[GreenKeys] AT&T microwave tower

[Blake Bowers]

Very few of the AT&T towers are still active for AT&T.  In Iowa, a WISP has 
taken
over some of the routes for a microwave backbone, in IL a tower owner has 
done
the same.  In MO there is some activity at some of the sites still owned by 
AT&T,
but they are primarily fiber sites that just happen to be at the former 
Microwave sites.

Most of the old towers have had their waveguide stripped, and the horns 
removed,
the waveguide mainly by some Oklahoma theifs, and the horns by the owners.

In Missouri the bulk of them are now owned by the State of MO, in KS many
are owned by either American Tower or Heartland Towers.

Other states its primarily a mix.

We bought the former Autovon bunker in Mounds OK, where there used
to be a number of ASR43 terminals, I presume for handling workorders.  Most
of the other sites we have purchased such as Hollister MO did not have
any TTY equipment.  I have been in almost all the MO sites, and never found
any TTY equipment.




Don't take your organs to heaven,
heaven knows we need them down here!
Be an organ donor, sign your donor card today.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "amourdutigre" <amourdutigre at kc.rr.com>
To: <Greenkeys at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Thursday, January 08, 2009 11:56 AM
Subject: [GreenKeys] AT&T microwave tower


The microwave tube on e-bay stirred a question in my mind that would go 
nicely here...

When I was a young boy, I remember seeing along the country highways these 
relatively low, broad for their height unguyed towers that had giant 
microwave horns shooting in opposite directions. They were fed with what I 
assume was wave guide. There was always a huge red aviation warning light on 
top even though the towers were relatively short, and there was always a 
late forties early fifties vintage brick and masonry building at the base of 
the tower with fence around it and a locked gate. I remember seeing these 
from the mid sixties to the mid seventies, and I assume that they were 
around a lot longer before. They were usually along the old 
(non-interstate...most of those had not been completed at the time) country 
highways. I have not seen one in many years.

Along the same lines, many of the old telephone buildings had a rectangular 
enclosed tower on their roofs that had the same type of horn array. Now, 
only one telephone building any where around where I live has one left, 
probably because it has not been dismantled. The telephone building in 
Kansas City, MO had one on it for years before it was removed, and it used 
to be a prominent part of the skyline. Now it is gone.

Are there anymore of these microwave links left? Just before I started 
noticing that they were disappearing, I noticed that the horns were being 
replaced with passive reflectors that were themselves being illuminated by 
dishes at the base of the tower shooting straight up.

I would love to hear more about these facilities, and any of the history 
surrounding them. Though I have never worked in the telecom industry, I have 
always had a great fascination with it, and have collected many artifacts 
associated with it.

Best and 73,

Joe KB0TXC


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