Abandoned Radio Station in the woods near Clear Creek Ontario wind farm

[inthefrey]

Very cool!

All that is missing from this video are The Combine bursting through the door with a stun-stick followed by a gunship hovering outside!

[woodward3427]

i really want them transmitters



[aspinwallstudios]

@cowcharge

That is a much better idea haha.

[aspinwallstudios]

Wow. I just love seeing this old historical transmission equipment. At the same time it is sad that it was just left behind to rot. Awesome Find!

[eimac4x1]

Hope u can salvage that old transmitter. It deserves to be on the air in the ham bands.

[Burnsmh]

Aliens did it.

[Burnsmh]

Aliens did it.

[Cowcharge]

Too bad the radio station wasn't working and the windmills weren't abandoned.

[maddawg308]

Wow, that's pretty neat!

It's a good thing I didn't find this place - a couple guys, a trailer, and a lot of muscle, I'd do my best to save that equipment and put it all back on the air....

[cassetteman1]

Avez-vous récupérer les postes de radio diffusions?

[electronicstash]

im not telling crap it says no truss passing wow do u own this?

[Steve211Ucdhihifvshi]

Nice!!! Id love to get my hands on those two banks!! Its sad how technology marches on so fast we just forget about things, most primary school kids dont know what cassettes are anymore, let alone vintage tech like this

[reddog694uk]

Not radio but RADAR? Could be old cold war radar station, look for generator bases on the floor.

[winkdogg]

THE RACK WITH MULTIPLE MATCHING UNITS IS A LARGE DAISY CHAINED AMPLIFIER SECTION THAT ACTUALLY PRODUCED THE "FIRE IN THE WIRE" PRETTY COOL THAT THEY LEFT IT THERE FOR YOU TO DISCOVER! THOSE AMPS PROB WEIGH CLOSE TO 200 LBS EACH THATS WHY NOBODY HUMPED THEM OUT OF THE SHACK! PROBABLY A BUNCH OF RARE HARD TO FIND TUBES AND PLATE CAPACITORS BEHIND THOSE FACES!

[mike54101527]

Very cool find!

[dive7mmwet]

Its a Loran broad cast station no more no less

[23565120]

Fascinating find.

Probably rattled away happily for half a century or more, and then someone said "We dont need that anymore now we have the sattellites".

So they simply walked away.......Pity. (er - sorry, "progress")

[mattbigmonster]

Almost like in Fallout 3 :)

[radioman1075]

Is interesting to see. Doesn't give the appearence of a manned radio site. Is definately old style HF transmission EQ. Is odd it appears no concrete floor. Surley they didnt set that on dirt. Maybe was a wood floor that rotted. I found an abandoned FM station in deep Mexico in 2003. Looked in good shape but the whole town, NO people. The building, big tower and all. Weird.

[uxwbill]

What amazes me is the seeming lack of vandalism. It looks like nature is just slowly reclaiming the place. Cool find!

[bulichi]

@uxwbill I guess there are not a lot of negros and mexicans roaming around there.

[uxwbill]

@bulichi Ouch.

[okltsply]

@bulichi Or white meth heads.

[bulichi]

@okltsply How about some brownish turds ?

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@bikernut1969 with over 41000 views, 730 thumbs up & 90 comments, it would seem that someone does

[TXRottguy]

@bikernut1969 Ya know, not everyone is as close minded to history as you. No matter how insignifigant you may find this piece of radio and military history, there are those of us who love to see these hidden and forgotten gems! 

[redneckgunowner2]

it looks scary .....like people died in it

[gell7]

what kind of video camera u using may i ask?

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@gell7 A Canon HF200. Not the steadiest camera, but sharp.

[MrAltObsession]

At first glance I thought they might be antenna multiplexers, but now I don't think so. I would guess AlaskaMike is right. CW, RTTY, wefax are likely, HF is a good guess, judging both by the age of the gear, and the fact that HF can duct to ships over the horizon. Very cool stuff, kind of a shame it's in ruins.

[bingobongo445]

It looks like a whole bank of transmitters!

