WWII Era Electronics Advertisements in QST Magazine
- RF Cafe Cool Pic -

Maybe it comes from having crossed the half-century Rubicon, but with increasing frequency I find myself seeking out vintage magazines to learn how the world used to be. I am a realist who has no misconceptions about how idyllic things used to be and that today is utter debauchery, but it is apparent from a lot of the publications that we surely have changed significantly in the last 50+ years - better in some ways, worse in others.

For many years I have been purchasing of WWII era QST magazines off eBay. As I have been doing for a while on my Airplanes and Rockets website, I am going to begin scanning and posting vintage electronics magazine advertisements and articles. A lot of the information is timeless in its application, especially since vacuum tubes are still in widespread use in the Amateur Radio realm. Of course electronics fundamentals never change.

The company advertisements from the World War II era are very interesting in that they oft times include a theme that proudly proclaims their commitment to America and her Allies' victory in the effort. Many familiar faces are seen in the ads, some of the country's longest existing electronics companies: RCA, Triplett Instruments, IRC, Raytheon. Below are a few that I scanned from the September 1942 (less than a year after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor), and September 1943 editions of the American Radio Relay League's "QST" magazine.

Of particular interest to me is the Bliley Electric Company, which is located right here in Erie, PA, about 5 miles from my house. Today the name is Bliley Technologies, I suppose as a perceived need to modernize the company image. What has not changed is Bliley's products - crystals, oscillators, and other frequency generation items. Here is a nice slideshow of their production facility. Do you wonder what the Greek word "κρυσταλλος" at the top of the ad translates to? It is "crystal ice!"

BTW, Bliley is not the only well-known electronics manufacturer in Erie. Spectrum Control (now API Technology) is headquartered here, too.

Posted July 8, 2019