to the January 2003 meeting of the ARRL Board
Document #31
Some excellent progress has been made regarding historical preservation and inventory during the past six months. The committee held one conference call (Nov 5, 2002). Among the topics discussed was the need for the ARRL to establish a business records retention schedule, both for historical and business reasons, and the need to upgrade the historical display in the main lobby.
Inventory and preservation
Perry Williams, W1UED, has come out of retirement to work on the big job of cataloging the 100+ files of paper records once stored in the third floor attic in Newington. He's been on-the-job part time since early September working in an area on the second floor where most of the files have been relocated to from the attic. There are several worktables and shelves, and the area can be secured. Discoveries include considerable documentation from early ITU and IARU meetings, as well as early history of the ARRL. Perry has had additional help from Charles Griffen, W1GYR, and John Huntoon, W1RW, former General Manager of the ARRL, even stopped in to lend a hand.
Contact with other groups and organizations
This past fall, Hiram Percy Maxim II gave a couple of presentations to Connecticut radio clubs about his grandfather. He has some notebooks of some of HPM's early research work. Jim Maxwell initiated contact with Mr Maxim and we're trying to get copies of the notebooks to add to the ARRL historical collection.
Jim Maxwell also discovered that Northeast Historic Film, in Bucksport Maine, had a collection of HPM's early home movies. At least one had footage of his trip to France for the IARU organizational meetings in 1925.
Tom Frenaye was able to attend part of the Antique Wireless Association's 50th anniversary meeting in late August. It was a good opportunity to make some contacts within the AWA and to see their excellent museum.
Other
If you've ever wanted to review ARRL historical information on the ARRL
web site, there is a section in the Technical Information Services page that
has some extensive information à
http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/history.html
Historical Committee
Tom Frenaye, K1KI, chairman
Al Cohen, W1FXQ
Charles Griffen, W1GYR
Jim Maxwell, W6CF
Jim McCobb, W1LLU
22 December 2002