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February 1963 Radio-Electronics
 [Table of Contents]
Wax nostalgic about and learn from the history of early electronics.
See articles from Radio-Electronics,
published 1930-1988. All copyrights hereby acknowledged.
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Have you heard of
Douglas
McDonald Perham and his
Cavalcade of Electronics? Mr. Perham, born on May 22, 1885, in Duarte,
California, was a trailblazer in the development of early radio and electronic technologies.
His life and work not only advanced the fields of communication and electronics
but also laid the foundation for preserving the history of these transformative
technologies. Growing up in Southern California during the late 19th century, Perham
developed an early fascination with electricity and mechanics. This passion led
him to pursue studies in electrical systems during a period when wireless communication
was emerging as a revolutionary technology. His natural aptitude for engineering
and his hands-on experimentation with early electrical devices positioned him to
play a pivotal role in the industry. In 1905, Perham began his professional career
at the Federal Telegraph Company (FTC) in Palo Alto, California. FTC was instrumental
in advancing long-distance wireless communication, particularly through its use
of the Poulsen arc transmitter.
What's Old
A collection of many early mercury rectifiers. In top row, partially
hidden by cabinet upright, is a three-part rectifier patented by Steinmetz in 1915.
This exhibit was built by Ralph Heintz in 1928. It was to be
used as evidence in a patent suit to show that the Heintz-Kaufman circuit was not
the same as de Forest's and that at least four other researchers had produced oscillations
with a three-element tube before de Forest.
By Dick Barrett
All the items shown are exhibits at the Cavalcade of Electronics, a collection
of electronic equipment housed in one wing of the Perham Foundation's exhibit at
New Almaden, California. A number of other exhibits appeared on page 35 of the August
1962 issue.
This original de Forest triode was made in 1906. De Forest wrote
in a letter in 1959: "Among the really rare relics you will see there [Perham Foundation
exhibit] is one of the original three-electrode cylindrical-shaped tubes with a
screw base."
Douglas Perham holds early Farnsworth CRT. It was fabricated
from a chemist's flask, the fluorescent screen being painted on the bottom and the
electron gun welded into the neck.
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