Jack Binns ~ Wireless Hero
Ithaca, NY
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Commemoration NEWS
The week-end of January 23rd 2009 was an extraordinary one for both amateur radio and the Binns family. While more than a thousand people either played a part in the special event stations or contacted them, many more people heard interviews on BBC radio or read about the event in newspapers and on the Internet!
The links below lead to many of these reports.
The summer of 2009 also promises to be filled with events commemorating the first large scale rescue in open sea coordinated by wireless, including museum exhibits, presentations, and publications. Please come back to this page to get the latest updates!
And please contact us for further information and suggestions!Articles & Radio interviews
December 2008
- QSO Special Issue: "The Jack Binns Story" by David Barlow
January 2009
- Monitoring Monthly: "CQD - Jack Binns & the Sinking Of The RMS Republic" by John H. Bowen
- Western Morning News, Cornwall, UK: http://www.thisiswesternmorningnews.co.uk/news/Wireless-operator-hero-sea-rescue-radio/article-594934-detail/article.html
- The BBC Cambridgeshire has a fine article on Jack Binns: http://www.bbc.co.uk/cambridgeshire/content/articles/2009/01/21/jack_binns_hero_feature.shtml
- Radio interviews carried out in conjunction with the Special Event Stations:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today/newsid_7846000/7846351.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/cornwall/7846590.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/7444184.stm
This page has the link to a soundbite:http://www.bbc.co.uk/cornwall/content/articles/2009/01/23/history_morsecode_feature.shtml
Special Event Stations ~ Reports and links
As of March 5, 2009
Below is information about the Special Event Stations that were working the week-end of January 23rd through 25th. You can follow the links to reports and videos. It was an extraordinary week-end, with thousands of contacts made, from all over the world!
In the UK:
Scunthorpe Steel Amateur Radio Club, Scunthorpe, UK
- GB5CQD - on the `air` for 48 hours continuous from Friday
to Sunday evening - more than 500 contacts, including New Zealand, Australia & Canada! - Three station `rigs`: two on HF using CW & SSB & one on VHF 2 metres
- The Deputy Mayor of North Lincolnshire and two councillors attended the event, enjoyed a buffet lunch, and learned about "The Special Life of a Briggensian" (Jack Binns was born in Brigg, which is next door to Scunthorpe in North Lincolnshire)
- In charge: John Allen
- Website: www.g4fuh.co.uk. Go to this website, and click on GB5CQD in the left hand column to see photos of the event!
- Videos of the event can be found on YouTube at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBMYkp6yKhM and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOYCVi4IWZk
The Lizard Marconi Wireless Station, The Lizard, Cornwall, UK- GB100MSC on air 22nd - 25th January 2009 80m-10m CW and SSB.
- Click here to find a report of the week-end, and here for an image of the front of the Lizard QSL card.
- In charge: David Barlow
- Website: www.lizardwireless.org
Chelmsford Amateur Radio Society, Chelmsford, UK- GB0MWT for the whole of January & February, operated from Marconi Hut, Sandford Mill. Go to http://www.g0mwt.org.uk/ for images and a radio interview with John Bowen.
- Morse only for the 23rd & 24th Jan, 9am to 5pm GMT and on Sunday 25th 9am to 5pm GMT SSB and Morse
- In charge: John Bowen
- Website: www.g0mwt.org.uk
- GB0JRB will be on the air 23rd January 2000hrs UTP till 25th January 1800 hrs UTP
- Operations will take place using 2 HF stations on all usable frequencies and one VHF/UHF station on 2m, 4m, and 70cm.
It is hoped to operate using SSB, PSK31 and Morse depending on availability of operators. - Location: Southfield Community Centre, Stanground, Peterborough
- Website: http://www.radioclubs.net/padar/events.php?events_id=1226
- Another website with details: http://www.radioclubs.net/padarc/articles.php?articles_id=371
- In charge: David Howlett
In the US:The Marconi Radio Club W1AA of Massachusetts USA- Two stations, representing:
- SS Republic (Call sign MKC) as W1AA/MKC
- SS Baltic (Call sign BC) as W1AA/BC
- Two stations were in operation from 0000Z to 0300Z, and 1200Z to 2000Z.
- Photo QSL cards of the ships were created for W1AA/MKC and W1AA/BC. If stations contacted both W1AA/MKC and W1AA/BC they qualified to receive a Jack Binns certificate from the Marconi Radio Club.
- For a YouTube video of the event, go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBMYkp6yKhM
- For a report of the event, click here.
