Large Number Join Radio Club (101 years ago)
That was the headline in the Meriden Morning Record the morning of April 22, 1921 - 101 years ago . It was the first official radio club based in the city of Meriden, CT and was named “the Meriden Radio Club”. It was started by four wireless operators in Meriden, who were President A. S. Boynton, VP George Donnelly, Secretary-Treasurer Frank Young.
The newspaper article goes on to detail the original constitution of the club, which was very similar to our current one that was adopted when the current iteration, the “Meriden Amateur Radio Club” was formed in 1947.
The proposed constitution set forth meetings twice monthly on the first and third Thursdays. The “annual” meeting was scheduled for the first Thursday in May. The constitution had 9 articles, the first of which sets the official name of the club as the “Meriden Radio Club” and its object the bringing together of the amateurs of Meriden and vicinity who, being interested in the advancement of radio telegraph and telephone, desire to become familiar with the radio art.
There were 60 people in attendance and at the end of the meeting 46 people signed up to join the club.
They had three classes of membership.
Full members had to be 16 years old, must have been actively connected with radio work for a full year and must be able to receive messages in continental code at the speed of ten words a minute, or be proficient in some other branch of the art.
Associate members must be over 16 years of age, but need not be familiar with any branch of radio work if they are interested and desire to join the club.
Junior Members are those between the ages of 12 and 16 who show an interest in the art and desire to become proficient in the code and familiarize themselves with radio apparatus.
Entrance Fee was $1 for full and associate members and was 50 cents for junior members. Annual dues for Full and Associate members was $10 and $3 for junior members.
There were four standing committees. Which were the Library and Publicity, Program, Electrical, and Nominating Committee.
The first version of Morse code was more adapted to land line telegraphy that used mechanical “sounders”. It was referred to as “American Morse Code”. The early wireless amateur operators of the new radio club correctly described their code requirement to be in the new adaptation of the old American Morse Code. The NEW version was called “Continental” or later “International” Morse code. If you were an EARLY ham in 1900 you might have been sending “Dot-space-dot” for the letter “O”. Today the “O” is “Dash-Dash-Dash”. So there’s a bit of trivia showing how the Meriden Radio Club of 1921 not only included the “code” as part of their original constitution but also felt it important to define the version of Morse code they used.
The “Meriden Radio Club” was active for a few years in the 20s. But after the 30’s there was very little information. From examining the notes and early history of our current club which started meeting in 1946 after the end of WWII after radio restrictions were lifted, it might be likely that one or two of our very early members who started MARC in the 40s may have been members of that original club.
I had talked to Frank W1FYG, W1FD - SK (MARC’s first Pres. ) often and the subject of the old 1921 club was never mentioned. I’ve found a lot of ham radio info from 1890 to 1930, but there seems to be some “dead air” time between 1930 and 1945. I found it interesting though, that during that 1930 to 45 period there was a huge boom in consumer radios. It was truly the golden age of radio, and the general public was gobbling up radios as fast as they could be produced.
So this year we have two celebrations, 75 years for THE Meriden Amateur Radio Club, and 101 years of historical radio club history in Meriden.
The original 1921 Newspaper article is attached.
That was the headline in the Meriden Morning Record the morning of April 22, 1921 - 101 years ago . It was the first official radio club based in the city of Meriden, CT and was named “the Meriden Radio Club”. It was started by four wireless operators in Meriden, who were President A. S. Boynton, VP George Donnelly, Secretary-Treasurer Frank Young.
The newspaper article goes on to detail the original constitution of the club, which was very similar to our current one that was adopted when the current iteration, the “Meriden Amateur Radio Club” was formed in 1947.
The proposed constitution set forth meetings twice monthly on the first and third Thursdays. The “annual” meeting was scheduled for the first Thursday in May. The constitution had 9 articles, the first of which sets the official name of the club as the “Meriden Radio Club” and its object the bringing together of the amateurs of Meriden and vicinity who, being interested in the advancement of radio telegraph and telephone, desire to become familiar with the radio art.
There were 60 people in attendance and at the end of the meeting 46 people signed up to join the club.
They had three classes of membership.
Full members had to be 16 years old, must have been actively connected with radio work for a full year and must be able to receive messages in continental code at the speed of ten words a minute, or be proficient in some other branch of the art.
Associate members must be over 16 years of age, but need not be familiar with any branch of radio work if they are interested and desire to join the club.
Junior Members are those between the ages of 12 and 16 who show an interest in the art and desire to become proficient in the code and familiarize themselves with radio apparatus.
Entrance Fee was $1 for full and associate members and was 50 cents for junior members. Annual dues for Full and Associate members was $10 and $3 for junior members.
There were four standing committees. Which were the Library and Publicity, Program, Electrical, and Nominating Committee.
The first version of Morse code was more adapted to land line telegraphy that used mechanical “sounders”. It was referred to as “American Morse Code”. The early wireless amateur operators of the new radio club correctly described their code requirement to be in the new adaptation of the old American Morse Code. The NEW version was called “Continental” or later “International” Morse code. If you were an EARLY ham in 1900 you might have been sending “Dot-space-dot” for the letter “O”. Today the “O” is “Dash-Dash-Dash”. So there’s a bit of trivia showing how the Meriden Radio Club of 1921 not only included the “code” as part of their original constitution but also felt it important to define the version of Morse code they used.
The “Meriden Radio Club” was active for a few years in the 20s. But after the 30’s there was very little information. From examining the notes and early history of our current club which started meeting in 1946 after the end of WWII after radio restrictions were lifted, it might be likely that one or two of our very early members who started MARC in the 40s may have been members of that original club.
I had talked to Frank W1FYG, W1FD - SK (MARC’s first Pres. ) often and the subject of the old 1921 club was never mentioned. I’ve found a lot of ham radio info from 1890 to 1930, but there seems to be some “dead air” time between 1930 and 1945. I found it interesting though, that during that 1930 to 45 period there was a huge boom in consumer radios. It was truly the golden age of radio, and the general public was gobbling up radios as fast as they could be produced.
So this year we have two celebrations, 75 years for THE Meriden Amateur Radio Club, and 101 years of historical radio club history in Meriden.
The original 1921 Newspaper article is attached.
Rich - WA1TRY
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