New site for the Fullerton Railway is listed on the links page.

  David N1EA has sent us the following information:  The banana boat swing refers to the style of sending done by some of the members of the Great White Fleet of United Fruit Company of Boston.  United Fruit had its own network of radio stations, one of which still exists, in Slidell, LA.  United Fruit become United Brands and the communications portion became "Tropical Radio Telegraph" and still survives today as telecommunicans company "TRT".  From Chapter 15 of "The Art and Skill of Radiotelegraphy" by W. Pierpont:  The use of "bugs", semi-automatic keys (the best known being the "Vibroplex") which soon became very popular, also gave rise to various personal sending peculiarities unless the operator was careful.  "swings" one of the most interesting developments in disturbed timing of hand sending was the rise of so-called "swings".  Swing has to do with a change in the normal rhythm of sending, sometimes described as a change in symmetry or lack of it: a peculiar way of forming the characters.  Swings most commonly developed among marine operators within a close-knit group having a large volume of specialized communications.  Thus we have the names "Banana boat swing", "Lake Erie swing", "Cuban swing", etc.

The operators of the large United Fruit Co. were especially noted for this.  Some have claimed that swings developed as a most effective way of copying the early day spark signals (which sounded so much like static) through heavy static.  The basic principle of "sea-going swing" was to exaggerate the spacing between letters when a letter ending with a dah was followed by one beginning with a day, and similarly for one ending in a dit when next began with a dit.  The spacing before and after an E within a word was often made a bit longer for clarity.  Exaggerated day lengths were common also in the attempt to improve readability: e.g., the fist day in C was generally dragged out slightly.

Other individual rhythmic disturbances were common also, such as drawing out the second day in "Q" (which we often hear on the air today).  In order to avoid confusion in the midst of typically heavy Gulf of Mexico static, sending the call signs of two main shore stations was modified: -- the P of WPA was made with long dahs, while the space between the A and X of WAX was exaggerated and the days of X were lengthened.  This stopped the confusion.  In later years such swings were found necessary for intelligibility in low frequency marine work when signals were barely audible.  Some said "Banana boat" swing developed from call letters KFUC, the general call for all United Fruit Co. ships.  Others suggested the rolling motion of boats contributed to forming it.  The "Cuban swing" or "Latin swing" came from the way most Cuban and Mexican operators ran their words together.  Some times it must have been quite deliberate -- just to try to be individualistic, such as a jerk in forming H P C S 4 5 Q; a lengthening of one of the days a bit in J, 1, etc.; any 'funny' little stroke.  but these things made them hard to copy by other operators. Early in 1936 the Eastern Air Lines (EAL) communications supervisor decided to develop an EAL swing for its operators.  He dreamed up the idea of modifying a "bug" by moving the stationary dot post a half inch forward.  This produced a swing like none ever heard before.  The operators did not like it and soon repositioned the post, but it unconsciously influenced the sending of many of them ever after.  Recently operators in a foreign navy were found almost impossible to understand at first because of a peculiar rhythm taught by their telegraph instructors. The other thing I see is that morse operators would send: WEE to see who the other operator was.  This would be WO? in American Morse, which sounds like the characters WEE / in International Morse.

On November 22,1906 the "SOS" distress signal was adopted at the International Radio Telegraphic Convention in Berlin.

N1EA also tells us that Morse (as in American Morse) keys often had a bug lip after 1910 or so.  The date of the first key with the bug lip, is not known, but it was after the first Vibroplex, and after someone had invented the "wedge" which was plugged into the bug lip.  The J-38 was never used on morse circuits, it was a training key, although after WW2 when these keys became available on the surplus market, they were used widely by hams.  During WW2 the J-37 was one of the keys used on morse circuits - it was preferred because it had a leaf spring that couldn't get lost on the battle field.  Of course there were other keys like the flameproof used in tanks and ships where ever there might be an atmosphere that might be explosive.  (Sparkgap you know.  ED.) 

