[Milsurplus] Ship Radio Operators:

[Hubert Miller]

Some years back, actually around 1985, I bought a variety of things from the estate of Royal Zinn, in West Seattle.
He had been a movie theater employee in Bisbee, AZ around 1930, then moved to Seattle, worked there in the 
theater business, then went to work for Alaska Steamship Co.  I bought a fair amount of interesting paper of all 
kinds:  movie posters and handbills, Bisbee photos, 1920s ship radio licenses, Sargent radio co. manuals, advertising, 
ship radio logs from Alaska voyages, all kinds of odds and ends. He had in the 1950s owned a West Seattle surplus
store, so there was tons of radio equipment also, in fact the basement was crammed full of wooden crates. I was the
right person at the right time, because who else invited there would have recognized the importance of the paper
and kept it from the trash dumpster. The estate buying was by invitation from Mr. Zinn's widow, and times and hours
were very limited. Someone before me had laid out some of the paper items but had chickened out and left because
he said the garage and such contained asbestos. Because of the moist air I figured any asbestos in the air would be
minimal and besides, I was not scraping the walls, even in the small confines of the attic area. It was a unique 
experience, truly, digging thru actual heaps of good and often amazing stuff.  After I moved to Omaha to keep my job, 
I heard there had been a final - final sale when the widow passed away. But I suspect that most of the wood crates in the
basement, some containing brand new MN-26 direction finders and such things, did wind up right in the trash. Mr. Zinn
had liked paper, and I'm so grateful to him for so-called packratting and saving so much fine stuff. 
That sheet was just in with various other odd paper items. I had thought it came from Alaska Steam, but your note 
inspired me to look it up. Per Wikipedia, 'Mount McKinley' AGC-7 / LCC-7 was flagship for an amphibious force. Possibly 
the ship visited Seattle during WW2 ? Now I am puzzled and have no explanation.

BTW, I have a theory that Allied ships of other countries visited Seattle and Portland and when there, some had their older
ship's radios changed out for the current U.S. equipment. I suggest this explains 2 of the 1930s type regen receivers I found 
in Seattle, one I know about in Portland, OR, and the 'Russian spark set' that a customer of our store in Seattle told me about,
back around 1978.
-Hue 


>Subject: Re: [Milsurplus] Ship Radio Operators:

That's the first document I've seen that uses SSSS to indicate attack by submarine.  Everything else I've seen isSSS, sent:  dit dit dit (space) dit dit dit (space) dit dit ditThat contrasts withSOS, sent:  dit dit dit dah dah dah dit dit dit (one prosign, no spaces) A WWII life boat 500 kHz transmitter made by Federal has selection for auto keying of SOS or SSS.
Hue, do you know the source of the document?  I also did not know of the A, R, M attack codes.  Interesting.
Mike / KK5F