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England (Counties as in 1851-1901) => England => Northumberland => Topic started by: carolmc on Thursday 10 May 18 09:29 BST (UK)
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Fred Watts b.28/7/1911 was a radio ham working for Cable and Wireless Nairobi up to 1937 when he returned to the 'North East' I believe he was listening to german morseduring ww2 but can't prove it. Does anyone know anything about 'listening stations' in the Newcastle area or anything to do with radio hams in that area? I know he isn't listed at Bletchley Park, but there were places listening to morse and the messages ended up at Bletchley. Any help much appreciated. Carolmc
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Unfortunately, I don't know the answer to this.
http://www.newmp.org.uk/article.php?categoryid=99&articleid=1627&displayorder=100
However, it may help to send your information to the North East War Memorials Project - there are some very knowledgeable people there concerning war history.
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A quick web search reveals the actual stations were called Y Stations
https://forums.qrz.com/index.php?threads/the-y-stations.418409/
That gives a list and there seems to have been one in Stockton on Tees,though it doesn't mention if amateur operators fed info to them, the local archives may have some info?
If you have access to usenet then there is a group called uk.radio.amateur who may be able to point you in the right direction. If you don't have access to usenet, then you could post to the group via Google Groups.
Boo
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There is an incoming passenger list for a Fred Watts, age 26, radio engineer who arrived in London aboard the Dunluce Castle from South Africa on 13 Sep 1937. His intended address in the UK was, as far as I can read it, Fox St Sunderland.
Boo
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There is a death notice in the Sunderland Daily Echo 18 Dec 1937
WATTS - At 11 Fox St on December 17 (suddenly) Edith, beloved wife of Fred Watts. Interment at Bishopwearmouth Cemetery on Tuesday; cortege leaving residence 2.15
FreeBMD shows this lady was 51, so maybe this is Fred jnr's Mam and could help confirm his intended address on the passenger list and help you to refine North East as the area he was in when he returned?
Though given his age and skills I would have thought he would be in the services in some capacity during WW2 and not operating as as amateur radio listener.
A free search of the 1939 register only brings up one Fred Watts with that birthdate and he is in London, which could mean its your Fred or maybe he 'was' in the forces and therefore not on the register?
Boo
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Hi Boo
Thank you for replying. All the info on Fred Watts is 100% correct. He was almost blind and exempt from joining the armed forces. He was extremely clever and had a photographic memory and as 1 of some 3000 radio hams in the UK would have volunteered. I think he went to London 1939 to train as a listener of german morse code. He is not listed at Bletchley Park, but could have been a civilian working at a listening station in the Newcastle area. I'd just like to prove it. Carolmc
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A free search of the 1939 register only brings up one Fred Watts with that birthdate and he is in London, which could mean its your Fred or maybe he 'was' in the forces and therefore not on the register?
The was also pointed out in reply #3 of this thread :)
http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=748669.msg5963218#msg5963218
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whoops little Miss Echo strikes again :-)
But I always just assume that if there has been a previous thread the poster will let us know, or at least tell us what they already know. Having read that the Fred Watts "returned to the 'North East' " I thought the info to narrow down where he returned to would assist.
Boo
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There is now, and I think there has always been, a register of amateur radio operators in the UK. I know because I am an amateur radio operator.That register would give you his name, location and callsign. It is likely his callsign at that time might have commenced G2+2 letters or G3+2 letters or G5+ 2 letters
The Radio Society of Great Britain may be able to help at
https://rsgb.org
I have a licence to transmit and a listing in the callsign handbook that I have mentioned would have been conditional on him having a similar licence. If not, he may have registered as a shortwave listener. I think at that time operators would have been regulated by the Post Office so there might be something in Post Office records about him.
The only requirement for him to operate as a Y station would have been competence in reading morse which doesn't mean he was necessarily a registered radio ham as such. He could have been a commercial telegraphist...a Marconi man or similar.
Looking back through the thread it seems likely that he was a commercial telegraphist with Cable & Wireless or even a marine radio operator.
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Thanks for the interest, trying the North East Memorials. Can't access rsgb.org without joining. Freds call sign in Nairobi was vq4cru in 1937 he reached Norwich, Switzerland and 2 in Holland, postcards verify this. I have a quantity of 'papers' from 1946 to 1971 including exam papers, City and Guilds certificate and a RSGB cert 3/12/1970, this has BRS32541 and states Fred had been elected as a corporate member. There is a letter 26/1/1948 from the Civil Service Commission in London saying his qualification has been granted for wireless technication in the regional wireless service of the Home Office, he was living Dipton, Newcastle upon Tyne. Lots of info, but no proof of what he was doing. Anyone any more ideas? Help much appreciated Carolmc
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Can't access rsgb.org without joining.
https://rsgb.org/main/contact/
that page gives email addresses, I'd send an email enquiry and explain what you are looking for. They may be able to point you in the right direction?
Boo
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The BRS number is a shortwave listeners number but why he needed that if he had also passed the City & Guilds Radio Amateurs Exam is confusing. Also, why did he need the RAE pass if his qualifications to be a licence holder had been accepted by the Home Office as equivalent.
VQ4 or VQ is no longer an international prefix for any country. Kenya uses 5Y or 5X.
There's no doubting his background but the detail seems a bit confused.
I wouldn't have thought you needed to join the RSGB to send them an email to whatever contacts they list. I got this from the contact list on the home page. It's the email for the General Manager so might help.
gm.dept@rsgb.org.uk
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Link to Shortwave Mag, Sept 1937. His callsign is mentioned on Page 32 as a contact with 2AAN in Tankerton, Kent.
https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Short-Wave-UK/30s/SWM-1937-09.pdf