126   1924-25 at Bull Harbor. "A close up of Tee's house, the typical married quarters".
127   1924-25 at Bull Harbor. "Tee and his Mrs. on their front steps. She didn't want her picture taken, hence the struggle."
128   1924-25 at Bull Harbor. "Mrs. Tee and Zola, her Kiddie"
129   A 1921 photo of Bull Harbor soon after the station was constructed. Chas Aitkens (no doubt) labeled the various buildings. From left to right the buildings consist of a three bed bachelor's quarters, the operation/power house, and two bungalows. The only electricity on the station would be to power the transmitter. The operator would run into the engine room, start the engine to spin the generator, go back to the operations room, spin the spark transmitter up and communicate with whoever it was calling him. Operator would shut the engine off after the message(s) had been handled. Receiver was powered by whatever signal was induced into the antenna wires, no outside source of power required. This saved on fuel, which had to be shipped in via drums. Houses had no electricity. Illumination was probably by oil lamps. Cooking and heating by wood fired stoves. 

   In with the Aitken's Public Archives photos was this typed note from Chas giving credit for the photos to George Gilbert and his Kodak Brownie camera. George was one of the pioneering wireless technicians on the coast doing installations at many of the stations.
130   1921 view of the Bull Harbor operations end of the building with the generator room at the back. Chas has labeled a tree mast, quite a common occurrence, and winch shed for hauling the dolly up the tracked incline from the beach.
   There is an elevated water tank but what buildings it serviced is presently unknown.
131   Another view of the 1921 Bull Harbor operations/generator building.
132    This view almost completes a circle tour of the operations/generator building in 1921. This end is the generator room and shows the tramway to the beach and the winch building at the rear. Fuel drums lying about. Tree stumps were nicely squared
133   This photo was taken in 1920 near Clo-oose not far from Carmanah Point. I suspect is was one of the sites being examined for the location of a DF station. In 1922 the DF station was built at Pachena some 15 km NW along the coast, and thus co-located with the wireless station.

   A radio direction finding station was proposed for the west coast. This aid, in conjunction with a coast station, would provide a mariner with an angle from that particular direction finding station. For instance the DF station my report the mariner's wireless signal is at an angle of 263 degrees magnetic from the station. Thus the mariner could run a 263 degree line out from the marked location of the DF station on his chart and know he was somewhere on that line. Understandably this is of no real help at all as the DF station cannot provide any distance along the line. If there is a second DF station in the area, a second bearing can be made and where the two lines intersect will be the location of the vessel, thus eliminating any ambiguity.

134   Backside of 1920 Pachena, looking south east. I suspect the building dead center is the wireless operations building. Station has not yet been converted to a direction finding station. Station was closed as this time and the operators distributed to more needy stations due to a shortage of operators in the system.

135   Ocean side view of 1920 Pachena. Fog alarm building in the center. Wireless station is out of the view. Note the 'new' operations building has not yet been built to the left of the light tower.

136   1936 view of Estevan. Old wireless operations building is centered in the photo.

137   1936 view of Estevan taken from the light tower. New operations building centered in photo. Operations is to the left side of the building with the power house on the left hand side.

138   1936 long shot of complete Estevan light and wireless station. Wireless operations building centered in the photo, no doubt due to George Gilbert of the Wireless Service taking the photo.

139   Estevan Point in 1936. 1909 operations building in the center. Photo shows the antenna masts well.

140   Triangle Island showing the lightkeeper's dwelling on the left, the light tower, operator dwelling and a portion of the wireless operations building.
141   Triangle Island station view. What you see, is what there was. Large wire antenna array required for the frequency used (600 meters)

142   Unknown woman at Bull Harbor in the 1925 era. Most likely the wife of an operator.
143   Unknown man at Bull Harbor during Chas Aitken's time (1925).

144   Unknown man at Bull Harbor during Chas Aitken's time (1925).
145   Unknown man at Bull Harbor during Chas Aitken's time (1925).
146   Operator Lofty Harris' wife, Effie. Bull Harbor 1925.
147   1925 Bull Harbor photo of operator Harold Tee's daughter, Zola.

 

 

Chas Aitkens

Photos