First Wireless Station

Photographed By Andrew Ruppenstein, March 29, 2009

1. First Wireless Station Marker

Plaque replaced with newer one. See photo #2)

Inscription. On a hill 300 feet south of this point, the first naval wireless station on the Pacific Coast was erected in 1904.

Plaque erected in Sept 1954

Erected 1954.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Communications • Military. A significant historical month for this entry is September 1954.

Location. Marker is missing. It was located near 38° 5.094′ N, 122° 15.959′ W. Marker was in Vallejo, California, in Solano County. Marker was on Club Drive, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker was in this post office area: Vallejo CA 94592, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this location. Beyond These Sentry Houses (approx. 0.3 miles away); St. Peter's Chapel (approx. 0.7 miles away); The Western Magazine (approx. ¾ mile away); An Island Built of Mud (approx. ¾ mile away); The Carquinez Strait: Gateway to California's Riches (approx. ¾ mile away); Anna Arnold Key Turner (approx. 0.8 miles away); Mare Island Navy Yard Work Bell (approx. 0.9 miles away); German Marder and Torpedo (approx. 0.9 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Vallejo.

More about this marker. The marker is mounted on a monument on Club Drive, a few hundred feet short

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of the entrance to the Mare Island Golf Club, at the point where Club Drive turns east when going uphill towards the golf club.

Regarding First Wireless Station.

• The location 300 feet south of the marker is now a parking lot.

• "April, 1903: The Mare Island Naval Station first employs wireless. It employs a Slaby Arco 2kw open gap spark transmitter located in the former homing pigeon loft....November, 1904: The Mare Island and the San Francisco Navy stations begin regular weather broadcasts by radio telegraph."- A CHRONOLOGY of WIRELESS and RADIO on the WEST COAST, by Bart Lee

• The Mare Island radio station played a key role in maintaining communications between San Francisco and the rest of the country after the earthquake and fire of April 17, 1906. "The Navy radio stations played a major role in providing this means of remaining in touch with the outside world. As soon as it was realized that this was the city's sole rapid contact with the outside, they were flooded with messages from military and municipal authorities and the general public. In about 2 weeks the Chicago sent and received over 1,000 messages. The naval radio station on Yerba Buena Island was fully occupied acting as a relay between the Chicago and the station at the Mare Island Navy Yard which provided telegraphic

New First Wireless Station Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed By James King, November 13, 2014

2. New First Wireless Station Marker

This marker has been replaced some time in the last five years. This is the new one.

connection with the rest of the country." - Captain Linwood S. Howeth, USN (Retired), History of Communications-Electronics in the United States Navy

Also see . . . NAVCOMMSTA San Francisco - US Navy Radio NPG. Navy Radio entry. (Submitted on September 24, 2020, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.)

First Wireless Station Marker - Closeup of Centennial Seal image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Andrew Ruppenstein, March 29, 2009

3. First Wireless Station Marker - Closeup of Centennial Seal

The marker is located on the grounds of the Mare Island Naval Shipyard, which closed in 1996. The marker was erected in 1954 as part of the Shipyard's centennial celebrations. The picture above is a closeup of the Shipyard's centennial seal, with the top half inscribed "Mare Island Centennial", with the date 1854 below next to a naval ship of the era, and the bottom half inscibed "September 16-17-18-19 1954", directly below a depiction of a modern warship.

First Wireless Station Marker - Wide View image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Andrew Ruppenstein, March 29, 2009

4. First Wireless Station Marker - Wide View

Marker is Missing image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Joseph Alvarado, February 25, 2023

5. Marker is Missing

Credits. This page was last revised on March 7, 2023. It was originally submitted on December 30, 2009, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California. This page has been viewed 1,344 times since then and 51 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on December 30, 2009, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California. 2. submitted on November 14, 2014, by James King of San Miguel, California. 3, 4. submitted on December 30, 2009, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California. 5. submitted on March 7, 2023, by Joseph Alvarado of Livermore, California. • Syd Whittle was the editor who published this page.