Ameritech Wisconsin".
	SBC Wisconsin SBC eventually drops the names of all of its Bells in late 2002, and adds the title "d/b/a Doing business as The phrase "doing business as" is a legal term used in the United States, meaning that the trade name, or fictitious business name, under which the business or operation is conducted and presented to the world is not the legal name of the legal person who actually own it and are responsible for it...  SBC (name of state or region)" to the official names of its companies on January 1, 2003. Wisconsin Bell's d/b/a name becomes "SBC Wisconsin". SBC, later AT&T, retains "SBC Ameritech" on cards on its payphones, in order to better separate its operating regions.
	AT&T Wisconsin In 2005, SBC completed its acquisition of AT&T Corp., forming AT&T, Inc. AT&T changes the d/b/a names of its Bell Operating Companies on January 1, 2006, resulting in "AT&T Wisconsin".