 ALUMNI LETTERS This page is meant to be a look at the history of our club. In recent years we've gotten a number of interesting letters and emails 1xbet best casino website former members. This is just a beginning. Stories and historical info - or even comments on current topics - are most welcome, either by email or by U. S. Mail. Our mailing address can be found at the bottom of our main page. I attended K-State (then Kansas State College) from 1950 to 1956, graduating with a BSEE and an MS in Physics. At that time my callletters were W&1xbet best casino website ;AMG, now W1ERJ. I recently visited the club web site, and found photos and letters of interest. Photo 1 was taken in the ham club room located in the basement of the Military Science building. I am standing (brush cut and patterned T-shirt). Seated is Wilbur Goll, W&1xbet best casino website ;DEL, and Bill Schrenk, our great faculty advisor. The second photo was taken at the same time and shows myself and Wilbur seated, Bill standing, and the old BC-610 final, topped by the antenna tuner, in the far corner. Information on the alumni letters page is interesting. The following comments may provide additional input. K-State was a key location during the July 1951 flood because its elevation provided dry land while much of the city was underwater. W&1xbet best casino website ;DEL traffic included direct ham-band communications with Air Force flights from Chanute Field, Illinois that air-dropped medicines, blankets, and other supplies onto K-State. I was attending summer school during the summer of 1951. I, and others, operated W&1xbet best casino website ;QQQ from the old student union, handling continuous traffic between flood victims and their families, together with lots of other traffic. I also waded through parts of flooded Manhattan, carrying an Army handi-talkie, for the purpose of assuring that all residences had been evacuated. I recall worrying that hot power lines might be submerged nearby, but fortunately that was not the case. I was also Chief Engineer of the student FM station located across the hall 1xbet best casino website the college AM station. We first played music, but I latershut it down, and donated tubes 1xbet best casino website the transmitter to Manhattan police who had exhausted their stock of spares due to constant use of equipment designed for only intermittent use. The shutdown upset a few faculty members and students who envisioned this as their moment of journalistic glory, maybe even a Pulitzer Prize, but emergency police communications were sustained. Manhattan's commercial AM station, KMAN, was located north of town in an area covered by the 1951 flood. An Army deuce-and-a-half (2.5 ton) truck was commandered, driven through water to the transmitter site, backed through a wall, and the transmitter was loaded onto the truck. After emerging 1xbet best casino website the flood, the truck was parked on the K-State campus just outside KSAC's studio. Wire was strung between two nearby towers that had previously been used by KSAC, and the antenna was connected to the KMAN transmitter, still on the truck. Audio feed came 1xbet best casino website the KSAC studio that was one story above the truck, and KMAN was operational. The Kansas City FCC office requested organ music while they certified that the frequency was within tolerance, after which the community received news and notices 1xbet best casino website KMAN/Portable until the emergency ended. Jerome Hartke, W1ERJ Are the records prior to 1958 all missing? I wonder if they would still bein the Military Science Building. I started at KSU in 1963 and W&1xbet best casino website ;QQQ waslocated in the Military Science building then and sponsored by ROTCfaculty. I remember the station equipment was mostly all WWII surplus andin pretty cramped quarters. Another piece of history: In 1973, I was back at KSU going to graduate school. W&1xbet best casino website ;QQQ had a veryactive bunch then - Lee Buller K&1xbet best casino website ;WA, Bruce Frahm K&1xbet best casino website ;BJ, Dennis Dugan, WA&1xbet best casino website ;YPC, GaryJones, K3OWN (he was a doc at student health), Jack Meadows, now W7QQQ, andScott Casey, WB&1xbet best casino website ;JDK were some of the active members. That summer(a few weeks after we did field day out on "top of the world"), a tornadowiped out half of Clay Center, KS and most of the town of Greenleaf, KS.We (KSU ARC) spent that night and the next 4-5 days in that area providingcommunications for the red cross, police, and messages of health andwelfare for the citizens. A large amount of the traffic was relayed on HFfrom the towns to W&1xbet best casino website ;QQQ who then put it into the various traffic nets. We even rigged up a "manned repeater" which was a Clegg FM27 set up toTransmit and Receive on 146.94/.34. The operator could then have completenet control of a local 2 meter net in Clay Center. People with 2 meter FMwere dispatched to deliver messages or inquire on health and welfare. Theinfo was taken on 2 meters and then passed to/1xbet best casino website the HF station operatorwho sat beside him. They were located at the Clay Center National GuardArmory. A second station on HF was set up in Greenleaf. It had to bemoved a couple of times as buildings were condemmed and bulldozed down forsafety reasons. At one time I remember this station was operating 1xbet best casino website apool table in a building with the roof partially blown off. The club got a lot of good publicity in QST, KSU Collegian, ManhattanMercury, and the Topeka paper. Bruce Frahm and Lee Buller are still veryactive hams today and would remember more of the details. I don't knowwhat happened to the others I mentioned. There are probably other similar