According to L.M. Boyd of TRIVIA  fame, The nickname "HAM" was contracted from a magazine published in 1912, "Home Amateur Mechanic" .

From Jim of Dots and Dashes tells us of the rural landline telegraph operator that was located in a rural district.  These folks were known as "HAM".  Another story from another source said "HAM" was a bad word for a poor operator (early radio days).  Jim also tells us that there is no meaning  for the word.

Once maybe twice a year, MTC (SQ Chapter) has a luncheon at a prominent restaurant that will be selected by Kathy KS6CW the club Secretary/Treasurer.  Probable location will be in the Orange County, California area.  Time and place will be announced on this web-site and via e-mail and most certainly on the CW net.

In 2004 and 2005 MTC was active on ARRL Field Day and placed in the upper third signing as W6MTC ORG 1B.

MTC (SQ) will be providing a one of a kind presentation of Sounders, American Morse and its utilities, on request from the MTC Club President or Secretary.  This is a unique showing of  the sounders and railroad telegraphy as it was 150 years ago.  Send an e-mail to Kathy to request a time and date and place.

An oil painting done by The Artist, Samuel F. B. Morse, was sold at auction for more than  $1,000,000.

 To copy morse code on a mill (typewriter), the typing speed had to be twice that of the receiving code.

The Russian alphabet is larger than the English alphabet; therefore, to copy Russian code certain combination of typing keys represent those extra Russian characters and had to be copied as group code.

Where hams use "Q" signals, the military uses "Z" signals.  For example ZAA means you are not using proper circuit discipline. Whole meaningful messages can be sent with "Q" and "Z" signals.

In the past, radio operators had a "sign".  For example the sign of MTC Southern California Chapter is "SQ".  It was common to send your sign as "signing" the message.  Thus when you report you are "signing",  you are terminating your call.

In "Olden times" operators would sometimes add "30"  just before signing, meaning THAT'S ALL THERE IS.

To ask another operator to identify himself, a morse W E E was sent asking for his Sign.

When "The Morse Code" is rearranged it becomes " HERE COME THE DOTS".

W6MTC is publishing the W6MTC Telegraph periodical.  Ask Kathy to add you to her e-mail list.  W6MTC@usa.com

October 24, 1861 the first transcontinental telegraph message was sent as Justice Stephen J. Field of California transmitted a telegram to President Lincoln.

W6MTC membership number to "FISTS" is 10350.

The first SOS distress signal sent by an American ship was the Arapahoe off Cape Hatteras, NC on August 11, 1909.

You can monitor the seismic structure of the world on your computer by going to http://earthquake.usgs.gov/

WR6WR has told us that the circuit-lever on the hand key is a holdover from the old telegraph landline days.  Each key needed to have a shorting lever on it so the operator, when done sending his traffic, could short the key contacts together and thus keep the circuit closed.  If this were not done, other operators on that line could not use the circuit.

In 1906 the "SOS" distress signal was adopted at the International Radio Telegraphic Convention in Berlin.

In 1929 Navy Lt. Cmdr. Richard E. Byrd radioed that he'd made the first flight over the South Pole.

The first public demonstration of the telegraph by S.F.B. Morse in Morristown, N.J. was on January 6, 1838.

A man named SBF Morse designed the popular Pebble Beach Golf Course.

S.B.F. Morse and President Lincoln were good friends but had different thoughts on slavery.

A man named S.B.F. Morse invented a stone polishing machine, but he couldn't patent it because it infringed on another patent by another inventor.

Chet Atkins W4CGP identified his call as Certified Guitar Picker.

To honor his friend, Samuel F.B. Morse,  Thomas A. Edison nicknamed his two children "Dot and Dash".

Western Union   announced it was exiting the telegram business after 155 years in service.  See http://www.dchieftain.com/news/59586-03-04-06.html for the terminating article.

On January 6, 1838 Samuel Morse first publicly demonstrated his telegraph, in Morristown N.J.