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History: A Brief History of the USC Amateur Radio Club

The USC Amateur Radio Club was active as early as 1970. Early 1970s logbooks indicate that on-the-air activities utilized callsigns of various members. Then on April 17, 1975, the club obtained the callsign WB6JHC. Professor of Physics and faculty advisor Charles N. Waddell (later to be KC6W) became the Trustee for the FCC license.

The club was quite active through the 1970s and 1980s. (Lists of hams who participated in club activities in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s can be found elsewhere on this site.)

Equipment used in the 1970s included a Kenwood TS-520 and an ICOM all-mode two-meter rig. In 1982, the club obtained a KT34A triband (10, 15 and 20 meters) antenna, and soon thereafter a FT-757 tranceiver. Both are still in good working condition.

By the early 1990s, activities of the club tapered off considerably. Through the 1990s and early 2000s numerous meetings were held, and several people operated the station on occasion, but a critical mass of members was never reached. Professor of Geography Curtis C. Roseman, K9AKS, became Faculty Advisor and used the station occasionally, especially for VHF contests, from 1992 onward. Waddell remained as Trustee for WB6JHC.

In late 1996, Waddell and Roseman applied for a new callsign, and received W6YV. Waddell continued as the FCC station Trustee. With this callsign, USC joined numerous other major U. S. colleges and universities that have W#Y* callsigns, some of them dating back to the 1920s. A list of some of them can be found elsewhere on this site. The first user of the W6YV callsign was Eagle Rock High School north of Los Angeles. In 1930, they held the fixed call W6YT and portable W6YV. The W6YV callsign was vacant by 1941. After WWII, it was a general-issue call. Noel A. Pearce, 2022 28th St., Sacramento, held it by 1947, and at least to 1976. Later callbooks (1981, 1994, 1997) show it vacant through the vanity-call years.(1)

In April 1998, Charles Waddell passed away at age 75 after having advised the club for at least 28 years. An obituary is here: http://physics.usc.edu/Newsletter/News.3.1/Waddell.html

In June of 1998, Roseman took over as Trustee of W6YV, a position he held until his [forthcoming] retirement from USC in 2004.

(Our thanks to Mike, W2AG, for his help with this section on the history of the USC Amateur Radio Club)

Charlie Waddell, club Faculty Advisor, fixes a rig at the 1972 Field Day event. All the necessary tools seem to be available, including a Brown 807.

Here the USC ARC lads are operating Field Day in 1972 from an unknown mountaintop.

The KT34A tri-band antenna goes up at WB6JHC, 1982

In the 1970s and 1980s, lots of students would hang around the club.

The WB6JHC club station in the early 1980s.

An incomplete list of hams who have participated at the USC Amateur Radio Club:

1970s (listed more-or-less in chronological order; later callsigns in parentheses):

WA6ECU (N6SM)
WB6URS (N6CR)
WB6LNE,
W3ZBW (K3NN)
WA6HYI
K9LVW
WA6PAF
WN6DUZ
WB6ZJC (KF6QW)
WB6ZGQ
WB6EAU
WB2HNP
WB6FLL
WA3EQK
WB6AUF (KF7BM)
WB6BSR
WA6HQQ
WB6BLY
WA2IDH (NA6Z)
WN6JZW (WB6JZW)
WB6PDG (AH2AK)
WA6WKQ (N6ZAS)
WB6QHD
WA6KIC
WB6FDY
WB6HSC
N6YN
WB6POU
WB6BYM
KD6B
WD6GKS (KI6X)
WA3TUO
WA6MLT
WB6YPL
G3MHV/VE7CBG
WD6CQE
WA6IYH
WA7NKJ
WD6HAH
WA6YSZ

1980s

WA6PZL (AA7NH, K7ZL)
KB6A
KA7ILU
N6DLU
KE6B
WB6HEU (AB6OV, WR6A)
KE6MH
N6GIV
KA6OHD (KA6LOL)
WA1RRA (NM6Q)
WA2BWO
WB6NEU
N6EYV
WB6JGY (N6JKQ)
AJ6O
WB6CWQ
WB6CWT
W6UD
WA6YSC (N6FQF)

1990s

K9AKS
KD6BKT
KC6W
AA6MQ
WA6IYH
KA6LAH
ZA1T
VU2PBA
JA7LFM
KD1TN
N8DGN (N8KH)

An Incomplete List of Other College and University Clubs with One-by-Two “Y” Callsigns:

W1YA University of Maine
W1YU Yale University
W3YP Villanova University
W5YD Mississippi State Univ.
W5YE Univ. of Mississippi
W5YG Rice University
W5YJ Oklahoma State Univ.
W5YM Univ. of Arkansas
W5YW Louisiana State Univ.
W6YL San Jose State Univ.
W6YX Stanford University
W7YD Univ. of Washington
W7YH Washington State Univ.
W7YN Univ. of Nevada, Reno
W8YX Univ. of Cincinnati
W8YY Michigan Tech Univ.
W9YB Purdue University
W9YH University of Illinois
W9YT University of Wisconsin

Faculty Advisors (2006): Douglas Noble and Karen M. Kensek

For further information, contact: Douglas Noble: dnoble@usc.edu. 213 740-4589

Website created by Karen M. Kensek and Douglas Noble
Website Created: February 16, 2004
This Page Last Updated: July 10, 2006

	Charlie Waddell, club Faculty Advisor, fixes a rig at the 1972 Field Day event. All the necessary tools seem to be available, including a Brown 807.
	Here the USC ARC lads are operating Field Day in 1972 from an unknown mountaintop.
	The KT34A tri-band antenna goes up at WB6JHC, 1982
	In the 1970s and 1980s, lots of students would hang around the club.
	The WB6JHC club station in the early 1980s.