Society for the Preservation of Antique Radio in Canada

Transcription

1 Society for the Preservation of Antique Radio in Canada Summer, 2009 Newsletter of the SPARC Vintage Radio Museum Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada Issue Hello to all My apology for the delay in getting this second issue to print. Many events have conspired to derail my publication schedule this year. May 13 th, good friend and founding member of SPARC, Paul Johnson was lost to us. Paul was a huge booster for the museum. It will be impossible to replace his enthusiasm and knowledge, which he was always so generously willing to pass on to anyone who asked for assistance. If your membership is in good standing, your membership card has been enclosed with this mailing. Again, my apology to those looking for it. SPARC T Shirts are now available for $20. Golden yellow in colour with the logo in red, these are a great way for you to promote the museum. Pick one up and proudly show your support. Thanks to Gerry O Hara & Gerry Taylor, our Chisholm display has started to take shape with a photo board display. A brief story of the Chisholm history begins on page 4. Till next issue, enjoy the summer & stay tuned. BW I NSIDE T HIS I SSUE 2 Museum News 3 Memories of Paul Johnson 4 Chisholm Industries Ltd. 6 Museum Information & People Paul Grove Johnson VE7 FJO - sk July 4 th May 13 th 2009 SPARC sadly announces the passing of one of our founding members this past May. He had struggled bravely with illness for the past two years and sorely missed making his trip to the museum each Sunday. Fifteen years ago, he was one of the small group that had a vision for a vintage radio museum and made it happen. Paul attended the W. H. Lambert radio school in , served with the RCAF and after the war worked in the radio & television service field, on the road, for the Hudson s Bay Company and later for Sears. After retirement, he continued using his skills to restore radios for the museum and the public. Over the years, many Senior s residences and shopping malls were entertained with music and displays provided by Paul and Jack Watson. He was also a member of the Gulf of Georgia Cannery, setting up the ham shack, and the Richmond Amateur Radio Club. With family assistance, he was last able to visit the museum January 25 th for the AGM and saw the revamped Carpathia room display. Our sincere condolences are extended to his wife, Josephine, daughter Paula, husband Dan Martin, and their family. SPARC Summer 2009 Newsletter Page 1

2 July 18 th & 19 th Blue Mountain Music Festival A new venue for us this year Out & About this summer ; June 11 th Holy Family Hospital, Vancouver July 19th Ford Galaxie Classic Car Show, Coquitlam The club generously donates the proceeds from their 50/50 draw to SPARC for our participation in the event. Upcoming : September 7 th, Langley Ford Falcon / Comet Classic Auto Show July 11 th & 12 th Fair-In-the-Square, Coquitlam September 13 st, Coquitlam TreeFest on the Riverview grounds. Hourly tours between 11 am till 4 pm We will be doing our remote FM broadcast from the visitor information area to the surrounding grounds and to the museum. Extra volunteers will be needed if the turnout is anything like last year. Have a walk with one of the knowledgeable arborists and then be on hand for the crush of visitors expected at the museum. Bob Murray and Barb Bowan have been working diligently to tidy up our early spark display in the Carpathia room. Removing much of the unrelated clutter, they have provided descriptive identity cards for the artifacts which would have been used in a spark station of that era. Have a look and see what they have done for us. You will be impressed. SPARC Summer 2009 Newsletter Page 2

3 Paul Johnson : SPARC Summer 2009 Newsletter Page 3

4 CHISHOLM INDUSTRIES LTD A LOCAL MANUFACTURER OF RADIO PRODUCTS by Gerald Taylor & Gerry O Hara The Chisholm radio and television product line, began in 1933 as a family-owned and operated business founded by Edward Chisholm, as Vancouver Radio Engineers. The business operated under this name until 1936, when it became Vancouver Radio Laboratories Ltd., (VRL), which included the assets of Vancouver Radio Engineers. At this time, the business was primarily operating as a radio related service industry, which soon followed with the wholesale distribution of radio components. The business was located in the downtown Vancouver core in the Hornby and Howe Street area. By 1939 the Company was heavily into manufacturing and designing of commercial radio equipment, such as ship-to-shore receivers and transmitters, together with smaller portable radios for the marine and BC forest industry. The wholesale parts distribution was discontinued in favour of manufacturing. In 1940, the business moved to a new location south of the downtown core, at 4515 Main Street, a building with approximately 12,000 square feet of space. During the Second World War, the company was commissioned by the Canadian government to produce military receivers. During these years, the receivers were built on specifications provided by the government. Therefore, it is not unusual for that period of time, to see equipment from different suppliers look very similar. [ SPARC has several examples of the highly regarded VRL receivers built during the war years, which became a much used amateur radio receiver after the war ] In 1946, the name of the company was changed from Vancouver Radio Laboratories Ltd. to Chisholm Industries Ltd. At this time, the company began focusing on the production of table radios, radio-phonograph combination sets and by 1953, they had added black and white television sets to their product line. In the spring of 1947, the company suffered a serious fire loss, which hampered production for nearly two years. However, Edward Chisholm was a persistent man and moved forward with his vision. In 1950, he purchased 23 acres of land in Port Moody, BC. Plant construction started in 1954 and was completed in It was a huge state-ofthe-art complex and had a floor area of 56,000 square feet. This location, also had excellent transportation access for road, water and rail. The radio and television assembly area consisted of 400 feet of conveyorized assembly lines which included all the necessary test equipment, small tools, soldering irons etc. The cabinet-woodworking section had machines for every type of operation for the manufacturing of high- quality cabinets or furniture, including belt sanders, drum sanders, jointers, mortising machines, and SPARC Summer 2009 Newsletter Page 4

