Maritime Radio Historical Society

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THE KPH PROJECT

The KPH Project

In cooperation with the Point Reyes National Seashore, part of the National Park Service, the Maritime Radio Historical Society (MRHS) has taken on the job of preserving the historic ex-RCA coast station KPH and returning it to the air.

Bob Schrader W6BNB writes:

To all of you nice MRHS people:

I hope you know how much your bringing back the sound of old KPH to those few of us who are still around from the 1930s Sparks ship days and how much it means to us. I worked KPH almost every day on six trips around the world and for a dozen or so trips over to Manila and back to SF, plus a few others trips... I even had the pleasure of seeing old Marshall and Bolinas in operation in 1932 when only a ham (althouh already with a Radiotelegraph Second license) at Central Trade School with old Fred Mangelsdorf and most of his class. While KTK was my home station for four of my six years. I almost daily received passenger messages from KPH and KFS and would also send them our TR reports.. KPH was one of the first and last stations I worked from shipboard. That was from 1933 to 1939. Real fond memories!

Thanks.

Bob Shrader "RS" W6BNB

COAST STATION KSM

Coast Station KSM

KSM is the coast station of the MRHS. Our goal is to honor and commemorate the men and women who made the profession of radiotelegrapher one honor and skill. We feel that the best way to do this is to preserve their skills and traditions through actual use at a real coast station. Somewhat to our surprise, the FCC granted our application for a full, commercial, common carrier public coast station.

Coast Station KSM

AMATEUR STATION K6KPH

K6KPH

K6KPH is the amateur station of the MRHS. Here's full information about operating times, frequencies, equipment and purpose.

Amateur Station K6KPH

MRHS PROJECTS

MRHS Projects

MRHS members are involved in other radio projects around the San Francisco Bay area as well as projects directly connected with the MRHS program. Here's information about some of these.

MRHS EVENTS

Radiotelegraph Exams

RADIO ARCHAEOLOGY

Radio Archaeology

The sites of historic radio stations surround us, especially along the coasts. As part of our project to record and preserve our maritime radio heritage, MRHS members try to locate these sites and document what is there now. Armed with maps, GPS navigators, historic records and, at least in one case, the plank from a shipping crate, we've had some remarkable success.

INCREDIBLE RADIO TALES

Incredible Radio Tales

When radio officers hit the beach in San Francisco they went immediately to "the Dog House", a rooming house in Powell Street that, for reasons lost to time, was the home away from home for seafaring brass pounders. There were probably similar places in every port around the country if not the world. And what must these Sparkies have talked about at table? Why radiomen, radio conditions, and radio equipment of course!

Ah! What one would give to sit in on one of those bull sessions. These were men who could coax a sweet note from a decrepit quenched gap transmitter, copy through static and interference (using their own personal Audion detector smuggled on board) and look the Radio Inspector straignt in the eye when he strode self importantly into the shack.

Our time machine is out of service at the moment due to a shorted power transformer. So we won't be able to join the boys at the Dog House tonight. But we can preserve and present some of our own radio tales, all of them true, for your enjoyment.

As you read, let the sounds of static on 600m at midnight and the dim light of glowing tubes in a dark room become real. Imagine the silence and smell the dust in the abondoned transmitter gallery of a once great station. And above all remember the men and women who came before us and made the profession of radiotelegrapher one of honor and skill.

REPORTS FROM NMO

Reports From NMO

Jeffrey Herman was a radioman at Coast Guard station NMO Hawaii during the glory days when Morse was king and 500kc was alive 24 hours a day. For the benefit of those of us who were not so fortunate as he, Jeffrey has written this account of what it was like to stand watch on 500kc, what the proper procedures were and what it was like to receive his first SOS. He has kindly agreed to allow us to post his reports here.

HISTORIC COAST STATIONS

"I'd like to get a job sending Vs"

Historic Coast Stations

During the golden age of maritime communications the globe was populated with hundreds of coast stations, each with its own area of coverage, call sign and personality. Many of us remember tuning across the marine bands and hearing these stations, standing shoulder to shoulder with hardly any space between them, calling out for traffic or working ships. Recordings of some of these stations were preserved and are posted in the Coast Station Recordings section of this Web site. But what did these stations actually look like? We here at the MRHS have collected as many photos of these historic stations as we could find and posted them here for your enjoyment. They range from many photos showing the big, well documented to a single photo for a small station that was in operation for only a few years.

