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“Bite-Size Bits of Local, National, and Global History”
Near New Bedford in Monmouth County, New Jersey — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
 

Marconi American Wireless Company Tower

 
 
Marconi American Wireless Company Tower image. Click for full size.
Photographed By R. C.
1. Marconi American Wireless Company Tower
Inscription.
Marconi American
Wireless Company
Tower "WW2GM"
1913 - 1924

Presented here is only a small top portion of the original tower. There were a number of these towers in this area. They constituted the first commercial transatlantic communication installation.
 
Erected 1976 by Wall Township, New Jersey.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Communications. A significant historical year for this entry is 1913.
 
Location. 40° 11.389′ N, 74° 3.629′ W. Marker is near New Bedford, New Jersey, in Monmouth County. Marker is on Marconi Road, 0.1 miles Brighton Ave, on the left when traveling south. Monument is in Wall Township on the East side of Marconi Road after turning onto it from Brighton Ave. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Belmar NJ 07719, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 3 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Breslin War Memorial (approx. 1.7 miles away); The Spirit of the American Doughboy (approx. 1.8 miles away); Korean - Vietnam - Persian Gulf Monument (approx. 2 miles away); World War II Monument
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(approx. 2 miles away); Bradley Beach World War I Monument (approx. 2.4 miles away); “They Shall be Known by Their Deeds Alone” (approx. 2.6 miles away); Malta Shipwreck (approx. 2.6 miles away); Shark River Salt Works (approx. 2.6 miles away).
 
Regarding Marconi American Wireless Company Tower. One last surviving Marconi tower, a “pygmy” tower, was salvaged in 1974 from Shark River near Brighton Avenue by the Wall Public Works with Army assistance. The tower now stands in a mini-park on Marconi Road near its original position. It is depicted in the upper right quadrant of the official Wall Township seal. Amateur or “Ham” radio operators have made transmissions from the forty foot tower to celebrate Marconi’s birthday with transatlantic transmissions.
 
Also see . . .  WWI at The Belmar High Powered Wireless Station. InfoAge Science & History Museums entry (Submitted on March 9, 2021, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.) 
 
Additional commentary.
1. WW2GM was not Marconi’s Callsign
Detail of Tower Construction image. Click for full size.
Photographed By R. C.
2. Detail of Tower Construction

Jozef Hand-Boniakowski, PhD (WB2MIC) from Wells, Vermont, wrote to say that the call letters on the marker were his, not Marconi’s. Here is the story of WW2GM in Dr. Hand-Boniakowski’s words:

“I was in my 2nd year teaching and first at the Memorial School in Eatontown, during 1973–1974. I had befriended Dr. Jack W. Bronfeld, a Monmouth College education and psych professor who was also a ham radio operator. I knew that the 100th anniversary of Marconi’s birth was coming up and I wanted to commemorate it with a special event ham radio station on-the-air operated by volunteers for 2 weeks in April, 1974, that spanned his birthday. Doc Bronfeld lived close to Camp Evans on Shark River Drive. We decided that the Marconi Tower Camp Evans site was a good place for the event. I applied to the FCC for the special callsign, WW2GM, and got it approved.

“Here is what the calls letters in WW2GM mean:

W = United States Prefix
W = Wall Township
2 = New Jersey/New York call area
G = Guglielmo
M = Marconi

“People involved in the operation were: Jozef Hand-Boniakowski WB2MIC (then using the name Joseph Boniakowski), Jack W. Bronfeld WA2SMW, Jefferson Bronfeld WA2CPK,
Tower Antenna Mast image. Click for full size.
Photographed By R. C.
3. Tower Antenna Mast
Christine Boniakowski WA2KOU and Ken Ewing WA2NOG.”
    — Submitted July 26, 2011, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio.

2. Wooden sign
The wooden sign with the WW2GM call letters in the photos was made by my father, Jerome Jarger. He served on Wall Township's Bi-centennial committee as a representative of the local Boy Scout troops. I remember helping him make this sign in our basement workshop on Wight Street in Wall.
    — Submitted May 20, 2021, by Todd Jarger of Haddon Township, New Jersey.
 
Wall Township Seal image. Click for full size.
4. Wall Township Seal
"WW2GM" Marconi Memorial Tower - First Transoceanic Wireless Site image. Click for full size.
Photographed By R. C.
5. "WW2GM" Marconi Memorial Tower - First Transoceanic Wireless Site
View from Bottom of Tower Looking Up image. Click for full size.
Photographed By R. C.
6. View from Bottom of Tower Looking Up
Call Sign image. Click for full size.
August 19, 2006
7. Call Sign
WW2GM
Marconi Memorial Tower
First Transoceanic Wireless Site
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on May 20, 2021. It was originally submitted on February 7, 2008, by Ronald Claiborne of College Station, Texas. This page has been viewed 3,798 times since then and 48 times this year. Last updated on February 8, 2008, by Ronald Claiborne of College Station, Texas. Photos:   1, 2, 3. submitted on February 7, 2008, by Ronald Claiborne of College Station, Texas.   4. submitted on July 26, 2011.   5, 6. submitted on February 7, 2008, by Ronald Claiborne of College Station, Texas.   7. submitted on February 7, 2008, by Kevin W. of Stafford, Virginia. • J. J. Prats was the editor who published this page.

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Mar. 28, 2024