F.C.Aitkens standing radio watch.

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     Francis Charles (Charlie) Aitkens was born in 1904.  Around 1921 he took a radio course at Sprott-Shaw.   He then joined the Government Wireless Service and was probably posted to Point Grey, then Bull Harbour, then Pachena He also hinted at being at Gonzales Hill (Victoria).  Some time before 1930 he was posted to Estevan.  Charlie left Estevan in about 1936-37.  From then until 1939 he was leading crews to scout new radio beacon sites throughout BC. In 1939 he joined the RCAF Special Forces, doing much the same work. In 1947 he signed onto RCAF regular forces and retired in 1957.  He then went overseas with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to Syria, Nepal and Afghanistan and retired again in 1967.

     Charlie became a silent key in March 1996 but his wife lived to be 99, and passed away in August of 2007.

     Click on any photo to make it larger.

1942 RCAF aerial photo of Estevan Point. 001 1942 RCAF photo of Estevan Point Wireless & Lightstation.
RCAF aerial photo of the Bamfield Cable Station--1943 002 1943 RCAF photo of the Bamfield Cable Station.  The cable station was the Canadian end of a Pacific cable terminating in Australia.  This system provided rapid inter-continental communication in the days before radio.  During wartime this system provided a fairly secure method of sending messages and was a valuable communications asset.
Old wireless operations building at Estvan Pt. 1930's 003 Estevan Point's old wireless operations building exterior.  Note the wooden masts constructed using shipwright techniques.  Photo credit is the Public Archives of Canada.
Charlie & Gene Aitkens 004 Charlie and Gene Aitkens.  Charlie was a wireless operator from about 1921 to 1937 at various stations along the British Columbia coast.  In those days many of the stations were very isolated with supplies coming every couple of months.
Piles in Long Beach to discourage Japanese aircraft landings. 005 Pilings were driven into Tofino's Long Beach in early World War 2 to create an aircraft obstacle.  The concern was Japanese aircraft landing and creating a beach head for an invasion of BC.
Photo of an unknown spot along the coast, one small house visible. 006 Photo credit to the Public Archives of Canada.  Location is unknown.  A small house is visible near the point.
Pachena Point from the sea. 007 A 1930's view of Pachena Point Light and Wireless Station.  Photo is from the Public Archives of Canada.
Album page showing the layout of the photos. 008
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009		 Album page showing the layout of the photos.
McConnell with a load of planks on the Estevan truck. 008 "Mr. McConnell with a load of planks for Phil's house."  This is photo was taken during Aitken's posting to Estevan Point.  "Phil' would be Phil Eldridge, one of the radio operators at the station.  Phil was in the process of getting married and was either boarding or batching with someone on the station.  He was building a house for his bride.
East side of Estevan's operations building showing Phil Eldridge's pile of lumber. 009 "Engine house, Phil (Eldridge) with his planks and corduroy road up the hill."  The is the east side of the Estevan radio operations building.  The diesel engines were housed on the right end of the building and would power the transmitters.  The engine house also supplied power to the rest of the buildings on the light/wireless station.  Phil got married in 1935 and built his own house at that time.  Phil was at Estevan during the years 1929 through to 1937.
Album page showing the layout of the photos. 010
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011		 Album page showing the layout of the photos.
Martin King outside the old wireless operations building at Estevan. 010 Martin King by the old wireless operations building at Estevan Point.  After 1922, King was the Officer In Charge of the Pachena DF Station.  This building appears in Bowerman's 011.  The chimney appears to be missing in this photo when compared with 011, but close inspection shows the photo here has the roof line cropped off.
Alec Chisholm up the mast at Estevan Point Wireless. 011 Alec Chisholm (b.1891 d.1971) up a mast at Estevan Wireless Station.  Alec was a rigger.  Gene Aitken's diary mentions Chisholm visiting in May 1934.
Album page showing the layout of the photos. 012
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013		 Album page showing the layout of the photos.
Aerial colour photo of Estevan Point from the 1980's. 012 1980's photo of Estevan Point.
Charlie Atkins catching 40 winks on the desk. 013 Charlie Aitkens catching a quick nap in the operations room at Estevan Point Wireless.
Wrecked vessel, perhaps the 'Vivian', on the beach. 014 Photo 1 of 3.  A note from Ken advises this is the wreck of the 'Santa Rita' on Dare Point, as short distance west of Carmanah Point on February 14, 1923.  In 1923 Charlie Aitkens may have been at Carmanah Point, a few miles south of the wreck.
Beached wreck. 015  Photo 2 of 3
Unknown wreck. 016  Photo 3 of 3.
Charlie Aitkens on watch in the operations room. 017 Charlie Aitkens on watch.  Note the valve transmitter tubes glowing behind the windows.  From his age, it was most likely taken at one of his earlier postings in the 1920's.

Laval has identified the receiver as a "Universal Radio Receiver Type 707".  This receiver was quite likely built by the Canadian Government Radio Service.  Frequency range was 400 down to 3,200 meters (or 750 kHz down to 90 kHz.)  Laval found the model on the Vancouver Society for the Preservation of Antique Radio in Canada (SPARC) museum's web site's page here.
General view of Pachena Direction Finding and Wireless Station 018 General view of the Pachena station sometime shortly after it reopened with direction finding capabilities.  Light tower in the background.  Direction finding receiver hut in the center of the photo.  Station used two loops of wire at right angles to each other.  Posts holding the ends of the loops are visible.  A vessel could call the station and in return, the operators at Pachena could tell the vessel his bearing to the station.  This was a great aid to vessel navigation.
Antenna tower perhaps at Carmanah Lighthouse. 019 Radio mast at Carmanah Light Station.  There was no wireless station there, but eventually the location had a radio beacon to aid vessel navigation.  
Carmanah Lighthouse in the 1920-30 period. 020 Carmanah Point Light tower. 
Antenna tower at Carmanah Lighthouse. 021 Radio mast at Carmanah Light Station.  There was no wireless station there, but eventually the location had a radio beacon to aid vessel navigation and this may be its antenna structure.
Photo of Bull Harbour housing as taken from the top of a mast. 022 Early Bull Harbour, obviously taken from one of the radio towers. 
View of Bull Harbour residents in 1920-30 period. 023 Early Bull Harbour looking southwards towards a residence. 
View of Estevan Point from the light tower. 024 View of Estevan Point Wireless and Light Station taken from the light tower.  Large building is the radio operations building.  Diesel cooling tower is off to the left.  Rail tracks are noticeable heading off the upper left, most likely to the old supply landing to the north of the station.  Unknown date but in the 1920-30 period.  Photo credit to the Public Archives of Canada.
The village of Clo-oose, a few miles south east from Pachena.  025 Undated photo of Clo-oose, a village between Pachena and Carmanah Light Stations.  The location today is much smaller and is a stop on the West Coast Trail.  Photo credit to the Public Archives of Canada.