[WavyGravyTrain1]

The bathroom is located at 1:42

[Whitescorpian101]

@WavyGravyTrain1 hahaha



[googers100]

The Tall Doublle Rack with meters & I take Cranks Appear to be a phasor used foor a directional tower array

[sweetgyy]

beau

[BananaJSSI]

Very cool!

[BananaJSSI]

Very cool. Vintage!

[xFreeman512x]

french ?

[bocatablanco]

WHERE THE HELL IS THAT AND WHY DON´T YOU TOOK IT HOME? XDD

[G0IFI]

Those transmitter racks surely must have the chassis stripped out? 

[jeffpicks]

I don't think I'm allowed to post URL here... but let me try: dubya dubya dubya IMRADIOHA ... maybe that will work... this website has some Canadian maritime radio history... there was a station just up the road at Port Burwell, and one a bit down the road at Long Point in the '50s. I think those amps look a bit newer though... 60s maybe. Hope the link posts... interesting stuff!

[jeffpicks]

@jeffpicks and that's a DOT ORG after the other... then a forward slash ... then canadian_stations then a DOT and then H T M ... YT won't let me post the URL... but that's an interesting website for inland maritime radio history.

[jeffpicks]

Those two racks hold what appear to be six individual RF power amplifiers probly 1-2 KW each output. That would definitely make this NOT a  'broadcast' facility, because they would not have six amps... they might have two maybe three commercial (usually GATES) TRANSMITTERS. I can't read the first word of the manufacturer... " _______ Communication Equipment & Engineering Limited" and the model number is T-15. I'm sure that AlaskaMike hit it on the nose, coastal maritime service station.

[Pinion512]

The 2 big racked things look like a transmitter of sorts. I couldn't see what the numbers and stuff were that were printed on them. The faces, meters, and knobs look like the stuff is from the 30's to 50's or so. I have a 2ch. sound mixer from the early 40's and it looks real similar (in design) as that stuff does. On the right tower rack at the bottom it looks to be an amplifier. Nice find. I'm envious.

[satanicmechanic86]

This stuff is really cool. Here in NJ there is a museum dedicated to the electronic and communication history of the old Camp Evans electronic warfare facility.They would love to see this stuff.

[jeffpicks]

@satanicmechanic86 === you must be talking about 'INFO AGE" and the "MARCONI HOTEL" right? That's dubya dubya dubya dot infoage dot com ... please visit!

[jeffpicks]

@jeffpicks oooops... sorry, that's dot ORG, not com !

[satanicmechanic86]

@jeffpicks Been there. Cool place. Grew up about two miles from it.

[jeffpicks]

@satanicmechanic86 --- if you're still local and have not been to their HALLOWEEN exhibit, you absolutely MUST go! It's friggin amazin what they do there! Worth TWICE the admission price! Spookier than any old abandoned radio station, that's for sure!

[satanicmechanic86]

@jeffpicks I'll have to check it out next year. Thanks.

[MrTdw1954]

That's my wind powered ham shack! So it needs a little tidying up. So what?

[jeffpicks]

@MrTdw1954 --- whose ham shack doesn't need a 'little' tidying up?

[MadManMarkAu]

1:14 The meter label reads "Plate current", so my guess is this is the vaccuum tube power amplifier, the actual guts of the transmitter. If you take your modulated low-power radio signal and plug it into that rack, it will amplify the signal so it can be broadcast from the antenna.

[AudiophileTubes]

Utterly amazing video! Thanks for posting! Those 2 tall units are indeed transmitters, but what kind, I don't know. Maybe a mysterious 'numbers' shortwave (Google it) station?

[gsxrbuckeye]

@ 1:14 Thats a flux capacitor! 

[stillbreathing37]

Those are transceivers.Transmit and receive.Each is it's own unit, combined in the cabinet or stack.Each radio can be removed from the stack and used individually.By the looks of them, they appear to be old Collins units, but the voltage regulator says Superior.And I'm not familiar with that model in transceivers.I own a vintage Collins similar to the ones shown in the stack.If they work, and are collins, they can be worth some money.Can't speak for Superior models myself.