5 all equipment necessary for the pressing of veneers to hardwood cabinets. The paint finishing area had two large selfcontained spray booths and several hundred feet of conveyor for handling cabinets and other products. Also included was a large baking oven for baking finishes on metal products. The plant had the capacity to produce 200 units per day on the assembly line process. Edward Chisholm did his best to produce and sell a high quality product. His plant went beyond that of most of his competitors. All metal chassis were cadmium plated before components were installed. The wooden cabinets were marketed as having the famous Moisture Barrier System. This was a technique that involved heating the wooden cabinet materials to reduce the moisture content before construction. Sales literature of the time claimed this process reduced the possibility of the finished cabinet warping in the damp west coast climate. The Chisholm product-line was sold in many retail outlets that sold household furniture. Some of these included: Eatons, Hudson s Bay, Sears, Woodwards, Wosks, and many smaller family owned furniture businesses. However, for the most part, the Chisholm product was sold under the Chisholm brand-name. There were a couple of exceptions made in favour of retailers, where a Stencil Line (rebranded) product, was produced. In the early 1960 s, colour television was becoming very popular, and the marketplace was very competitive. As Edward Chisholm was nearing retirement age, and the cost of re-tooling to manufacture colour television sets would have been enormous, he elected to close the business and retire. Edward Chisholm - When Edward Chisholm retired, son Jim went on to create the business of Glenarye Electronics Ltd., which was also a very successful company. The tools and equipment from the Port Moody plant, were sold off, with the exception of the metal fabricating shop tools which went to the Glenarye plant in Burnaby. The Port Moody Plant was rented out to commercial tenants. SPARC members; Gerry O Hara, Gerald Taylor and Peter Trill wish to thank Jim Chisholm and his wife Sherry, without whose great help, this project would not have been successful. A framed presentation photo [of the Port Moody manufacturing facility] with inscription was presented to them for their assistance in enabling SPARC to document and preserve another valuable part of Canadian radio history. Edited from the original transcript. The complete story is available for your perusal, at the museum. SPARC Summer 2009 Newsletter Page 5

6 The S.P.A.R.C. Newsletter is published by The Society for the Preservation of Antique Radio in Canada, for all interested in preserving the heritage of early vintage radio. Editor : Contributors : Proofing : Production Credits Bruce Winter Gerry O Hara, Gerald Taylor, Peter Trill, Gary Jones Joan Winter Newsletter correspondence winter@dccnet.com SPARC Newsletter c/o 4757 London Green Place Delta, B. C. V4K 4X1 The 2009 Society Executive Peter Trill / President Fred Carey / Vice President Jurgen Peterat / Director - Secretary Bruce Winter / Director - Treasurer Mel Porritt / Director Elaine Lafontaine / Director Bruce MacMillan / Director S.P.A.R.C. is a registered charity under the laws of the Province of British Columbia and member of the BC Museums Association. Museum correspondence c/o Peter Trill 3946 Dundas Street Burnaby, B. C. V5C 1A5 Canada Annual membership term is on a January to December calendar. Dues are currently $20 for both individual and family memberships. Cheques should be made c/o SPARC memberships. Please ensure you have included your postal code, telephone number, and address if applicable. Membership correspondence SPARC Memberships c/o 4757 London Green Place Delta, B. C. V4K 4X1 Canada Museum Hours : Sundays 10:00 am to 4:00 pm Become one of our volunteers or learn from our experts. We will provide training in your area of interest electronics repair, cabinet restoration, tour hosting, display construction, radio production and more. The museum is located on the Riverview Hospital Grounds, Coquitlam, British Columbia. Take exit 44 from Highway #1 onto the Lougheed Highway or from Coquitlam Centre, travel South on the Lougheed Hwy. Enter the grounds by turning at the Colony Farm Road traffic light. Follow Holly Drive, turning up the hill at Oak Crescent. See you there! Purchase your T shirt at the museum and show your support! SPARC acknowledges the financial support provided by the City of Coquitlam Phone : (604) radiomuseum@telus.net website: www3.telus.net/radiomuseum SPARC Summer 2009 Newsletter Page 6