Otter Cliffs Radio Station
Encyclopedia
U.S. Naval Radio Station Otter Cliffs was a United States Navy
radio receiver facility located in Acadia National Park
on Mount Desert Island
, south of Bar Harbor, Maine
.
The station was commissioned on August 28, 1917, under the command of Lt. Alessandro Fabbri, who had personally cleared the land, built and equipped the station, and offered it to the government in exchange for a commission in the Naval Reserve and assignment as Officer-in-Charge.
Otter Cliffs was the Navy's best transatlantic radio receiver site because of its absence of nearby man-made radio noise, its unobstructed ocean path from Europe, and the outstanding receivers, antennas and noise mitigation techniques developed by the Wireless Specialty Apparatus Company under the leadership of Greenleaf Whittier Pickard
. Pickard is well-known for his early inventions in connection with loop aerials, direction-finding systems and static mitigating devices used at Otter Cliffs during the war. His technical achievements and illustrations of equipment at Otter Cliffs during the war were documented in detail in the Proceedings of the IRE.
Edmond Bruce
, a Navy enlisted man, served as chief electrician for the transatlantic receiver during the war. He later became a widely recognized radio engineer and inventor.
By the end of the war, over 100 Navy enlisted men and 25 Marines were assigned to the station. By 1933, however, its buildings had become dilapidated and Navy funds were not forthcoming for repairs. When John D. Rockefeller, Jr.
suggested that it be removed, the Navy agreed to include the station in his donation to Acadia National Park
, provided that he would build an equally good receiving station nearby. He did so at the Schoodic Peninsula
's tip, about five miles away across Frenchman Bay
, and Feb. 28, 1935 Otter Cliffs was decommissioned and the new Winter Harbor station was commissioned. (It later became Naval Security Group Activity, Winter Harbor
, and on July 1, 2002, was decommissioned and transferred to the National Park Service
.)
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
radio receiver facility located in Acadia National Park
Acadia National Park
Acadia National Park is a National Park located in the U.S. state of Maine. It reserves much of Mount Desert Island, and associated smaller islands, off the Atlantic coast...
on Mount Desert Island
Mount Desert Island
Mount Desert Island , in Hancock County, Maine, is the largest island off the coast of Maine. With an area of it is the 6th largest island in the contiguous United States. Though it is often claimed to be the third largest island on the eastern seaboard of the United States, it is actually second...
, south of Bar Harbor, Maine
Bar Harbor, Maine
Bar Harbor is a town on Mount Desert Island in Hancock County, Maine, United States. As of the 2010 census, its population is 5,235. Bar Harbor is a famous summer colony in the Down East region of Maine. It is home to the College of the Atlantic, Jackson Laboratory and Mount Desert Island...
.
The station was commissioned on August 28, 1917, under the command of Lt. Alessandro Fabbri, who had personally cleared the land, built and equipped the station, and offered it to the government in exchange for a commission in the Naval Reserve and assignment as Officer-in-Charge.
Otter Cliffs was the Navy's best transatlantic radio receiver site because of its absence of nearby man-made radio noise, its unobstructed ocean path from Europe, and the outstanding receivers, antennas and noise mitigation techniques developed by the Wireless Specialty Apparatus Company under the leadership of Greenleaf Whittier Pickard
Greenleaf Whittier Pickard
Greenleaf Whittier Pickard was a United States radio pioneer. Pickard was a researcher in the early days of wireless. He experimented with crystal detectors, antennas, wave propagation, and noise suppression...
. Pickard is well-known for his early inventions in connection with loop aerials, direction-finding systems and static mitigating devices used at Otter Cliffs during the war. His technical achievements and illustrations of equipment at Otter Cliffs during the war were documented in detail in the Proceedings of the IRE.
Edmond Bruce
Edmond Bruce
Edmond Bruce was an American radio pioneer best known for creating the rhombic antenna and Bruce array.Bruce was born in Saint Louis, Missouri, and raised in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Brooklyn, and Washington, D.C...
, a Navy enlisted man, served as chief electrician for the transatlantic receiver during the war. He later became a widely recognized radio engineer and inventor.
By the end of the war, over 100 Navy enlisted men and 25 Marines were assigned to the station. By 1933, however, its buildings had become dilapidated and Navy funds were not forthcoming for repairs. When John D. Rockefeller, Jr.
John D. Rockefeller, Jr.
John Davison Rockefeller, Jr. was a major philanthropist and a pivotal member of the prominent Rockefeller family. He was the sole son among the five children of businessman and Standard Oil industrialist John D. Rockefeller and the father of the five famous Rockefeller brothers...
suggested that it be removed, the Navy agreed to include the station in his donation to Acadia National Park
Acadia National Park
Acadia National Park is a National Park located in the U.S. state of Maine. It reserves much of Mount Desert Island, and associated smaller islands, off the Atlantic coast...
, provided that he would build an equally good receiving station nearby. He did so at the Schoodic Peninsula
Schoodic Peninsula
The Schoodic Peninsula is a peninsula in Down East Maine. It is located four miles east of Bar Harbor, Maine, as the crow flies. The Schoodic Peninsula contains , or approximately 5%, of Acadia National Park. It includes the towns of Gouldsboro and Winter Harbor. The peninsula has a rocky...
's tip, about five miles away across Frenchman Bay
Frenchman Bay
Frenchman Bay is a bay in Hancock County, Maine, named for Samuel de Champlain, the French explorer who visited the area in 1604....
, and Feb. 28, 1935 Otter Cliffs was decommissioned and the new Winter Harbor station was commissioned. (It later became Naval Security Group Activity, Winter Harbor
Naval Group Support Activity, Winter Harbor
Naval Group Support Activity, Winter Harbor was a radio station of the United States Navy that operated from 1935 to 2002.-History:In the early 1930s, Otter Cliffs Radio Station on Mount Desert Island was literally falling apart. John D. Rockefeller, Jr. wanted to tear down the station...
, and on July 1, 2002, was decommissioned and transferred to the National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
.)
- Portions of this article are derived from the following news story, which as a product of the United States Government is not subject to copyright: "End of an Era: NSGA Winter Harbor to Close Its Doors", Story Number: NNS020321-08, 3/21/2002, by Journalist 1st Class Sarah Urban, Naval Security Group Activity Winter Harbor Public Affairs.