[g7txu]

That's amazing, you would never find anything like this in the UK with that much intact

[AlaskaMike72]

If this was indeed a coastal marine station, when it was operational it most likely would have had multiple operating positions for morse code as well as automated weather fax and/or RTTY (radio teletype) transmissions, depending on how automated the station was. It looks fairly small, so it may have only run automated wefax/RTTY.

Great find, and thanks very much for posting it--I love seeing stuff like this!

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@AlaskaMike72 Thanks! I love this stuff too.

[AlaskaMike72]

Exterior footage would have been helpful to see how the transmission line was run to the antenna, although it's probable that it was coax run underground. The antenna(s) would have been very large because this station would have transmitted in the HF bands.

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@AlaskaMike72 All lines were torn out when they brought in the trucks (within a few feet of this building) to put up the wind turbines. There are huge craters in the ground from the trucks that one has to watch for carefully in the summer.

[coltonwithano]

if you guys like urban exploring i have a page on facebook is called urban explorers of slo county,if your into exploring you can join to.

[ExtraEme]

sketchville 

[dinnerandashow]

Oh please just cover it back up and forget it, before some old lady makes it into a historical landmark. 

[hackinmacine]

nuclear bomb signal transmitter, whatever you do dont turn it on or its gonna start a nuclear war...lol i joke you could use that equipment if out of the 0.1% chance it works. and you could transmit your own messages or what not with it for maybe aroung 100 miles...i'll get back to you on this

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@hackinmacine I'm getting more interested in these as time passes and will probably try to grab one in the spring.

[cber8860]

@TwistedlyCanadian what ashame that old equitment could be put in a museam or restored for some ones collection

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@cber8860 From talking with people I get the impression it's not nearly as rare as it looks to people like us, but I agree it should be preserved.

[AlaskaMike72]

At about 1:15 you see two gauges labeled "Line Voltage" and "Plate Current". These gauges would indicate that it's an amplifier. "Line" and "Plate" would be adjusted to maximize transmitter efficiency when the station operated. It would have been helpful if the video gave slow close-up footage of all the gauges and labels so that they would all be readable.

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@AlaskaMike72 Thanks for the info. Next time I'll get clearer footage of the equipment.

[Dolphindream15]

oh wow buddy I wish you luck on all and any of your findings keep us posted on youtube as to the great truesure finds you have found,,,

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@Dolphindream15 @Dolphindream15 Thank you :) I suggest subscribing to keep up to date on any new finds I might score, & I'll be glad to return the favor.

Out of curiosity, is anyone interested in seeing video of an abandoned cabin on the beach in the Bay of Fundy?

[Dolphindream15]

@TwistedlyCanadian sure thing buddy I have subscribed to your channel my friend,,now how about that abandoned cabin video lets see it,,

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@Dolphindream15 I'll set to work on the footage from that cabin on the beach soon, but tonight I got to sit down and chat with someone who is very familiar with this cabin in Clear Creek. He tells me that it was a short wave radio station used during WWII to call Europe. He thinks he might have a picture of it from the 50's somewhere but isn't sure.

There was a very specific name he had for this but damned if it isn't on the tip of my tongue just hours after the conversation.

[Zac827]

thats an old voltage monitoring station (looks like a 70's model because of the design of the pannels)

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@Zac827 There has been quite a bit of debate about their age, so the next time I'm there I'm going to try to hunt down something to identify the manufacturing date. Also I'll bring some tools to try to bring home at least one of those transmitters.

I'm starting to wonder how many more of these there may be in this area hidden in the woods, so I might do some serious hiking next spring :)

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@Zac827 I managed to find someone who is well aquainted with this building and he insists it's pre WWII, but I agree the equipment looks newer than that.

[Rich8951]

By the way, I am sure there was a large antenna tower nearby somewhere. The Canadian government probably removed it when they put up the windmills.

[Rich8951]

I think the equipment is historic and collectable.

If you can contact a local amateur radio club, you might be able to get some help getting it out.

