Part 1: The Early Years 11 March, 2023
Oswego, the county seat of Labette county, is located 12 miles north of the Oklahoma state line and about 30 miles west of the Missouri line in grid EM27. It was the outgrowth of a trading post established in the early ’40s. Up till 1865 there were no ‘white persons’ in the community and the place was called “White Hair’s Village” because an Indian chief of that name made his home there. In 1865 several settlers located at this point and the name was changed to “Little Town.” Two years later the Oswego Town Company was organized and so named for Oswego, N. Y., whence many of the settlers had come. Today, 1,658 people call Oswego home.
Oswego is a typical rustic mid-western city steeped in history where the residents’ wave at anyone passing by, even a stranger. Downtown has parking in the middle of main street as well as both sides. The streets are clean, along with the air, and the nearby Neosho River supplies fresh water and recreation. One feels as if they have stepped back in time to a simpler life where neighbors know neighbors and contracts are signed with a handshake.
Only a few blocks away from the nostalgic Oswego Drug Store is the location of a local man who also calls Oswego his home. He is slim, advanced in years, well groomed, and tied to an oxygen bottle. And while his body may be frail, his mind is as sharp as a tack. His name is Frank and his callsign is N0IGZ.
Frank, N0IGZ, at his radios.
I had the distinct pleasure of meeting Frank in his home for this interview. I only knew Frank from talking on the radio and stories told by other hams. From them I learned that Frank is held in high regard within the radio community, and I just had to meet him in person. This is Frank’s story.
Visible in his backyard is the vertical he installed a few years ago after moving in. I was graciously let in by Frank’s daughter, Dawn, who led me to his shack. Frank was sitting at his radio desk doing what he loved, rag-chewing with other Hams. After introducing myself, I sat down and the eyeball QSO began.
Before beginning the interview, Frank said to me, “I don’t get on the radio as much as I used to. I’m usually in bed by 9pm. Mostly because my medications cause me to slur my words and make me sound drunk, which I don’t do…anymore.”
Frank has an Icom 7100, and a 7300, and while he likes his 7300, he’s not a fan of the 7100. Also on his desk is an IC-7410 sitting idle. Across his desk are the usual meters, tuners, and amplifiers, all neatly organized, glowing brightly in the dim room like Christmas lights.
K0KWC: Where were you born?
Frank: “Columbus, Kansas.”
K0KWC: When did you move to Oswego?
Frank: “2019 or 2020. The wife and I were staying at a Senior Citizens place here. My wife was sick with cancer and passed away in 2020. My daughter said, ‘Dad why don’t you move in with me? You won’t have to pay that high dollar rent and you can put up your antennas.’ I jumped on that like a bird on a bug.”
K0KWC: Tell me about your childhood growing up in Columbus.
Frank: “Well, I grew up in Dodge City and my dad was killed in 54 in a blizzard. That was in February 54. We stayed in Dodge another year and we moved back to Columbus. Mom went to beautician school with her sister, and they became beauticians with their own shop. Of course, I was raised in Columbus. I always had short hair. No drugs growing up. No drugs of any kind. Then I went to night school where I tried a little bit of pot. Well, I got just as big a buzz from a 6 pack as I did pot, so pot went away. But I don’t smoke pot.
K0KWC: What year were you born?
Frank: “1946. My dad worked for Thermo-Electric working on bombs in California before I was born. Mom always told me stories about a dark colored car pulling up in front of the house and dad would go out and get in the car. Then about 10 or 15 minutes later he would come back in the house. He worked for the CIA.”
K0KWC: What do you think he was working on that involved the CIA?
Frank: “I don’t know. Dad was a welder. A foreman actually. He never discussed it with my mom.”
K0KWC: How did you get started in Ham Radio, Frank?
Frank: “I was into CBs big time, towers, beams, amplifiers. I had a Clipperton-L amplifier from Dentron, 1200 watts, on 11 meters. My Elmer, from Chetopa, was a Ham Radio operator. WD0G. He is a silent key now. He found out I had a CB radio. My amplifier was either full bore or nothing, and nobody could outdo me. And they didn’t. A local Ham, Gus, always started his sentences with, ‘I guess we’ll have to do it this way’. Everything started with I Guess except he would say I guss…, so we all called him Gus. That’s how he got his nick name, Gus. One day Gus called me on the phone. How he got my number I have no idea. He told me to shut that thing off! What are you talking about? <chuckle> He said, ‘I monitored your transmission. You about shook my radio off the desk.’ Well, I told him where to go, real quick. About 3 days later he shows up in my driveway. He gets out and this guy is 6 ft 2. I’m gonna get my *** whipped here. Well, I didn’t. He came in and looked the situation over. He said, ‘Tell you what I’ll do. How would you like to be a Ham Radio operator? You can talk all over the world.’ Yea, I would like to try that. He Elmered me along with another Elmer, W0JRP, John Tootingham. He said come over to Joplin. Gus got hold of John. They were on 2 meters. Maybe I better back up. In 1957, my first Elmer was W0QZJ, Bill Glasgow. He ran a TV shop in Columbus. He would get his ARRL book, sit on the floor and go through it. I started working on my code. Meantime I was able to make a contact on 2 meter to Sam Ross, K0QZW. He lived in Cherokee, KS.
K0KWC: How old were you when you got your first license?
Frank: “I didn’t get my first license. Girls came along. Chasing girls and looking at cars. I made my first 2m contact to Sam Ross in Cherokee, KS from Bill’s house.”
K0KWC: How old were you when you made your first contact?
Frank: “Ten or twelve. I was into cars, big time. Cars came before the girls. Then the girls showed up. I said the heck with Ham Radio. I’m going to build a car.”
K0KWC: So, after the girls and the cars, when did you finally get your license?
Frank talks about his early years as a Ham.
Frank: “In the 70’s.”
K0KWC: So, you’ve been a Ham for 50 years?
Frank: “I never thought about it that way. Wow, I’ve been around a while. I took a class over at Joplin. W0JRP was one of the instructors. The other instructor I can see him but I can’t remember his name. He was an Extra class. John was Extra class. I took the class and went through all the paperwork, then started working on the code. One day, John says Ok, everybody take their paper and pencil out. They had a recorder, you had to do 5 words a minute for Novice class. And he ran through that. He says, OK, what you all don’t know is that we are counting this one. I passed. I got my code. And next meeting we took the paperwork test and I passed it. I got my license. 1976 maybe? Somewhere in there.”
KOKWC: What was your first radio as a Novice?
Frank: “My other Elmer had a 2m Realistic crystal controlled. That was my first radio. I don’t remember what model. It was a joke. And then the next radio was a handheld. And I stuck a 2m dipole in a tree. I made it out of a chassis mount 239 and some wire, put a loop in it, and used a string to pull it up into a tree. Then I could get into Joplin, and Pittsburg. You could get into Pittsburg from Tulsa back then. They had 2 antennas, one pointing up and one pointing down. It had a funny way of receiving. I can’t remember now. N5SD could tell you all about that. Archie Meeks was the overseer of that. He is a SK now.
Author: Chris - N0YH
VE Team Lead - Facebook Manager - Webmaster - Club Vice-President
