When the Naval Research Laboratory was established in 1923, the U.S. Navy simultaneously
established the Radio Material School at the same location. Together these two Naval institutions
were known as Bellevue, WashDC. Here the promising Navy Radiomen would receive theirinstructions in radio theory in the morning and spend the afternoon in the laboratory, assisting
engineers with the building, testing and operating of new radio equipment.
The Coast Guard was also entitled to a couple of slots ineach class at Bellevue. For a young radioman to be selectedto go to Bellevue was a sure sign he was an outstanding
operator and in modern terms he had his career made. Herehe would work with the engineers on the newest inventions
for the Navy.
For one of the early classes the Coast Guard selected ayoung “White Hat” by the name of Arthur Godfrey(K4LIB) - many remember the “Old Red Head” as its
candidate for Bellevue, Godfrey arrived a few days early
and reported to the Commander of the Radio MaterialSchool.
Since classes would not start for a few days, the Commander
suggested Arthur spend his time looking around and getting
acquainted with the engineers. He suggested perhaps firstmaking a visit to a small wooden building at the base of one of
the 300 foot radio towers. At this “field house,” they wereworking on a new high powered short-wave transmitter and no
doubt they would be willing to show him the set and tell him
about its operation.
When Arthur arrived at the field house he was met by a man
who was busy sweeping the floor. He had on an old cap andsweater and was smoking a corn cob pipe. In those days the lab
had one janitor and his duties were confined to the mainbuildings, so engineers were expected to keep the field houseswept up. When the man finished sweeping he greeted Arthurwith “I guess they sent you out to see the new transmitter.”
Arthur nodded in agreement.
The man then proceeded to describe the equipment as thenewest master-oscillator power amplifier type design using screen grid tubes in the amplifier stages,
and incidentally these tubes didn’t require neutralization like the triodes would.;
He also said the oscillator stage ran continuously and the amplifier stage was keyed to avoid “chirp”
associated with keyed oscillators. He explained the frequency was maintained to very high accuracy
by the use of the new quartz crystals, which were temperature controlled.
The antenna system, he explained, was a phased array suspended between the two towers. Continued
on page two.

At the end of the hour, our tutor finished his description and Arthur went back to the Commander’s
Office. The Commander asked Arthur if they had shown him the new transmitter. Arthur replied;“Yes, I don’t know what the heck I am doing here; I just had an hour technical description of theNavy’s newest development by a janitor! Heck, he knows more about radio than I ever will!”
The Commander laughed and asked Arthur to describe the janitor to him. Arthur said “He wassmoking a corncob pipe, had on an old cap and a coat-type sweater and was sweeping the floor when
I came in.”
The commander said “Son, you have just had a lecture from the Navy’s Chief Scientist, Dr. A. Hoyt
Taylor, not the janitor.” Pictured at the key Dr. Albert Hoyt Taylor at NRL radio position.
Note; Dr. Taylor (1879-1961)
pioneered in the developmento f s h o r t w a v e r ad i ocommunications and iscredited with establishing thehigh standards with many early
electronic contributions
including radar, which madeN.R.L. an outstanding researchorganization.
Dr. Taylor had many awards
including IRE Medal ofHonor. Earned his PHD in
1909. Served as head of many college physics labs and finally senior radio scientist at the Naval Lab
until his retirement after WW2. He had rank and was a Naval officer in the Second World War.
(Godfrey became a silent key in 1983) From Story Scripted by Howard O. Lorenson W7BI - Bekind to everyone, you just never know who is using the broom. NGM/W3KY QSL via W8JYZ.
W8SU 2009