Do be careful if you do try. Don't get hurt and have some help. If I was up there (or could get up there) I'd help you.

[Rich8951]

As for removing the transmitters, please note that they are installed in the cabinets as modules.

You would not be looking at removing the entire two racks as a unit. Each individual piece unscrews and comes out of the rack.

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@Rich8951 It's all deteriorating quickly as the roof isn't doing much to keep the elements out, but I hope to get back out there before winter to assess the odds of getting them out of there as everyone keeps telling me I should.

There are a variety of obstacles though including places where the ground suddenly drops several feet without warning hidden by brush, & a literal wall of Sumac's surrounded by thorny bushes. Last time I went in full biker gear including a closed full face helmet.

[Dolphindream15]

@TwistedlyCanadian wow if it were me id take what ever ,,,that might be either usefull or take something as a show piece so much is wasted why let it rot all the more make use of what ya find or use old radio equempment as a show piece from a time era gone by,,,so much is wasted in these old abondoned buildings and houses that one can really make use of,,,

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@Dolphindream15 The one thing I really wanted to take last year when I found this place was that awesome No Tresspassing sign, but it was too large to tie onto the back of my bike ( & I had nothing to tie it with) so I left it for "next time".

Naturally someone else beat me to it this year & the sign is gone.

[Dolphindream15]

@TwistedlyCanadian the sign???  thats odd I would be taking equimpment ,,,any one can make a sign

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@Dolphindream15 That's true, but it's not every day that you see one this old that says "No Tresspassing by order - Deputy Minister of Transport". There's a good clear shot of it at 1:52 right before I go over directly under the turbine, which itself was pretty cool as a storm started blowing in during the 10 min hike over there.

[Dolphindream15]

@TwistedlyCanadian cool I guess you have to get up EARLY in the morning to get something you want,,better luck next time in another find buddy,,,I like to look for old things too,,in abondened areas,,

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@Dolphindream15 Given the trouble that I had getting to this place, I didn't expect many others would find it which was a mistake I won't make again. Last time I went I scored a huge steel "DANGER HIGH VOLTAGE" sign that weighs about 10lbs & looks suave on my office wall.

Next time my sights are set on a sign on the difficult to reach back of the building that appears to pre-date Bell Canada.

[MrJansj000]

that machine was to change the frequency of the noise levles and block out the background sounds eg. doors slamming, wind turbinds etc.

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@MrJansj000 There were no turbines in this area until 2006 when 66 of them were installed.

[Hobojoe308]

You know those plats where marajuna

[tomyv1661]

wow! its amazing, i live in bristol connecticuit, infact the factory that makes the electrical equiptment is on the same street i live on! may i ask what state this place is in? the factory is now abandoned thoe, it was relocated to forrestville CT

[Rich8951]

@tomyv1661

Are you saying that the company that made these transmitters is still in business?

[tommyv166123]

@Rich8951 yes but the original factory has been closed for some time, its now in Farmington Connecticuit

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@tomyv1661 It's in Ontario very near the shore of Lake Erie. What's the name of the company? When you say abandoned factory, do you mean empty or might there be equipment like this lurking inside?

[tommyv166123]

@TwistedlyCanadian i dont believe there is still anything inside, the gates and fence have been closed for so long, police often stay here to make sure vandals dont get in, the new factory is in full operation still, the old factory is just a small green painted building, ive heard that it has moved locations quite allot, i dont believe anything like this is still inside, but it is possible! the factorys name is superior electric co.

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@tommyv166123 In my limited experience with abandoned factories, there's always something cool left behind that nobody wanted to move. The best thing I've scored so far was a big old "Receiving" sign that I hung over my toilet at home.

It doesn't sound like much, but it's been a great conversation piece.

[crypto75837]

I found a abandoned farm and shack it was pretty creepy

[Rich8951]

You should pull those abandoned transmitters out of there. There are people who'd like to have them!