stories of W&1xbet best casino website ;QQQ history. Perhaps a noteon your web page would encourage others to send them in. BTW I enjoyed working W&1xbet best casino website ;QQQ 2 years ago at your special event operation.Have the card and certificate. Best of 73s,Rod K&1xbet best casino website ;DAS Hello to everyone at W&1xbet best casino website ;QQQ. I was a member of the club 1xbet best casino website 1961 to 1965 and found a number of friends in the club and spent a bit of spare time between classes at the club station. We had a Collins 51J3 general coverage receiver. We 1xbet best casino website tuning outside the ham bands in the months prior to the John Glenn flight. We would hear loop recordings identifying stations as being part of NASA. These would run 24 hours a day and probably 1xbet best casino website used by NASA to log which sites could hear each other at different times of the day. We suspected these sites 1xbet best casino website preparing for the Mercury space flights so we logged the frequencies which numbered around 6 that we could find. There was a lot of publicity on the Glenn flight so we borrowed a tape recorder and planned to man the station for the duration of the flight to see if we could monitor the flight. On the day of the flight we 1xbet best casino website up and running. We heard flight chatter prior to launch and heard the Mercury capsule with John Glenn. We had hit paydirt. We heard the launch, and the orbit just fine. The NASA network did not have satellites to relay the audio so they 1xbet best casino website using the HF network to tie together the ground stations. As a result we 1xbet best casino website hearing all that the Cape was hearing. I don't remember all the people that 1xbet best casino website part of that day but I do remember Don Bunny and he borrowed the tape recorder. I graduated in 1965 with a BSEE and went to work for Rixon electronics in Silver Spring Maryland designing data modems and the like. Rixon was a leader in modems at that time. They are no longer in business. I went to work for the US Navy in 1969 to work on secure voice systems which 1xbet best casino website very crude and needed modem type technology to improve it. I retired 1xbet best casino website the Navy in December, 1997, and now am president of a small startup company and we are developing a wrist-worn DSP to assist people with a profound hearing loss. It is fun and I think back to W&1xbet best casino website ;QQQ every now and then. I recently wentback to my old call sign I had then. I enjoy reading about the club onyour web page. During the Manhattan Flood - July 11 - 20, 1951 On Wednesday, July 11, 1951, water 1xbet best casino website the Kansas river began tooverflow seriously into Manhattan, Kansas as a result of continuous heavyrains in the area. By 4:00 p.m. city officials had to leave their officesin downtown Manhattan, and they established temporary headquarters in thetemporary student union building at Kansas State College. Wirecommunication services were also being disrupted. About 5:00 p.m. Wilbur Goll, W&1xbet best casino website ;DEL drove over to the home of W&1xbet best casino website ;PAH. After a short discussion it was decided to move radio equipment into thetemporary headquarters in the student union in order to provide emergencycommunications for city officials. W&1xbet best casino website ;QQQ, the Kansas State College Amateur Radio Club, whose facilitiesare provided largely by the R.O.T.C., had suitable equipment. By 7:30this equipment was installed and in operation under the call letters ofW&1xbet best casino website ;DEL. This transmitter was never turned off from that time until 10:00p.m. of July 17 when the city offices were moved back to their location inthe downtown area. The transmitter was off during power failures onlylong enough to crank up the emergency power plant just outside the window.W&1xbet best casino website ;DEL continued to operate from their location on a more limited scaleuntil July 20 in order to help clear welfare traffic. Two other stations on the campus were in operation during theemergency. W&1xbet best casino website ;QQQ, with a BC-610, moved traffic on several bands and handledlong distance messages on 20. They also handled traffic on 75. The NavalReserve Unit on the campus was put on the air and operated under the callW&1xbet best casino website ;OKE. All licensed hams in the Naval Reserve had been called to duty orwere not in school. Naval Reserve personnel were very helpful, however,and cooperated in every way possible. W&1xbet best casino website ;OKE was assigned the job ofhandling the welfare messages and did a fine job. W&1xbet best casino website ;YUQ maintained contactfrom his home station as much as possible and helped from there withtraffic. He was busy helping rescue stranded people daytime and operatedat night. Equipment belonging to W&1xbet best casino website ;IYU was brought out by boat to serve asstand-by equipment at main headquarters. All commercial communications 1xbet best casino website off in Manhattan for several days. During this time amateur communications furnished most of the help needed,although the police radio and highway patrol gave invaluable assistance. On Wednesday night, July 11, W&1xbet best casino website ;PAH parked his car at the edge of theflood water and provided a radio link to headquarters. This was used todispatch boats, evacuees, provisions, etc. By midnight the police radiowas operating and W&1xbet best casino website ;PAH was able to pull out and help at W&1xbet best casino website ;DEL. W&1xbet best casino website ;DEL handled almost nothing but official emergency traffic. Thelocal commercial broadcast station, KMAN, lost their line to thetransmitter and W&1xbet