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About
1942
Left to
right : Bill
Momsen,
Frank
Heffernan,
John Kerr
(2BE owner),
Mrs Crowley.
Taken at 2BE
in Bega,
1961 |
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With my
mother (Vera Heffernan) we
moved from the Buckajo Farm
to an almost new rented
house, corner Tathra Road
and Boundry Street to
further my education at Bega
High School.
The house
was owned by Daphne Pell
(nee Innes). No school buses
operated Buckajo to Bega
until after WW2 (late
1940’s). Not having a
wireless and living ¼ mile
from the radio station I
built my first crystal set
from parts purchased from
Clive Morgan’s radio and
clothing store in Carp
Street Bega (now K.F.C.).
With a new
set of headphones it worked
100% on 2BE but some nights
I could tune in to distant
stations although the
signals were weak.
I was
using about 100 foot copper
aerial but it was only good
for 2BE. Crystal sets need
lots of radiated power from
the transmitter to make them
work.
John Kerr
who worked for radio 2XL
Cooma purchased Radio 2BE,
Bega in 1941.
As we
lived on Tathra Road just
north of the station, John
would give us a ride to
school in his old car. From
memory John was not married
then and lived at the Grand
Hotel. Both John and his
staff were thrilled to
listen to their station on
my crystal set, which worked
perfectly around the
station.
After
moving back to the farm 1946
I lost contact with John
until I got a pilots licence
using my Auster Aircraft.
1946
We moved
back to the Heffernan farm
at Buckajo. The crystal set
lost 90% of receiving power.
I then built a
2-valve
battery operated radio,
which could receive 2BE and
2XL (Cooma).
At this
stage we had no wireless on
the farm, as the two valve
operated on headphones. I
purchased a four-valve kit
from a Melbourne firm, which
was battery operated (we did
not have 240 volt connection
until 1950). It took me
several weeks to build the
wireless in-between milking
cows by hand and general
farm-work. Milking machines
were installed in 1949. I
wired it up from a circuit
diagram from radio and
hobble. Now I could receive
2BE and 2XL clear by day and
many broadcast stations by
night using a small speaker.
This setup provided news and
music for the other members
of the family.
1948
My dad
purchased a second hand 1937
Weldon 7 valve battery
operated console wireless at
Mitchell’s clearance farm
sale Brian Dairy for 4 pound
10 shillings.
In the
early 1950s a new dairy was
built by Frank Neville of
Bega. Milking machines were
installed by Jack Crimmings
of Bega and about this time
we were connected to the new
power grid. My family then
purchased a 240 volt
wireless.
The old
Weldon wireless was stored
in the new dairy until
September 2001 when we gave
it to the Bega Co-op Cheese
Museum.
Early
1960’s
Being
interested in two-way radio
I purchased two portable CB
radios on the 27.240 (mc)
band. I met up with John
Kerr and we discussed using
these in the aircraft for
ground to air contact.
I remember
flying over Bega and talking
to John at the AT
transmitter site on Tathra
Road loud and clear. John
said this could be a
lifesaver in air/ground
emergencies, which I used on
a number of occasions
searching for people lost at
sea. John spoke to me about
a local shark patrol in the
early 1970’s. However the
portable radios were not
good enough for
re-broadcast.
Later I
did a few years for the
owner of radio 2XL Cooma.
John used an aircraft radio
receiver on 119.1. M.C. I
broadcasted on this
frequency and it was
landline Tathra to Cooma.
1975
John Kerr
sold to Ray Rumble. I
started a shark patrol Eden
to Batemans Bay using a high
quality F.M. Transmitter
between the aircraft and
Radio 2BE.
After John
sold to Ray Rumble I lost
contact with him. I
understand he moved to
Batemans Bay N.S.W. where he
passed away many years ago.
In
conclusion John ran a good
station (not flogged to
death by advertisements) of
mixed popular hits of the
1940’s to the 1970’s plus
"Hillbilly" songs (now
called country music) such
as Tex Morton, Buddy
Williams, Slim Dusty, Athol
McCoy etc.
There was
also an afternoon programme
of housewives‘ requests plus
local news by Bill Jardine
in the early days and
national and international
news.
I have in
my possession a number of
old 2BE records, mostly 78’s
which was given to me by Ray
Rumble when he demolished
the old transmitter site in
Tathra Road in 1979.
I also
have my original headphones
just waiting to be hooked up
to a crystal set if I can
buy one? |
