About Us
The History of Hastings Cable
Hastings Cable Vision is proud to have been part of the Madoc community since it was started in 1965 by Gord Pigden and Glen Nickle.
Hastings Cable Vision grew out of Gord Pidgen’s teenage hobby of running an amateur radio and became Hasting County’s first cable TV company licensed by the CRTC.
Channel 4: The Beginning
In the beginning Channel 4 was broadcast as audio only. Later in 1965 still video text was added and birthday messages or local news notices was written on a plastic sheet and displayed 1 slide at a time.
1967 brought weekly black and white video that was recorded locally to the Channel 4 line up. Channel 4 also broadcast video of local events like the Santa Clause parade and weather forecasts that Gord transcribed from his short wave radio early on.
Channel 4 moved into a larger studio around 1970 and began broadcasting in colour.
The Channel Line Up Grows Over Time
In 1965, channels 2 through 13 were picked up by receivers on Hastings Cable Vision’s 170 foot tower, and included channels from Toronto, Ottawa, Peterborough, Kingston and Rochester.
Over time 4 satellite dishes were installed making it possible to include more channels in the cable line up and through the years the channel line-up has expanded in response to requests from the community.
All in the family
Gord Pidgen ran Hastings Cable Vision right up until his death, when his wife Mary took over and remained President until her passing in 2012.
Terry Pigden joined his father in the family business when he graduated from college in 1967, and was joined by his wife Eileen in 1979.
2013 and Beyond
In 2013 Hastings Cable Vision will begin to offer Internet and phone services to Madoc and the surrounding area, making it a complete communications service provider and continuing its commitment to keep Madoc and area connected with the rest of the world.