Category Archives: Radio history

Radio in Education: 1939

1939JanRadioRetailingEighty years ago this month, the January 1939 issue of Radio Retailing devoted most of its pages to the use of radio in education. Of course, the focus was on how the dealer could tap this market. The most basic use of radio, of course, is shown above. A set is brought into the classroom for these Midwestern students to listen to a program of educational value.

Wiring the school with a public address system would be, of course, a lucrative sale. In addition to being able to make announcements immediately, the magazine suggested educational uses for the equipment. Below, for example, students who handed in the best writing are allowed to broadcast their work over the PA.

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1959 Hamming Is Fun

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Sixty years ago this month, amateur radio made the cover of Boys’ Life magazine’s January 1959 issue, which featured an article entitled “Hamming is Fun” by long time ARRL staffer Perry Williams, W1UED.

The article featured the radio adventures of a number of young hams, including Jules Madey, K2KGJ, of Clark, NJ, who apparently inspired the cover. Madey, a high school student, put in as many as 49 hours a week running phone patches for men at the McMurdo base in Antarctica. Since the best conditions were in the middle of the night, Madey made a habit of going to bed right after supper and setting the alarm for 10:30 PM.

1959JanBL2The magazine contains two more radio features.  First of all, the Tracy Twins comic shows the boys receiving a radio control airplane that Grandpa insists on operating without a license.  Of course, he gets busted as an FCC helicopter and car swoop in.  Fortunately, he gets off with a warning.

Finally, the Boys’ Life Radio Club had three offerings.  For just 20 cents, they would send out the Radio reprint book containing reprints of earlier articles, along with a free log book.  One dollar would get 60 QSL cards.  And for no cost, the club would send any licensed ham operator scout or scouter a card identifying the bearer as an emergency service ham.

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1959 Auto Dialer

1959JanEESixty years ago this month, the January 1959 issue of Electronics Illustrated showed how to put together this convenient autodialer for a telephone. It was designed to be used with a burglar alarm or fire alarm, to place a call to a pre-designated number.

1959JanEE2The heart of the unit was the lever which went over the phone. In case of alarm, a solenoid released to let the phone off the hook. Then, the same lever was used to dial the phone by pushing the hook buttons. This was driven by the wheel shown here, which rotated thanks to a phonograph motor.

A bell or buzzer would sound over the phone, alerting the owner to the alarm.  The article did note that if the line was busy, the message would not go through.



1939 Winking Radio

1939JanPSThe plans for this slightly creepy looking radio appeared in Popular Science 80 years ago this month, January 1939. Billed as an “ideal playroom radio,” the set contained two magic eye tubes that winked when the regenerative tuner was tuned to a station. The mouth served as tuning dial, with the nose taking care of volume.  The set used headphones “so it cannot disturb the rest of the household.”

The 6N5 magic eye tubes were used in the circuit, one as regenerative detector and one as audio amplifier. A type 37 tube was used as a rectifier.

As long as C6 didn’t short out, the set could provide hours of safe fun for the youngsters in the playroom.

1939JanPSschematic



1948 Apartment Antenna

1948DecRadioElec2Seventy years ago, W2YSF’s landlord didn’t allow an antenna on the roof of the ham’s Brooklyn apartment building, so improvisation was necessary.

He finally settled upon the design shown here for his 10 meter rig.  A telescoping antenna was mounted to a wooden bracket bolted to the window sill.  When it was time to get on the air, he swung the antenna outside and extended it.

The author notes that the same system should work well for 6 or 2 meters.

The design is shown in the December 1948 issue of Radio Electronics.

 



1948 Coin Operated Radios

1948DecRadioElecSeventy years ago this month, the December 1948 issue of Radio Electronics featured this serviceman’s account of his successful diversification into the coin-operated radio business.

While the author pointed out that potential markets included lunchonettes, beauty shops, and hospitals, he had so far exclusively provided radios to hotels.

While the radios were adjustable, the author had his set to play one hour for 25 cents. The average income from each set was about $3 per day, of which 25% was shared with the hotel owner.

To deal with the “familiar towel-and-soap stealers,” the set was fastened to a small table, which was in turn bolted to the floor. In addition, the author added a burglar alarm, which consisted of a microswitch in the radio’s case. If the radio was removed from the table, a bell would sound, and a lamp indicating the offending room would light in the manager’s office.



1928 Puerto Rico Hurricane

1928DecBLNinety years ago this month, the December 1928 issue of Boys’ Life carried this picture of Nat Pomeranz, 2APD, of Brooklyn, New York. When a September hurricane devastated Puerto Rico, the Navy’s station was destroyed, but a hasty emergency setup was made. Pomeranz was the first to pull in their weak signal and establish a communications link with the mainland.

The accompanying article noted that the Boy Scouts were in the process of setting up a radio network which could be of service not only in times of emergency, but in establishing closer contact between various troops.



1959 Boys’ Life Radio Contest

1948DecBLSixty years ago this month, the December 1958 issue of Boys’ Life magazine ran the rules for the 1959 annual Boys’ Life radio contest.  The contest was set for February 15-28.  To make sure scouts got their sleep, contest time was limited to 12 hours per week.

The contest featured separate categories for hams and SWL’s.  In the Ham category, the top prize was a National NC303 receiver.  The SWL top prize was a Hallicrafters S-85.



1948 Antenna Ideas

1948DecPSSeventy years ago this month, the December 1948 issue of Popular Science offered these antenna suggestions.  For tough reception areas such as office buildings and hotels, the tried-and-true loop antenna in the window could pull in the stations on the standard broadcast band.  Four suction cups made for a neat installation,

And for that newfangled FM set, a dipole discretely tacked behind the sofa would probably pull in the local static-free station.