Do you have photos like these you'd like to share? Please let us know. We'd be honored to post them.

POINT TO POINT

Point to Point

It was Marconi's dream to bridge the oceans and provide intercontinental communications as a rate that undercut the cost of the undersea cables. His signals first bridged the Atlantic in 1901. Only a little more than a decade later his international system was in place and functinging - and earning money. Soon competitors followed, creating the point-to-point industry - first using giant spark and arc transmitters, then magnificent Alexanderson alternators and finally short wave tube transmitters. Often the elite point-to-point service was co-located with the marine service which often had to make do with a corner of the operating building and antennas that the point-to-point service no longer needed. Here is the story of some of these point-to-point stations.

MISCELLANEOUS AND UNKNOWN

Miscellaneous and Unknown

We at the MRHS spend a lot of time trolling flea markets and eBay for historic radio photographs. When we get extra lucky, the photos show new views of historic stations we know about. These we post in the Historic Coast Stations section of this Web site. But often the photos exist on their own, without explanation or provenance. We present a collection of these photos here - with a request. If you can provide any details about these photos please let us know. Your information will add to the the growing collection of knowledge about our maritime radio heritage.

Miscellaneous and Unknown

PERSONAL COLLECTIONS

Personal Collections

Many of us at the MRHS maintain personal collections of vintage radio gear connected with maritime radio communications. Here's a look at some of those collections.

Radiomarine CRM-R6A

COAST STATION RECORDINGS

Coast Station Recordings

Maybe you're one of those who remember. Late on a winer night night... tubes glowing in the darkened radio shack... earphones on... And one after another they rolled in, the great coast stations of the world. Maybe you listened to improve your code speed. Or maybe you listened for the thrill of it. Once the marine bands were filled end to end with the signals of coast stations from around the world. Twenty four hours a day the skilled operators at these stations carried the messages of maritime commerce. And they were there to lend immediate assistance to mariners in peril at sea. We thought it would never end. But the golden age of Morse code marine communications has passed and now the marine bands are either silent or occupied by digital transmissions. Luckily, recordings of many of that golden age exist. Listen to them here and travel back in time, a time not so long ago, when Morse was king.

Listen

Help the MHRS keep these historic treasures on the air! Your generous donations are greatly appreciated.

Support the MRHS

We need your help. It's as simple as that.

Our small group is now responsible for a facility that once required dozens to maintain.

We have funded everything from the costs for rewinding transformers to purchasing power tubes for the transmitters from our own pockets - and we feel privileged to do so.

But the larger projects we now face, such as antenna restoration, are beyond our personal means.

Won't you help? Your donation is tax deductable and we promise to get the most out of every dollar we receive.

Most important, you'll know you have helped keep the traditions of maritime radio alive.

Just click on the button below or send a check to:

Maritime Radio Historical Society

PO Box 392

Point Reyes Station, Ca 94956

USA

Thanks and VY 73...

NOTICE:

NIGHT OF NIGHTS XXI CANCELED

Updated Information

We are sorry to announce that because of the ongoing closure of the KPH transmit and receive sites due to COVID-19 precautions it will not be possible for Night of Nights XXI to take place.

While it's disappointing for everyone that the Night of Nights tradition will be disrupted this year, the health and safety of our colleagues must come first. But rest assured that as soon as we regain access to the transmit and receive sites we'll be working hard to bring the equipment back on line and return KPH, KFS and K6KPH to the air.

While KPH, KFS and K6KPH will not be on the air for Night of Nights XXI, MRHS members will be active from their home stations using their personal call signs on the usual K6KPH frequencies (3550, 7050, 14050). At 5:01pm Pacific time on 12 July (0001gmt 13 July) these stations will send the traditional Night of Nights opening message that in the past has been sent via KPH. They will then stand by for calls or will call CQ NON or CQ NIGHT OF NIGHTS. None of us have big gun stations so listen carefully for these call signs: WB6OVV, N6BBF, WB6UZX, AA6IF, N6AD, W6AWO, W6DHM and possibly others.

How to Stay Connected with the MRHS During the Station Closure

As most True Believers probably know by now, the Point Reyes National Seashore has closed the park and suspended all volinteer activities until further notice. Since we at the MRHS are all park volunteers, that includes us. Thus KPH, KFS and K6KPH will be off the air "for the duration".

