William F. Petty W2HAZ - W3HAZ *1919-2003* Trenton NJ - Bill was W3HAZ in 1937 Prewar, a dedicated Dx’er and popular man about town in Trenton. Petty lived on Chambers in 1946
and moved to West Trenton. In 1970 his brother Joe was printing business co-partner in Ewing.
Bill was a joiner and officer in the early DVRA. OOTC membership -212. He was a good businessman and enjoyed designing QSL cards for the fraternity. Ever since I could remember Bill was in
the classifieds of QST from the 1950s onward announcing his QSL printing business.
I’d like to expand this to include the other era card printers who deserve being remembered. RogerKØAAB, W3CJI, W8DED, C Fritz and Malgo Press, to name a few. Oh, yes, Victorian Press inWaltham Mass and Constantine Press Bladesburg, MD. Then there were the cards that were regulars
in the mail box, WRL Meyerson Prints and Walter Ashe entry cards that were very reasonable glossy
stock with large Red/Blue letters. Not to mention the air line and railroad promotional cards.
From DVRA Bulletin Aug 1943 Vol 8- Our Military men, 3HAZ (W2HAZ) Staff Sgt Bill Petty
instructor of High Speed Morse and continental telegraphic codes at Signal School, Fort Monmouth.
W2FDE Sid said “I knew Bill Petty
since 1946 and he was an avid Dxerand had a high standing in theDXCC. He had a QSL business both
before and after WW2 and printed
cards for W2ZQ as well as many
DVRA club members.”
He was friendly and took part inmany club activities, field day was afavorite. He did commercial printing
as well as QSL cards and when I wasactive Sid said, many cards I received
from stations all over the USA wereprinted by Bill W2HAZ and Brownie W3CJI located in Allentown, Pa.
Bill Petty retired from his printing business around 1989 or so and I used to see him and his wife ata very good steak sandwich shop in Trenton for another 12 years or such until he became a SK. I
think his sons took over the printing business, but didn’t continue the QSL cards, Sid said we used
to hang out at Freddies Tavern near Bill’s QTH, Freddies a watering hole near the Reading Railroad
Station in West Trenton and havelunch there with some co workers afew times each month. It is still there
and some fine restaurants, Bill lived
next door to another ham K2CLD
Bob Bates who still resides there.
From the W3HA archive illuminator,
on the old paper QSL’s “I have black
and white on colored stock that I
cherish. My original QSL’s byBrownie W3CJI were so nice I
couldn’t keep them in stock! Cont

Sid W2FDE continued -my original cards were blue/black on florescent orange that Brownie
designed in Allentown. They went fast and I couldn’t afford to keep buying them at the rate I wasoperating. Petty had a quad for a number of years and before that some good brands of yagi beams.
He operated 99 percent cw. W2FDE has a rock solid memory and advised me that Bill W2HAZ had
won a “raffle” for a car being given away at what was the New Sears & Roebuck store on east Front
Street and Stockton in Trenton which was in 1946 or 47.
The art of QSL-ing was very popular over the years and the period of the 30s - 40s and 50s netted
some fine printers and some of them should recognized. One of the things that made the QSL fadclick was the low cost of U.S. postage, and the reasonable priced colorful heavy stock cards. Manyof them were DX’ers like Bill Petty and long time operators who used their operating skill.
Brownie W3CJI was another good
DX’er and went on extended foreign
trips and got on the air from someexotic places.
From your author “I made severalorders over the years to C Fritz ofJoliet Ill and then Fritz moved to
Scottsdale AZ. in his latter years.”(Samples only 25c deductible C Fritz
Joliet Illinois) We are sure you can name otherfavorites that deserve recognition.
I am constantly trying to make it right. One Item I am adding is of the Petty Brothers in Ewing(Trenton) - Joe Petty died age 91 - 21 January 2013, co-partner of the Petty Printing Company. He
had been in the printing business for 36 years, an active member of St. Paul’s Church in Princeton
an usher, volunteer at the Trenton area Soup Kitchen and member of its K of C Council. Avid bowler
and enjoyed gardening. There was amention in the email tributes thattouched me concerning Joe’s pals andfamily friends making mention of thefellowship and Porkroll sandwiches atthe Langhorne Hotel they enjoyed somuch together. It reminded me of theK2UTS visit out here in the Ohio
hinterlands in 2013 and that delicious
Porkroll from Trenton, it was a gigantic
hit and seasoned to perfection!
So the QSL fad continues on with lessflair and competition.. There was Russ Sakkers W8DED from Holand Mich from day one. Malgo
Press in Toledo and who can forget those fine cards Roger KØAAB printed! -30- W8SU 2008 andadded 2013