World Wide Radio Amateur Convention

1933 World Wide Radio Amateur Convention by: Rod Blocksome
This convention was held in conjunction with the 1933 Chicago World's Fair and featured a technical program presented by a host of “pioneers” in the world of radio. The program speakers included:

Rufus C. Dawes	–	President of the 1933 World's Fair
Paul H. Davis, W9GES, W9BT & W9LK	–	Radio operator on MacMillian 1931 expedition to Iceland
Hiram Percy Maxim, W1AW	–	Founder of the American Radio Relay League (ARRL)
Harold D. Hayes	–	Acting inspector in charge Federal Radio Commission Chicago district
Boyd Phelps, W9BP	–	Owner Phelps Precision Laboratory; later became famous ham for work on 160 meters.
Don C. Wallace, W6AM	–	Prominent Amateur & Professional Radio in California
John L. Reinartz, W1QP	–	Radio Operator on MacMillan expedition to northern Greenland 1925; Proposed first ionospheric “skip” theory in 1925 using experiments with young Arthur Collins in 1925.
Robert S. Kruse, W1YDO & W1FG	–	Consulting engineer, text book author, pioneer work on ionospheric propagation
Clinton DeSoto, W1CBD	–	Employee of ARRL; later authored book “200 Meters and Down”
Lt. A. A. Hebert, W1ES	–	Treasurer of ARRL; earlier ARRL's first Manager and Vice-President
Lt. Cmdr. Fred H. Schnell, W9UZ	–	Early Traffic Manager at ARRL; organized first transcontinental amateur relay
H. F. Wareing, W9NY	–	College instructor & radio communications consultant
Prof. J. Barton Hoag	–	Physics instructor and researcher of ionospheric propagation
Arthur A. Collins, W9CXX	–	Owner, Collins Radio Company (formed in 1930)
B. C. Burden	–	Telephone & telegraph engineer and author
Kendall Clough, ex 9AAM	–	Chief engineer The Clough-Brengle Co.
McMurdo Silver	–	Organized Silver-Marshall, Inc. in 1924 and McMurdo Silver, Inc. in 1932
W. J. Leidy	–	President of the Chicago Transformer Corp.
James Millen	–	Vice-President of the National Company of Malden, Mass.; later formed the James Millen Co.
F. Dawson Bliley, W8GU	–	Bliley Piezo-Electric company
A. J. McMaster	–	President & Technical Director G-M Laboratories, Inc.
R. H. Freeman	–	Chief engineer Communications Dept. United Airlines
Loy E. Barton	–	developed Class B low cost modulation
Capt. G. Everett Hill, Jr.	–	U. S. Army Signal Corps Officer
Ralph R. Batcher, ex 9IT & 9IH	–	Research Engineer Decatur Manufacturing Co.

Interestingly, the registration fee for the entire convention was $4.50 and a single room at the hotel could be had for as little as $3.00 per night. However the charge for valet parking your car was 50¢ for 24 hours.

Anyone interested in the history of radio communications technology will enjoy reading the biographical sketches of the program speakers which also include a photograph. Arthur Collins would have been 23 years old and the youngest member of the program speakers. Five weeks after the convention, the Collins Radio Company was incorporated on September 9, 1933 – coincidently Arthur's 24th birthday.

The Convention was held at the Medinah Michigan Avenue Club, Chicago, Illinois, on August 3-4-5, 1933.

A PDF of the 44-page convention program booklet can be found HERE.

May 27 - November 1