I had an unusual day today. My usual days are mostly staying at home, fixing meals, e-mailing friends, etc.
But today, George and I ended up talking to a person we had known from a very long time ago. We were both at the same place at the same time and ended up having a great conversation. It was about his life when he was in the Army. Before that, he had gone to a technical college and learned to use Morse Code. With this knowledge, he obtained a job at a TV studio in Columbus. This was running the cameras for live shows, such as the “Sally Flowers Show.”
I know I learned more about what was going on back in the 50s than I had ever known before. Would you believe that what interested me most were the stories about Morse Code? I have always been fascinated by the fact that you can take a lot of dots and dashes and have them become words of importance. How could anyone pass around special messages during a war? Being able to learn Morse Code had to be a very difficult thing to do. And, during wartime, it was a sure way to get advancements in your jobs. He had additional training in Morse Code which was given to him by the Army. With all this advanced education, he was able to obtain a good Army job.
This person we talked to had been sent to Germany after the war was over, and I assumed it would have been a bad time to be there. But, for him, it had been a good time. To get to Germany, he had to travel on a ship that took seven days to get there. But while there, he got to stay in the German officers barracks. Knowing Morse Code, he could intercept other languages. And that was important. During the year while there, he got to have a 30-day vacation. In fact, he got to go to Paris and London. Also, he crossed the English Channel. (Sounds like an amazing vacation to me.)
It just so happens that when he got back to the states, he got his job back (which had been running cameras for the “Sally Flowers” show on TV. Now, anyone reading this who knows what the “Sally Flowers Show” was has to be in their 80s).
He mentioned that being in the service, he had to give up two years of his life. But now, he realizes that he got to see the world. When I asked him what was the best thing that happened during his time in the Army, he said he was “proud to be a veteran from the U.S. Army.’’ Good for him!
Speaking of the Morse Code, years and years ago, I heard an interesting story about Morse Code. The story was about a room full of guys who wanted to be hired for a very good job at some technical place. They each had been sitting in the “waiting room” for quite a while, but none was being asked to go back to the boss’ office for an interview. About time to close the office, a short guy walked in, sat down for only a minute before he got up and went into the boss’ office. All the guys ahead of him were surprised when that happened. Then the secretary came out and told the guys to all leave because the last person had been hired. “Why?”
When he came back out, they asked him how he got the job and they didn’t. He asked them why they didn’t just go in the boss’ office. The Morse Code that was coming out of the loudspeaker told them to each come in as soon as they got there. That was how the boss knew if any of the guys knew Morse Code.
This was just one sample of what Morse Code could do. By the way, Morse Code is now obsolete.
Kay E. Conklin is a retired Delaware County recorder who served four terms. She graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University with a degree in sociology and anthropology.
