09-06-2001, 10:30 PM
PaulVJB (http://www.amfone.net/K3L/) writes " 200+ Work Millen's AM Rig as Happy Birthday
It's been 100 years this week since James Millen was born, and one can wish he were still around to see the grand turnout to help mark the occasion Weds., Aug. 5, with a ceremonial run of his 1936 AM transmitter and his old call signs, W1HRX.
Timed with the Collins Collectors Association First Wednesday AM Night, 75 meters came alive with nostalgic comments, storytelling, and recollections from those appreciating Millen's craftsmanship and his role in the National line of radios.
Millen's rig, restored and displayed at the Antique Wireless Association's museum near Rochester, New York, was the centerpiece as about a hundred fans gathered at the museum to help the on-air festivities.
"We must have worked 200, 300 stations," said Mike Raide, W2ZE, one of the operators and a prominent restoration and construction technician.
Millen, who passed away in 1987, had constructed the transmitter more than 50 years earlier. It consists of three, open-frame "telephone relay" rack structures, and the panels include a loudspeaker and a custom-made HRO receiver, all built to Millen's special order.
Restored with minor changes to operational status in 1993, the transmitter has been used on occasion by AWA to herald special events as well as to encourage operation from the museum site at Bloomfield, where it has long been housed in an old technical school.
This was the first time in decades that the transmitter conveyed through the aether the actual Millen call signs, on loan for last night's event courtesy the James Millen Society, based in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The Society's president, Don Buska, N9OO, was among the operators of the station in upstate New York last night, under excellent conditions of propagation and lack of static.
On The Air, in Style
There's something about a high-level plate modulated rig when you hear it that commands attention. Add to that the importance of this particular rig, as Millen's personal transmitter, and the lines formed quickly on hopes of working the station before the night got away.
As if Mr. Millen himself was commanding the aether from On High, propagation was ideal. Signals from Rochester began to build as early as 4pm, Eastern, pushing 10-15db over S9 through the mid-Atlantic region, where this reporter, at Annapolis, was hearing W1HRX quite strongly some 500 miles away.
But the best was yet to come. At some point after the supper hour, Eastern Time, folks began to join an informal shakedown QSO and say hello to the operators at W1HRX, who already were getting the impression they would be having a very busy evening working stations on the radio.
Before things got too busy, this reporter shared with the group a 1994 on-the-air tape recording made of AWA's curator and last surviving founder, the late Bruce Kelley, W2ICE. The occasion of the recording was one of the first nights back on the air for the Millen transmitter, which had been put back in shape throughout 1993 by Kelley and Bob Raide, W2ZM.
"The tour bus had just dropped a few dozen people off and they had just come into the room," Mike Raide, Bob's son, said into the microphone after the tape had played through. "This room fell silent, and you had about 20 people who just got real quiet as they heard and recognized Bruce's voice, on this same transmitter," he said.
With that, we had the spirit and the conditions to really get the night going. For hours, W1HRX and a multitude of operators visiting that night at AWA took the microphone and greeted all stations near and far, strong and week, all clamoring for the chance to say hi.
It was amazing to hear how POLITE everyone was -- despite bonafide pileup conditions each time '1HRX called up for contacts. As soon as AWA's operator signaled a call or a partial call had been heard, the frequency +/- 10kc was allowed to be wide open to let the latest contact get through. That alone was worth the price of admission!
For those of us not fortuneate enough to have known Mr. Millen, we can only speculate that he would have gotten the biggest kick out of seeing the action his old rig stirred up all these years later. For those involved with AWA, remembering Bruce Kelley was an added moment. Next year will mark 50 years since his passion for pre-war tube collecting turned into a nationally prominent, authoritative museum and technical resource for the heritage of radio.
Isn't it fitting that it should all come together for the kind of radio entertainment we all enjoy?
