There were several stations around the area. The technology was mostly WW2 and
the thirties. They used large verticals for antennas, usually towers around
300 feet tall. One was a CW station on Tower Road north of Highway 6 that
transmitted telegraph type messages to ships at sea until the nineties. The
ships had radio operators who did the ship end of the transmissions. They also
sent operational messages and weather as well as news to the ships at sea. The
navigation station was on the South Galveston Jetty. Stations at various
navigation locations sent s continuous signal and charts with parabolic lines
from the various stations to show bearings were carried by the users. By
selecting two or more stations whose lines crossed at right angles or made
small triangles could be DFed with a Loran A set and a ship, airplane or barge
could plot a location at sea when stars were not visible. The telephone
stations operated like regular telephones with radio signals and phone patches.
They were expensive with charges in excess of long distance. A phone patch
from Guam to the States cost about $20 for a 3 minute call. 160 meters was not
available to hams except for very narrow bands and powers under 100 watts in
areas near the coast. These were the good old days when the HF Bands were full
of phone patches for missionaries who had camps so they could get Conditional
class licenses without CW (illegal but who would arrest a Church Person?)
Willis 'Cookie' Cooke,TDXS Contest Chairman K5EWJ & Trustee N5BPS
From: Paul Easter via BVARC <[email protected]>
To: BRAZOS VALLEY AMATEUR RADIO CLUB <[email protected]>
Cc: Paul Easter <[email protected]>; [email protected]; [email protected];
[email protected]; TDXS Reflector <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, July 27, 2015 10:50 PM
Subject: Re: [BVARC] Off Subject - 2 MHz Galveston Marine Operator Info
Sounds interesting. Please share what ever you find.
You probably know that they took Raymondville apart.
I never got to see it.
On Mon, Jul 27, 2015 at 10:08 PM, Sam Neal via BVARC <[email protected]> wrote:
Hello,
In 1964 I was employed by Lorac Service Corporation, a company that provided
HF navigational aids for seismograph boats operating along the Texas and
Louisiana gulf coast in the 1.7 MHz range, long before GPS. Our HF ( AM )
communications frequencies were in the 2 and 5 MHz range.
One of the outstanding AM signals in the 2 MHz range at that time was the
Galveston Marine Operator which provided 24 hour phone patches from the
mainland to ships in the Gulf - again, long before cell phones. I think, but
am not sure, that the transmitter was located near Pearland. If anyone out
there remembers or has any information on this 2 MHz operation, I would like
to contact you for more information on this station. I am interested in, among
other things, who operated this station, and any/all descriptions of the
equipment/antennas/power, ect.
Thanks & 73,
Sam Neal N5AF
Cleveland, Texas
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--
Paul Easter
Technical Director
Houston Christian BroadcastersKHCB networks
2424 South Blvd.
Houston, TX 77098
(713) 520-5200
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