Recording of Titanic SOS
D.J.J. Ring, Jr.
I just had an opportunity to listen to a recording made about 1953 or
so by Ralph Graham who was a telegrapher with the New York Times. He
was an excellent Morse operator - both American land line Morse or
radio. He was also a radio amateur.
The recordings are "The Last Day of the New York Times Washington
Bureau Wire - 1952" and "Saga of Telegraphy" (1957) both by J. Ralph
Graham who worked for NYT and later for U.S. News and World Report.
He was an excellent telegrapher, he and Ralph Cahill are on the NYT
wire
recording.
The recording that he recreated on the long playing record was
identical to your recording.
The 1957 recording has only a few copies existing. I had one and I
made a CD of it. I also had the LP that Ralph Graham had that was
made from the New York Times - so the CD has two LPs on it.
Here is the library card for one that I know of:
The saga of telegraphy : "Canst thou send lightnings?" / by J. Ralph Graham.
Author: Graham, J. Ralph.
Title: The saga of telegraphy : "Canst thou send lightnings?" / by J.
Ralph Graham.
Published: Washington, D.C. : J.R. Graham, c1957.
Description: ii, 30 p. : ill. ; 24 cm. + 1 sound disc (analog, 33 1/3
rpm, mono. ; 12 in.)
Location: MUSIC LIBRARY, SML, Historical Sound Recording (Non-Circ)
Call Number: TK5611 G739 S1
Subjects (Library of Congress): Telegraph --History.
Database: Yale University Library
Ralph's call sign might be W4RJX - I know he was a Southerner and I
know he is a silent key. I spoke to his son a while ago when doing
research on this recording.
The 1957 recording states that the message that follows was that which
was received by David Sarnoff from the Wanarmaker Building in NYC.
But In 1977 Carl Dreher, an RCA engineer, revealed in Sarnoff: An
American Success that the Marconi station was not in operation that
night and Marconi had in fact closed the station in the Wanamaker
Building.
The 1957 LP makes no claim that this is a original recording - the
sending is about 28 wpm which was Ralph Graham's preferred speed, and
it sounds like his excellent bug.
He goes on to recreate the announcement with modulated CW (A2 / mcw )
of Byrd over the South Pole. All of these are re-enactments.
Incidently, the CD you sent me comes up with the Title of Dornröschen
which is German for "Sleeping Beauty" - so perhaps this title is
telling us that this recording is a Fairy Tale.
73
David J. Ring, Jr., N1EA
Former Coastal Radio Station Telegrapher - Tuckerton Radio / WSC
Former U.S. Merchant Marine Radio Officer
-30-
On Tue, Dec 18, 2007 at 4:07 PM, <RGr...@aol.com> wrote:
> Hi David,
> Thanks very much for that. Why don't we just continue all this after the
> holidays. I'm finishing an editing job this week and we all fly to Panama on
> Thursday, Dec. 20 until Jan. 5. I am interested getting to the end (or
> bottom--no pun intended) of the SOS Titanic business--if that's possible. I
> would like to prepare and distribute a "product" for other hams around this
> and be open about it all. Even as a re-creation, it stimulates some
> interesting thoughts.
> I hope you feel better and are able to enjoy the holidays with your
> family and friends. You might be able to catch me on the FISTS frequencies
> from down in Panama (like 14.058, etc.). That's where I'll be hanging out.
> 20m being the best band, I suppose. Thanks again for your input. Take care
> of yourself.
>
> 73,
> Bob, NC6Q
>
>
> ________________________________
> See AOL's top rated recipes and easy ways to stay in shape for winter.