Cogitator Jan 2, 2013

Posted by George Cooper 
on Jan 02, 2013
 

New England Wireless and Steam Museum

 

VISITING ROTARIANS

None.

GUESTS

Polly Erickson, Andy’s ‘better half,’ joined us for lunch at Chiantis.

BIRTHDAYS/ANNIVERSARIES

No Rotary birthdays to celebrate this week, but warm happy anniversary wishes go out to Dr. Bob (and Trish) Miller on January 2nd. 

CLUB ANNIVERSARIES

Happy Rotary anniversary to two members this week:  both Matt D’Agenais and Kevin McDonough celebrate their 1st full year in the club on January 4th, entering now their respective second years of Service Above Self.

CLUB OFFICERS ELECTION DAY

The ‘Ayes’ have it!  Without any raucous dissent from the floor, the Nominating Committee’s slate of officers for the 2013-2014 Rotary year received unanimous consent and was thus given a big old thumbs-up.  Congratulations (and thank-you) to next year's officers!

President—Jodi Gladstone

President-Elect—Ron Winde

Secretary—Bonnie Sauer

Treasurer—Ed Neff

Assistant Treasurer—Matt D’Agenais

Sergeant at Arms—Jim Essex

HAPPY BUCKS

-Steve Lombardi thanked Andy Erickson for ‘his charitable endeavor assistance’ recently.  He also gave a $50 check to the East Greenwich Rotary Scholarship Fund as a measure of gratitude from the Chamber of Commerce to Santa (and Fund Treasurer) John Wolcott.   

-Matt D’Agenais was happy about a great first year in Rotary.

-Vin Meola greeted Bonnie Sauer and welcomed her back after her noted troubles with…her back. 

-Bob Sloan had a fantastic 2012, and is looking for 2013 to be even better.

-John Wolcott enjoyed his annual ski trip last week.

-Polly Erickson is looking forward to some community service time abroad, including three weeks in Cambodia.  (She also joked that trips like this greatly reduce the risk of again being locked in the basement!) 

-Bill TenEyck enjoyed his holidays ‘with the girls,’ and thanked Jim Essex for leading a nice rendition of Auld Lang Syne. 

-Jodi Gladstone spoke of the privilege of being elected to serve as club president next year.  (You’ll be great, Jodi!) 

-Fred Jaggi, friend of guest speaker Bob Merriam, was glad to be at lunch with ‘so many positive, happy people.’

 

PROGRAM/SPEAKER

Bob Merriam, Director of New England Wireless and Steam Museum

Gil Thorpe introduced Bob Merriam, Director of the New England Wireless and Steam Museum on Frenchtown Road.  The Merriams and the Thorpes lived only a few street away years in Edgewood, and the two Bobs, Merriam and Thorpe, were particularly good friends.  In the 1960’s, Gil moved to East Greenwich with his family.  One day, Gill bumped into Bob, who was then just beginning work on his new museum project.    

‘The New England Wireless and Steam Museum is an electrical and mechanical engineering museum emphasizing the beginnings of radio and steam power. The museum honors engineers who achieved greatness and served the public good by analyzing and solving tough engineering problems. The museum is both archival and educational’.—(from www.newsm.org)

Bob Merriam is an enthusiastic engineer who loves speaking about, and demonstrating in his museum, great engineering accomplishments of Rhode Island’s glorious industrial past.  He wants people in Rhode Island to know, take pride in, and pass along a very important fact—that this little state was ‘the Silicon Valley’ during the heyday of rapid advancement of efficient steam engines and wireless electronics. 

Both the museum and the Merriam home are located on Lucius Eldridge’s old farm, built in 1773.  Bob and his wife, Nancy, feel ‘fortunate to live there.’   

One of the museum’s stated goals--‘to connect people to the wonder of science and math.’        

Some of the museum’s ‘remarkable things’ include:

  • Armington & Sims steam engines, the favorite of Henry Ford and Thomas Edison.
  • A Marconi distress transmitter, the same as Titanic's.
  • A Marconi 1900 coherer and jigger.
  • The oldest equipped radio station in the world.
  • The only George H. Corliss steam engine under steam today.
  • An Edison 1882 diode - the first of all radio tubes.
  • The original steam engines of Rhode Island manufacturers.
  • An 1881 Professor Dolbear radio receiver.  (It still works.)
  • The first commercial transistor (pre-dating Marconi’s).
  • A museum in a National Historic District, listed in the National Register of Historic Buildings.
  • ASME designated International Historic Site.

Bob told us of George Corliss, who was born in New York but for some reason ended up in little old East Greenwich, RI.  It was our town’s great fortune that he did.  Corliss became a leading engineer of American steam engines, improving efficiencies by 40% with his patented 4-valve system. 

He also spoke fondly of Ben Franklin, great American citizen, revolutionary leader, and inventor.  Bob remains, still today, especially impressed with Franklin’s Bells, an invention in which Franklin was able to harness static electricity into the continual ringing of two adjacent bells.      

Lastly, Bob thanked the club for its warm support for years.  He was happy to see so many familiar faces in today’s crowd, and he hopes we can make it out to the museum for a club visit, or even a Million Dollar Meal, after the first museum ‘steam-up’ in April.   

http://www.newsm.org/

Museum volunteer Fred Jaggi, Gil Thorpe, Museum Director Bob Merriam, and Chub Clement  

 

**HAPPY NEW YEAR!**