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@HJM061 I'm glad you liked it. If you have a chance to film any kind of abandoned place you should absolutely go for it assuming it's structurally sound, and feel free to link it back here with a video response when its done. At the very least let me know when they're done as I want to see it :)

[TheJLSdestroyer]

This is awesome! and where IS the bathroom?

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@TheJLSdestroyer I know right? Even if it was a DOT transmitter site, those guys would still have to go from time to time.

I'll be taking another trip out to see this again very soon & I guess I'll just have to hold it if the urge strikes me.

[petrinaify]

The RAF power supply found on the wall was used because it was available post WW11 equipment. The radio station was a Department of Transportation Marine Transmitter site.

By the way nice video! Dad's says that he can understand why you thought it was a Abandoned Air Traffic Control Center.

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@petrinaify Many thanks to you and your Dad for helping to identify what this was used for. So it's an abandoned DOT Marine Radio station? I'll have to go back for a better look in the summer. One thing I'm still unclear on though, where is the bathroom?

[petrinaify]

My dad is a Ham Radio operator and we have visited this site summer 2010. This was Marine Radio (VBE) Clear Creek, and what you are looking at is two stacks of T19 HF transmitters . Dad noticed a dymo label on one equipment pic, indicating CH 51. Channel 51 was 2182kHz, the international marine calling and distress frequency.

[Rich8951]

@petrinaify

Sounds correct. This former Marine Coastal Station would have operated on 2,182 kc/s (MF Calling and Distress Frequency) and one other 2 Mc/s frequency as their "working" frequency.

If I were you, I'd pull those old transmitters out of there and restore them!

This site must be near a coast.

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@Rich8951 I paid a recent visit to assess the odds of salvaging & restoring anything from the cabin & unfortunately it's not possible. Knowing exactly where it is & having the wind turbines to guide me, it still took me half an hour to hike to it because the cabin has been intentionally left to rot & there is no trail to access it.

If I had a full day with a chainsaw on what appears to be private property, I might be able to clear a reasonable path, but that's unlikely.

[Rich8951]

@TwistedlyCanadian

I understand. You would have to find out who owned the property, then get their permission because it would technically be their property.

I imagine the old DOT sold the old site once it was not needed.

I think the equipment could be removed if you really wanted to, but you'd have to be technically competent.

I bet you could find some local amateur radio operators to helpl you, if you had permission from the owner.

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@Rich8951 One of the unique things about this area is the number of people who have abandoned their homes to escape the wind turbines. Some tried (and are still trying) to sell, but others literally grabbed their stuff and split. I believe the owner of this property may have been in that group.

I'm going to try to find out, but I expect it will be a mess.

[Rich8951]

@TwistedlyCanadian

Why would a person abandon their property just because of the wind-turbines? Are they very noisy?

If I lived near wind turbines and they weren't noisy, I would have no problem with them. As a matter of fact, I'd WANT one on my property to get free electricity!

I would imagine at one time that the Canadian government owned the property, then sold it to private citizens.

Anyway, If I could come up there and get those transmitters I definately would.

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@Rich8951 Some people believe that the frequency of the noise is a health hazard. I took a long walk one day around some of the abandoned houses in search of someone to talk to about it, and although I didn't find anyone, I was suprised to find that it was not possible to get away from the constant whirring sound at some of them.

It's not terribly loud, but after a few hours I understood how frustrating it could be for some folks. I'd tolerate it for free hydro though.

[Rich8951]

@TwistedlyCanadian

I did not think of that. Maybe the sound drove them crazy after a while! If that is the case, then I think the Canadian government should have compensated the owners for the property.

With all considered, I don't think anyone would mind you removing the transmitters. I wish I was up there, I'd help you do it, or do it with my friends!

[TwistedlyCanadian]

@Rich8951 I paid a recent visit to assess the odds of salvaging & restoring anything from the cabin & unfortunately it's not possible. Knowing exactly where it is & having the wind turbines to guide me, it still took me half an hour to hike to it because the cabin has been intentionally left to rot & there is no trail to access it.

If I had a full day with a chainsaw on what appears to be private property, I might be able to clear a reasonable path, but that's unlikely.