Ham Radio: the original social network

Social networks were born with telegraphy, evolving into the ham radio network of the 1900s.

This is a brief history of their development in the pre-internet era, highlighting the future of technologies wrongly considered obsolete.

In the 1800s, it was possible to rent a telegraph key to chat with unknown interlocutors. Emotions were communicated by the style of transmission, called wrist, then recognizable as emoticons today. Tweets are perhaps more anonymous, the immediate sharing of emotions was born two centuries ago.

Chatting in telegraphy. Tthe London newspaper The Punch in the early 1900s predicted a future where people would be close but unaware of their neighbors and busy conversing with strangers.

Virtual and real friendships in the 20th century

An informal group of passionate radio stations developed in the 1930s, nicknamed ham and identified by alphanumeric acronyms, which connected to each other on a daily basis. Getting a license to broadcast was necessary and talking about political or religious topics was prohibited, but for the first time it was possible to communicate freely in a world then divided by political barriers. The first virtual friendships were established, and radio amateurs frequently traveled to meet.

Maria Marras IS1EHM from Cagliari and Elias Raffoul OD5AJ from Haifa, often connected by radio during the past 1950s. At the time, it was not possible to speak in any other way to Lebanon, where the Raffoul family lived in exile from occupied Palestine.

Radio has united the world, not only by spreading news but also by enabling dialogue between people of different cultures. This is how the first information and opinion network was formed, which has now become the Internet.

Online sociality: daily contact log, 1953

Online romances

'You have a nice thing to say that romance is dead' the newspapers wrote in 1952, but what is more romantic than these amateur radio operators who seek and fall in love through the ways of the airwaves?

The articles refer to the sentiment that arose over the radio between Prince Saud and Maria Marras, a well-known story at the time: modern social media has not invented anything.

The generation of makers

Unlike today, this social network was not accessible to everyone as the transmitters were expensive, bulky, and difficult to find. Generally, they had to be self-built. The era of the Makers began, people with uncommon technical and theoretical skills, capable of modifying projects found in specialized magazines according to their needs. The level of finish was high, and the manual dexterity of the makers allowed for safe tinkering on equipment often powered at 9,000 volts.

It was another era modern everyday objects do not require caution to be used and the market offers products for every need, the operation of which is ignored.

self-builders: G. Marras IS1EH, 1948 e S. Wozniak VW6VLY, 1960

Abroad, the phenomenon involved many women, while in Italy technical expertise was long considered inappropriate for girls. However, some pioneers such as Maria Marras IS1EHM became presidents of amateur radio associations.

Thanks to their continuous design and construction work, amateur radio operators have always used top-of-the-line technology, and since 1961 their associations have regularly sent communications satellites into orbit.

modern radio receiver and amateur satellite SSO-A from 2018

By now, the equipment, inexpensive and easy to handle, allows the HAM network to grow as an alternative to the Internet and provide emergency communications to the Civil Protection Department.

The QSL feedback

The ability to connect to distant stations is a point of pride and amateur radio operators exchange confirmations of their contacts via a postcard, called a QSL, the equivalent of today's like. QSL cards are an expression of the sender's creativity, and collecting the most interesting ones is a hobby even outside the amateur radio circle.

Today it is possible to confirm the connection via the internet but the old QSLs, which are eagerly awaited from distant countries, are the best memories of a pleasant conversation with a new friend.

The People of the Citizen Band

In the 1970s, the City Band radio with a limited range became widely used. The simple equipment, usable without a license, allowed wheels to chat open to everyone, also encouraging in-person meetings.

In Italy, it was illegal until 1973. Naive jargon was used to confuse the police, where radios were called baracchini and policemen smurfs.

All truck drivers used it to talk to each other, or to report checkpoints, and Rene Russo was available in chat on the frequency 27.7812 FM.

The City Band has been declining since 1990, as a result of the cellular network and Internet, but CB radio and trucks are still an inseparable pair despite smartphones, facebooks and whatsapps.

HAM Radio and Civil Defence

While it may seem like a right to communicate anywhere and immediately, communication devices can collapse in the event of natural disasters. Telephone repeaters are susceptible to floods, earthquakes, or landslides and can become inoperable due to overloaded access. During emergencies, the reference point for operating is the HAM radio network, which remains always active.

radio link during the flood in Polesine, 1951, and headlines from the 1970s

From the first enthusiastic interventions during the Polesine flood and the earthquakes of the 70s today the Prefectures, The Ministry of the Interior and the Department of Civil Protection can connect through services managed by different groups of volunteers who have their own operations center and vehicles.

unità operative, immagini dall'archivio della FIRCB

In the age of the smartphone, radios can appear obsolete, let's remember the advantages: independent of public systems, always online, they eliminate connection times. They also allow circular communication between all rescuers. After an earthquake, nothing works except for radios that only require a battery and a piece of antenna wire. In emergencies, simple solutions are the best.

come comunicare durante le emergenze

IS1EH from 1948 to now

In 1937 Vittorio Campagna I1BV, Salvatore Campus IS1AHL and Giovanni Marras IS1EH formed the first Sardinian cell of the ARI, Italian Radio Technical Association. During the war, broadcasts between private individuals were prohibited and radio amateurs collaborated with the authorities to locate any enemy stations.

In 1948, the ARI was reconstituted and the Cagliari section was founded with Maria Marras IS1EHM, Giovanni's sister, as president. She held the position for a long time, becoming one of the most well-known radioperators. Maria and Giovanni ceased operations in the early 1960s and only after a long time did I resume their activities.

family continuity in station callsigns

Essential links

The amateur radio associations, almost all of which work in conjunction with Civil Protection, are countless. In the links, I only mention those I know personally. Among all the ARI stands out, founded in 1927 with Guglielmo Marconi as president. There are also associations, such as the FIRCB, which deal with Civil Protection using the CB radio range.

© 2004 - 2026 Nicola Marras Manfredi