best casino website ;DEL then relayed all official messages they broadcasteduntil they had to move equipment to escape flood waters. KSAC, the college-owned broadcast station, shares time with WIBW ofTopeka. When WIBW went off the air due to flood waters, the only meansof contacting Topeka residents was KSAC and all messages broadcast to themduring their time off the air were handled by W&1xbet best casino website ;DEL. Typical of thisservice was a message directing Topeka residents to report for volunteerswork to save the water works. Amateur communication is generally creditedwith being responsible for saving the Topeka water supply. According tonewspaper reports over 4,500 persons responded to the call. Typical of other traffic handled at W&1xbet best casino website ;DEL were calls for typhoidserum, boats, helicopter service, red cross calls for food and clothing,weather bureau reports, river information, calls for equipment, severaldeath messages, etc. Keeping these stations on the air meant using considerable manpower,W&1xbet best casino website ;DEL was operated at various times by W&1xbet best casino website ;DEL, W&1xbet best casino website ;PAH, W&1xbet best casino website ;AMG, W&1xbet best casino website ;IYU, W&1xbet best casino website ;YEE, and others. Other non-amateur personnel helped copy and deliver messageson a 24-hour basis. All local telephones were out during the flood somessages had to be delivered by carrier. This required considerablemanpower which, however, was usually available. It is impossible to name all those outside Manhattan who handledmessages. Their help is greatly appreciated by all. Of great aid was thefine work of the Topeka gang and W&1xbet best casino website ;HS and W&1xbet best casino website ;KSY who maintained contactinto Manhattan. W&1xbet best casino website ;ZLA relayed a large number of messages for us. Ft. Riley, only about 15 miles away, had W&1xbet best casino website ;AAE and W7?? on the air. Forbesair force base, Topeka, was represented by W&1xbet best casino website ;TRK. These stations handledhundreds of welfare messages when a lull came in the more urgent traffic. Others who helped considerably as far as Manhattan was concerned wereW&1xbet best casino website ;JXJ, W&1xbet best casino website ;FQE, W&1xbet best casino website ;GBY, W&1xbet best casino website ;AEY, W&1xbet best casino website ;GCJ, W&1xbet best casino website ;JDX, W&1xbet best casino website ;CV, and W&1xbet best casino website ;FDJ. W&1xbet best casino website ;NRK, the U.S.N.R.T.C. at St. Joseph, Mo., sent men and equipment foruse. Of particular help was their emergency power unit which they left inManhattan for use until all emergency service appeared ended. Many others should be mentioned because all amateurs in this areawere of assistance. many unnamed amateurs helped police the bands to cutdown QRM, others helped by remaining silent. Some offered to come toManhattan to help as relief operators. All in all the radio amateurfraternity gave a good account of themselves and their service cannot beestimated. This report represents only a small part of the disastercommunications in this area. Topeka, Lawrence, Kansas City, and othercities all along the Kansas river were also as busy as the Manhattan group. Manhattan had particularly close contact with Topeka and Kansas Citybecause of the large number of urgent messages between these cities. Reports 1xbet best casino website other groups will undoubtedly be submitted. Click for photo 1 or photo 2 of flood communications team members in action. I attended K-State from 1946 to 1950, graduating with a BSEE in the summer of 1950. My call sign atthat time was W&1xbet best casino website ;ABV. I obtained a first class commercial phone license in 1949 and worked at the KSACtransmitter site until I graduated. As I recall, the pay was .60 cents/hour. After graduation I workedat the WIBW transmitter site in Topeka while I was waiting for security clearances required for CIAemployment. I worked for the CIA from 1950 to 1961 and again from 1968 to 1981 with assignmentsin Virginia, Cyprus, TDY to Iran and various parts of the world. I worked at the Goddard Space FlightCenter from 1961 to 1968 designing, fabricating and integrating space flight hardware for the Solar PhysicsBranch there. I took a job with Quest Research Corporation in 1981. I worked for them in Berlin, Germany from1981 to 1983, and was assigned TDY to many parts of Bavaria to retune microwave radios forthe US Army for most of 1984. The U.S. Army hired Quest to respond to a German Governmentrequest to vacate Ku band microwave frequencies they 1xbet best casino website using so that a State TV network inGermany could occupy this spectrum. I worked for Quest Research Corporation 1xbet best casino website 1981 until I retired in 1995. In 1995 my wife and Ivacationed for 3 months by automobile in Germany, Austria and Italy. We visited friends we hadmade during our stay in Berlin in 1980's and early 1990's. I was working on the Island of Cyprus when the 1951 flood inundated northeastern Kansas. My hometown of Topeka suffered greatly from this flood. My father-in-law in Topeka (W&1xbet best casino website ;UPU) was very activeworking emergency communications during that time. His home in North Topeka was badly damagedby the flood. I am now living in Potomac, MD with my wife of 54 years. I hope to visit Topeka some time inthe fall of 2005, and will visit K-State. Here are recent photos of me and my youngest granddaughter: Here is a Goddard archive document "Rocket Camera Timer" that I wrote in May 1966 thatI ran across the other day while surfing the web. It sure is surprising what one can find surfing the web these days. Joseph Thornwall
 ksuarc@ksu.edu  modified 9/23/06 |
