The Radio Central Amateur Radio Club

Celebrates International Marconi Day

April 26, 2008


International Marconi Day (IMD) is a 24-hour amateur radio event held annually to celebrate the birth of Guglielmo Marconi on the 25th of April, 1874. The IMD event is not a contest: it is an opportunity for amateurs around the world to make point-to-point contact with historic Marconi sites using HF communications techniques similar to those used by Marconi.

The Radio Central Amateur Radio Club operates its IMD station from the tiny 10 ft x 10 ft Marconi shack built around 1901 in Babylon, NY. The shack was in use for about ten years, after which time, the advent of short wave transmission made the station obsolete and the building was abandoned. In 1930 Major Armstrong purchased the building and offered it to the Radio Corporation of America as an historic artifact. David Sarnoff, President of RCA, had the building moved to the RCA Radio Central transmitter site in Rocky Point, NY.

In 1960 the shack was moved to the historic Robinson Barn about two miles away to keep it from further deterioration. Luckily, it survived a fire in the barn in 1968. When RCA sold its property to New York State in the early 1970s, ownership of the shack was transferred to the Rocky Point School District. After three more moves and three restoration efforts the shack sits proudly in front of the Frank J Carasiti Elementary school in Rocky Point, about a mile from the RCA Radio Central transmitter site.

40°56'18.00"N 72°56'25.45"W



Logbook as of: 27-Apr-2008 02:38 pm
QSO Time Call Freq (kHz) Mode RST Name City State Country Opr.
1 0002 LW3EX 14050 CW 589 Walt Munro - Argentina Dick
2 0051 KC2KY 3554 CW 599 Neil Centereach NY USA Dick
3 0106 N1WSD 3554 CW 589 Kevin Oxford MA USA Dick
4 0122 W2SCB 3554 CW 579 Stan Smithtown NY USA Dick
5 0145 KB4QQJ 3554 CW 339 Randy Burlington NC USA Dick
6 1255 KO7X 14050 CW 589 Alan Cheyene WY USA Dick
7 1358 WA8YVF 7280 SSB 59 George Olmstead Falls OH USA Neil
8 1400 KJ8O 7280 SSB 56 Joe Troy MI USA Neil
9 1403 KJ7US 14050 CW 579 Doc Tuscon AZ USA Dick
10 1409 KD4TDI 7280 SSB 59 Dale Winston Salem NC USA Neil
11 1411 W2LIS 7280 SSB 59 Dave Rocky Point NY USA Neil
12 1412 K8LD 7280 SSB 58 Mark Bowling Green OH USA Neil
13 1430 K4WOK 14050 SSB 57 Robert Hendersonville NC USA Neil
14 1508 N6BQD 7280 SSB 59 Larry Wurtzburo NY USA Neil
15 1515 KB9QJU 7280 SSB 59 Phil Paragon IN USA Neil
16 1517 WX4SC 7280 SSB 59 Brandon Gaffney SC USA Neil
17 1519 KN0I 14050 CW 599 Jerry Canton MO USA Dick
18 1521 N9GWO 7280 SSB 54 Gary Hamburg NY USA Neil
19 1541 WA9WNE 7280 SSB 59 Terry Suwanee GA USA Bill
20 1549 KJ2BH 14057 CW ? Dale ? ? USA Joe
21 1641 WI0S 14065 CW 589 Keith Mound MN USA Dick
22 1645 WD8CCC 7143 SSB 59 Ben Ripley WV USA Stan
23 1653 K4GXY 14065 CW 539 John Lakeland FL USA Dick
24 1703 WI0S 14065 CW 549 Keith Mound MN USA Neil
25 1713 K0IVK 14065 CW 599 Joe Springfield MO USA Neil
26 1807 WR5U 14065 CW 589 Mike Newiberia LA USA Dick
27 1924 W8NZW 7049 CW 589 Ed Grand Rapids MI USA Neil
28 1931 KE4QZB 7049 CW 589 Brian Charlotte NC USA Neil
29 1944 KB8DFM 7050 CW 589 Keith Hamilton OH USA Neil
30 2256 LW3EX 14060 CW 569 Walt Munro - Argentina Dick
31 2307 WP4F 14060 CW 579 Danny Toa Alta PR USA Dick
32 2317 WO2N 14060 CW 589 Bernie Mastic NY USA Dick
33 2331 N5URL 14060 CW 599 Bob Oklahoma City OK USA Dick
34 2342 W6UT 14060 CW 579 Dennis Stockton CA USA Dick


Photos from previous activities at the shack:

Charlie - K2CQK digging a QSO out of the QRM.

NY State Senator Ken LaValle attaches a
commemorative plaque to the shack.

Dick - K2RFP with one of his mini keys on his leg.

A visitor to the shack shows us how he did it in WW-II.

Neil - KC2KY talking to some Cub Scouts.

The Cub Scouts visit the shack.

QSL Information: Send your QSL card or SWL report with SASE to

RADIO CENTRAL AMATEUR RADIO CLUB
PO BOX 396
Centereach NY 11720
USA

International Marconi Day homepage.

Radio Central Amateur Radio Club homepage.

Radio Central Day 2007 Logbook.



Programmed by K2RFP.