But there are several ways to stay in touch during the shut down:

MRHS On The Air - MRHS members are on the air from their home stations every Saturday beginning at 1200 Pacific time on all the K6KPH frequencies (see below).

MRHS Newsletter - We continue to publish our Newsletter. Click HERE for the latest issue. Or click HERE to subscribe to the Newsletter and have it sent directly to you.

MRHS Videos - Two good videos about the MRHS and KPH have been recently produced. Click HERE for the Bay Area Back Roads video and HERE for the Tech Crunch video. Plus a video blogger has posted here KPH video HERE.

Stations, Frequencies and Hours of Operation

Update 9 September 2019: K6KPH frequency 18097.5 has been returned to service. 21050 has been removed from service.

Here's the list of stations operated by the MRHS and their frequencies. Please note the frequencies that are not currently in service. They're included for your future reference. Check back here or, even better, SUBSCRIBE to the MRHS newsletter for updates.

KPH: 426, 500, 4247.0*, 6477.5, 8642.0, 12808.5, 17016.8, 22477.5

KFS: 12695.5

K6KPH: 3550.0, 7050.0, 14050.0, 18097.5, 21050*

* Out of service

All times are Pacific (San Francisco) time.

KPH, KFS and K6KPH are operational on Saturdays only. KPH and KFS begin PX and WX broadcasts at 1000 with live operators on duty starting at 1200. K6KPH begins operation at 1200. All stations continue operations until about 1700.

KPH Software Defined Receivers

NOTE: The SDRs are temporarily off line due to a failure of the Internet connection at the KPH receive site. Due to the park closure we are unable access the site to diagnose and repair the failure.

Now you can listen to the LF, MF and HF bands using the same antennas the operators at KPH use - from the comfort of your computer no matter where you are in the world.

We have installed several Kiwi Software Defined Receivers (SDRs) covering all frequencies from 0 to 30Mc - and made them publicly available via the Internet.

The LF/MF receiver uses a Marconi T antenna while the HF receiver used a TCI-530. Both are located at the KPH receive site where electrical noise is extremely low.

We are still fine tuning the installation but the project has reached the point that it's ready for you to use. Here are the links.

For LF/MF click HERE

For HF click HERE

We'd appreciate your comments. Please write to info@radiomarine.org

MRHS Newslettters

To subscribe to the MRHS Newsletter click HERE

For back issues of the MRHS Newsletter click HERE

MRHS On-Line Store!

Get your MRHS mugs, hats, t-shirts and all sorts of other high class swag at our on-line store. Be the envy of your friends and support the MRHS at the same tine. Click HERE to get started.

MRHS Offers Radiotelegraph Exams!

The Maritime Radio Historical Society is now authorized to administer the examination for the commercial radiotelegraph license. Yes, the FCC still issues this ticket! Visit the MRHS Events page for more information.

Visit Us

The KPH receive site is open for visitors every Saturday 1200 to 1700 local time. Visitors are welcome! The receive site is located at 17400 Sir Francis Drake Blvd in the Point Reyes National Seashore, just past G Ranch on the way to the lighthouse. Whisper "True Believer" when you visit for access to our Treasure Room!

Who We Are

Let's be honest... We're a bunch of radio squirrels. And very lucky radio squirrels at that. We inhereted the last remaining Morse code coast station in North America. It was off the air but it was an intact time capsule.

We made the restoration of KPH to operational status our life's work. That was back in 1999 - the year the last commercial Morse code message in the U.S. was supposedly sent.

Through the trust and vision of the Point Reyes National Seashore we were given permission to begin our project of restoration, documentation and operation. And we've never looked back.

As True Believers in the importance of our maritime radio heritage we have tried to research and document every aspect of the field. Our area of specialization is the coast stations, ships and companies of the west coast of the United States. But anything to do with maritime radio anywhere in the world is of interest to us.

Dedicated MRHS volunteers are busy with the preservation, restoration and repair of the historic artifacts with which we have been entrusted. That work is the foundation on which the real goal of our project rests. That goal is to assure that the culture, techniques and traditions of the men and women who came before us are not forgotten. We feel that the best way to achieve that goal is through actual on the air operations.

We look forward to visits by fellow True Believers in the importance of the preservation of our radio heritage. Please see the Contact Us section for full detail about visiting us. Or subscribe to our Newsletter using the form above for up to date information.

We invite you to peruse these pages for details of our work and of radio history. And we wish you fair winds and following seas.

VY 73,

MRHS

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VY 73 DE MRHS