QST often contains cutting-edge technical articles, and the magazine’s April issue often contains the finest. It was no exception 65 years ago, and the April 1957 issue contained an article by prolific contributor Larson E. Rapp, WIOU, regarding the antenna shown above. Rapp noted that ferrite “loopstick” antennas worked well for AM radios, and surmised that they would make excellent multi-band transmitting antennas. He hoisted the model shown here atop his flagpole, and found that it performed exceptionally well.

But Rapp, being the technical genius that he was, carried the idea a step further. He noted that many antenna books depicted an antenna, along with its “image” directly underneath, below the ground. He surmised that if he buried the antenna, then the image would appear above the ground, without the need for any unsightly visible structure. He was able to get down to 35 feet, where he hit bedrock, and he buried the antenna there. He then hoisted a field strength meter up the flagpole, and sure enough, the maximum signal strength was achieved at 35 feet.