Club History

Preamble
I received this document from John VE3IJG. Offered here is the document transcribed for easier reading. It is a history of the Chatham Kent Amateur Radio Club. Many thanks to John for making this available. Our club has a rich history as the following pages will show.

Gord VE3UGG

After WWI to 1924

We believe that Fran Collins was the first person in the Chatham area to emit a wireless signal. He was experimenting in 1914before World War I, after the suspensions were lifted, Fran was issued the call 3LB, later changed to NC3LB and later to VE3LB. Sometime in 1919 or early 1920 Wm. M. Clancy was licensed as 3FM.

Several Chatham youths were experimenting with batteries, spark coils and galena detectors during 1919 and by the end of 1920 they were licensed as 3KD Art Edwards, 3KN Ed Davey, 3KOHarold Jackson and 3KC Stan Moir. These were followed closely during the next couple of years by 3LF Jack Cookson, 3GP Clayt Gammage(sp?) , 3SC Ferris Edmondson, 3ZV Bev. Briscoe. There was a radio club complete with a ½ Kw Thordorson transformer, rotary gap and a high voltage condenser measuring about two cubic feet. The antenna was slung between the high towers above the school. Stu Clark 3FP was licensed a short time later. The club station was XEM and later 3RA.

The first amateur to use voice transmission was 3FM, Bill Gray who used commercially built Equipment. Most of us used spark coils, helixcs, rotary or quench gaps and galena detectors at first, most graduated to simple tube sets and better equipment as time passed. With the spark coil equipment, Windsor or Sarnia was DX.

The amateur wireless wavelength in 1920 -1921 was 200 meters but since Chatham was located on a navigable stream, namely the Thames River, we were supposed to use 50 meters to protect ship communications. We were supposed to use 50 meters but we seldom were able to get on this wave length. We could have our friends across town calling us even when we were listening to NAA give news and weather reports on 2500 meters. We used the famous Oatmeal box tuners, also loose couplers, spider web and honeycomb coils for receiver tuning.

There was no Canadian prefix at first, after 1924 the Canadians were issued NC as a prefix but this was changed to VE soon after.

Jack Beardall obtained an amateur experimental license and was VE9AT. I’m not sure of the exact time he received it because I moved to Elgin Illinois in 1924. His hpme broadcast station, powered by Edison cells evolved into CFCO.

I returned to Chatham in 1934 and in 1937 was re-licensed as VE3AQB

End Part I

The Chatham-Kent radio club was formed about 1936 and the first officers were VE3MJ – VE3C – VE3ABQ. I left Chatham at the end of 1951 so Glen Crowe will have to finish this history.

1937 to W.W.2 PART II

In 1937 when I received the call VE3ABQ there was a number of active hams in Chatham as I remember them they were:

  • VE3LB Ivan Collins
  • E3HP Art Ferguson
  • E3CV Harold Jackson
  • E9AT Jack Beardall
  • E3AKK Gord Burniston
  • E3AGC Cam Burroughs
  • E3AVT Aubrey Cox
  • E3ANS Art Edwards
  • E3CO Ted Buller – Ridgetown
  • E3BTD Cliff Riseborough – Blenheim

By this time we had most of the frequencies now in use by Canadian amateurs with the exception of 15 meters and the frequencies above 2 ½ meters.

In September 6th 1939 we all received orders by mail from the Department of Transport to completely dismantle and render inoperative all our equipment as our licenses were suspended forthwith.

W.W.2 to 1952

On November 15, 1945 the suspension of our license was lifted and some Chatham amateurs had already left town. VE3HP was in London. VE3VU was in Clinton and later to London. VE3CO was in Montreal. Left in Chatham was VE3LB, VE3CU, VE3ANS, VE3AQB, VE3AOG, VE3MJ(VE9AT), VE3AUT, VE3AGC and VE3CI. Rev. Keith Love had moved to Blenheim. We had a rash of new hams licensed and as I remember them they were:

  • VE3BDB Art Lavery
  • VE3AQE Bob Buckland
  • VE3BLA Bill Papps
  • VE3BSM Glen Crowe
  • VE3BWT Gord Walker
  • VE3AWQ Herb Samways
  • VE3ASG Gord Brooks
  • VE3BYP Len Nettleton
  • VE3BSK Ed Carey
  • VE3DLX Ed Barbour
  • VE3DLZ Don Steele
  • VE3EAV Don Masse