- In charge: Bob "Whitey" Doherty K1VV
- Website: www.anything-it.biz/roass/roars.html
Marconi Cape Cod Radio Club, KM1CCCape Cod National Seashore, Wellfleet, Massachusetts, USA- KM1CC was on the air from January 23 to January 25
- Jack Binns' granddaughters Virginia Lovelace and Deborah Fraser were present at KM1CC's operating site
- For pictures of the event, see http://picasaweb.google.com/KM1CC.CapeCod
- Website: Cape Cod National Seashore (a unit of the US National Park) http://www.nps.gov/caco/parknews/cape-cod-national-seashore-to-commemorate-100th-anniversary-of-the-first-marconi-distress-message.htm
- In charge: Barbara Dougan, KB1GSO, Jack Binns- KM1CC listing
In Italy:In the Republic of Ireland:Italian Naval Old Rhythmers Club (INORC), Loano, Italy
- II1CQD will be on the air Jan 23 to Feb 28
- "Our rig power is of about 400W and we can switch between
a vertical and a dipole antenna." Click here for a picture of the rig. - Check II1CQD on QRZ.com for details of the transmissions. Please also check the call IY1SP on QRZ.com
- A newspaper report of the event, in two pages, can be found at: http://www.arilaspezia.it/rstampa/SECOLO.jpg and http://www.arilaspezia.it/rstampa/SECOLO(2).jpg
- A report of the event, with an image of the QSL card, can be found at http://www.qrz.com/db/ii1cqd
- Sandal notes that they had about 2000 contacts for the event, and says "we had contact with many countries all over the world, the most are in Europe, but we had contact also with Asia, Africa, America and Australia."
- Location: ARI Radio Club of La Spezia
- In charge: Sandro D'Onofrio, Giuliano Sandal
- Website: http://www.arilaspezia.it/
The Howth Martello Radio Group, EI0MAR, Howth (near Dublin), Ireland- The call EI100CQD was used. We were active on all bands but especially 30 metres; ssb and cw was in use on Friday,Saturday, and Sunday from about 1100 until 1700 UTC each day.
- Location: Ye Olde Hurdy Gurdy Museum of Vintage Radio (EI0MAR vintage radio museum) in Howth near Dublin. The museum is located in a Martello tower which has connections with Lee de Forest and Marconi Company. It was also a Marconi station.
- In charge: Tony Breathnach, EI5EM
- Web site: www.ei0mar.org
- Tony Breathnach has submitted the log of the event for EI100CQD (Excel file)...
- ...and an image of their QSL card.
- A YouTube video of the event can be found at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_mBWV5Vc50
- GB5CQD - on the `air` for 48 hours continuous from Friday
Presentations
As of January 1, 2009
Tompkins County Amateur Radio Club, Ithaca, NY, USA
- 6th January, 2009, 8 pm, Kelly's Dockside Café: "Jack Binns and the First Rescue by Wireless at Open Sea" by Virginia Lovelace
Chelmsford Amateur Radio Society, Chelmsford, UK -
- 6th January, 2009, 7.30 pm: "CQD and Jack Binns 1909" by John Bowen
- For full details, go to http://www.g0mwt.org.uk/
Salt Pond Visitor Center, Eastham, MA, USA
- 24th January, 2009, 1pm: "Jack Binns and the First Rescue by Wireless at Open Sea" by Virginia Lovelace
Scunthorpe Steel Amateur Radio Club, Scunthorpe, UK -
- January: Presentation and showing of "Rescue at Sea" by John Allen
IEEE "Virtual Museum"
- John Allen's presentation will available on the Virtual Museum website
For more information about these events, please contact us!Museum exhibits
As of December 31, 2009
North Lincolnshire Museum, Scunthorpe, UK -- Jack Binns Exhibit, June 2009
- Website: North Lincs Museum
Lizard Marconi Wireless Station, The Lizard, Cornwall, UK -- Museum inside the 100 year old hut in which Marconi sent a distance record of 186 miles as a precursor to his transatlantic triumph
- Website: www.lizardwireless.org
Liverpool Merseyside Maritime Museum, Liverpool, UK -- To be announced
Peterborough Museum, UK-- Exhibit of famous Peterborians, Spring 2009
Chelmsford, UK -- The Marconi Historical Radio Stations will be open during the Special Event Station times.
- See http://www.ieee-virtual-museum.org/ for upcoming information!
PRESS RELEASes
As of December 31, 2008
- Information about the commemorations to be held by the Scunthorpe Steel Amateur Radio Society, prepared by John Allen.
- Information about the commemorations to be held by the Scunthorpe Steel Amateur Radio Society, prepared by John Allen.
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