Tradition Set Aside by Mills County Hams
Meeting dates changed from 2nd Tuesday to 2nd Monday.
Mills County has had a rich history of Amateur Radio.
First there was Hulen “Hoot” Egger in the 40’s & 50’s.
Then came 1952 when Lee Tesson was hired as Goldthwaite High School Math Teacher and Principal. Tesson became WN5ZTB. George Stanley Devoll, who was the Minister at the Church of Christ. became WN5EFJ. Before that year was out, three new Novices were licensed: Allen Colburn Ward, WN5FIP; Web K. Mays, WN5FIS and Sanford Musgrove, WN5FIT. Each of these hams has enjoyed the hobby ever since, and are all now Extra Class operators. Allen is now KA5N, Web K. Mays is now AA5NZ, and Sanford still has his original call sign after some 58 years, W5FIT.
A couple of years later, in 1954, Jim Musgrove, Sanford’s little brother received his license, KN5BZH. His friend, John Mckenzie, KN5COH became a ham about this same time. John never upgraded from Novice, and lost his license after one year. Back in those days, a novice one had one year in which to upgrade.
Ronnie Head, who was known to be a tinkerer with electronic gadgets in his high school years, was given his Novice license exam by Glen Dewit in the Spring of 1963 or 64. Two weeks later, before he received his Novice license in the mail, he took his General Class exam in Dallas at the FCC office. Then he shipped out to National Guard basic training and did not learn his call sign was WA5NQR until he got back home six months later.
When the FCC loosened its control of licensing in the 80’s, the ranks of Amateurs grew across the United States.
The same was true in Mills County. About that time Don Padgett, AA5QV, became licensed, along with Bobby Hammond, AA5RM; Jerry Ivy, N5CBW; John Priddy, KA5SAD; Rebecca Priddy, KA5YAJ; David Lewis, N5SJS; Robert Head, N5TZB; Breta Head, N5QBU; Jean Mays N5WWU; Macalee Hime, AB5TY and her husband, John Hime, and several others who made Ham Radio fun around here.
Macalee was an experienced railroad telegrapher and the other hams were awed by her speed at Morse code.
Through 1994, when most of the Mills County hams participated in Field Day they went with the Brownwood Amateur Radio Club. Then in 1995 several Hams decided to hold a Field Day in Mills County. That first year there were just a few that participated, but the number has grown through the years. This group, known as the Mills County Hams, did Field Day each year until 2005, and this was the main activity of the ham community along with having a Christmas dinner each year.
In 2005 several of the local hams began to talk about starting a Ham Radio club, one that would meet regularly and have different activities to meet the interests of all the hams. When enough interest was garnered, a notice was sent to all Mills County hams of an organizational meeting to form a local ham club. The meeting was held on February 15, 2005 at the Goldthwaite Housing Authority meeting Room. The club was organized at that meeting and officers were elected. The roster of the first officers of the club are:
President Ronnie Head, WA5NQR
Vice-President David Lewis, N5SJS
Secretary Walter Kovar, K5CBK
Treasurer Henry McKinney, KM5SG
Reporter Jim Musgrove, K5BZH
The Mills County Amateur Radio Club was formed that evening in February 2005, and has continued until the present.
The club continued to hold Field Day each year, and over the years the scores have climbed until the 2010 Field Day which saw our score exceed 6,600 points. Field Day has continued to be the main activity of the club. However, the club has looked for other local events to participate in.
The club has operated an Amateur Radio demonstration station at the annual Goldthwaite Championship Barbeque and Goat Cook-off for the past several years. At this event our booth offers some shade and conversation to many visiting hams among the several hundred folks shopping in the vendor area.
Mills County Amateur Radio Club has supported the Boy Scouts in their annual Jamboree on the Air. This event is especially valuable in that it often provides the only exposure to the Amateur Radio hobby those scouts would ever have.
The club continues to grow, and all licensed Amateurs and interested non-hams are welcome. The monthly meetings are held on the second Monday of each month at the Goldthwaite Housing Authority Community Room.
ARRL Field Day is the single most popular on-the-air event held annually in the US and Canada. Each year over 35,000 amateurs gather with their clubs, friends or simply by themselves to operate.
ARRL Field Day is not a fully adjudicated contest, which explains much of its popularity. It is a time where many aspects of Amateur Radio come together to highlight our many roles. While some will treat it as a contest, most groups use the opportunity to practice their emergency response capabilities. It is an excellent opportunity to demonstrate Amateur Radio to local elected community leaders, key individuals with the organizations that Amateur Radio might serve in an emergency, as well as the general public. For many clubs, ARRL Field Day is one of the highlights of their annual calendar.
The above information was copied from the ARRL.com website.
The members of the Mills County Amateur Radio Club, like most other participating hams, treat Field Day as a combination social event, picnic, camp-out, competition, as well as a demonstration of our ability to quickly set up and operate several radio stations not connected to the commercial power grid. Each year we learn something new; each year things seem to go a little smoother.
We are justifiably proud of our hobby and welcome every opportunity to show off what we can do. Anyone (old enough to read!) with an interest in communicating by radio is welcome to drop in at our Field Day site. You will be warmly greeted and given the opportunity to see what fun Amateur Radio can be.
I have dug into the ARRL databases and pulled Field Day information for most of this millennium. The older stuff will be harder to access, but it can be pulled out of QST archives.
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This Saturday, August 21, from 1800Z to 0600Z (1 p.m. Saturday until 1 a.m. Sunday) is the SSB NAQP. Single Operator stations can only operate 10 hours of the 12 hour window.
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Did you or any of the other Mills County hams participate in the recent Rookie Roundup? I did, had planned to play in their sandbox to provide them with a few extra points.
I made it! I got our Field Day Entry Form filed before deadline! (Just barely!) You wouldn't believe how much a little part-time job would get in the way of getting our results in. How did I ever get anything done when I worked a full-time job?