<DIV ALIGN=CENTER>Here are some websites with pictures, commentary, and more details:</div align=center>
<a>www.qsl.net/jms/w1hrx2001.html
</a> James Millen Society website
<a>www.thebizlink.com/am/wwwboard.wwwboard.html
</a> The AM Window
Paul/WA3VJB"
It's been 100 years this week since James Millen was born, and one can wish he were still around to see the grand turnout to help mark the occasion Weds., Aug. 5, with a ceremonial run of his 1936 AM transmitter and his old call signs, W1HRX.
Timed with the Collins Collectors Association First Wednesday AM Night, 75 meters came alive with nostalgic comments, storytelling, and recollections from those appreciating Millen's craftsmanship and his role in the National line of radios.
Millen's rig, restored and displayed at the Antique Wireless Association's museum near Rochester, New York, was the centerpiece as about a hundred fans gathered at the museum to help the on-air festivities.
"We must have worked 200, 300 stations," said Mike Raide, W2ZE, one of the operators and a prominent restoration and construction technician.
Millen, who passed away in 1987, had constructed the transmitter more than 50 years earlier. It consists of three, open-frame "telephone relay" rack structures, and the panels include a loudspeaker and a custom-made HRO receiver, all built to Millen's special order.
Restored with minor changes to operational status in 1993, the transmitter has been used on occasion by AWA to herald special events as well as to encourage operation from the museum site at Bloomfield, where it has long been housed in an old technical school.
This was the first time in decades that the transmitter conveyed through the aether the actual Millen call signs, on loan for last night's event courtesy the James Millen Society, based in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The Society's president, Don Buska, N9OO, was among the operators of the station in upstate New York last night, under excellent conditions of propagation and lack of static.
On The Air, in Style
There's something about a high-level plate modulated rig when you hear it that commands attention. Add to that the importance of this particular rig, as Millen's personal transmitter, and the lines formed quickly on hopes of working the station before the night got away.
As if Mr. Millen himself was commanding the aether from On High, propagation was ideal. Signals from Rochester began to build as early as 4pm, Eastern, pushing 10-15db over S9 through the mid-Atlantic region, where this reporter, at Annapolis, was hearing W1HRX quite strongly some 500 miles away.
But the best was yet to come. At some point after the supper hour, Eastern Time, folks began to join an informal shakedown QSO and say hello to the operators at W1HRX, who already were getting the impression they would be having a very busy evening working stations on the radio.
Before things got too busy, this reporter shared with the group a 1994 on-the-air tape recording made of AWA's curator and last surviving founder, the late Bruce Kelley, W2ICE. The occasion of the recording was one of the first nights back on the air for the Millen transmitter, which had been put back in shape throughout 1993 by Kelley and Bob Raide, W2ZM.
"The tour bus had just dropped a few dozen people off and they had just come into the room," Mike Raide, Bob's son, said into the microphone after the tape had played through. "This room fell silent, and you had about 20 people who just got real quiet as they heard and recognized Bruce's voice, on this same transmitter," he said.
With that, we had the spirit and the conditions to really get the night going. For hours, W1HRX and a multitude of operators visiting that night at AWA took the microphone and greeted all stations near and far, strong and week, all clamoring for the chance to say hi.
It was amazing to hear how POLITE everyone was -- despite bonafide pileup conditions each time '1HRX called up for contacts. As soon as AWA's operator signaled a call or a partial call had been heard, the frequency +/- 10kc was allowed to be wide open to let the latest contact get through. That alone was worth the price of admission!
For those of us not fortuneate enough to have known Mr. Millen, we can only speculate that he would have gotten the biggest kick out of seeing the action his old rig stirred up all these years later. For those involved with AWA, remembering Bruce Kelley was an added moment. Next year will mark 50 years since his passion for pre-war tube collecting turned into a nationally prominent, authoritative museum and technical resource for the heritage of radio.
Isn't it fitting that it should all come together for the kind of radio entertainment we all enjoy?
<DIV ALIGN=CENTER>Here are some websites with pictures, commentary, and more details:</div align=center>
<a>www.qsl.net/jms/w1hrx2001.html
</a> James Millen Society website
<a>www.thebizlink.com/am/wwwboard.wwwboard.html
</a> The AM Window
Paul/WA3VJB"