NAVY COLD WAR COMMUNICATION CONTEXT: 
RESOURCES ASSOCIATED WITH THE NAVY'S COMMUNICATION PROGRAM, 1946-1989

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NAVY COLD WAR COMMUNICATION CONTEXT: 
RESOURCES ASSOCIATED WITH THE NAVY'S COMMUNICATION PROGRAM, 1946-1989
Contract No. N62470-92-D-8965 
Delivery Order No. 48 

FINAL REPORT 
Kathryn M. Kuranda, M. Arch. Hist.. Principal Investigator 
by Brooke V. Best, M.S., Katherine Grandine, M.A., and Stacie Y. Webb, M.S. 

R. Christopher Goodwin & Associates, Inc. 
241 E. Fourth Street 
Suite 100 
Frederick, Maryland 21701 

December 1997 for 
Atlantic Division 
Naval Facilities Engineering Command 
1510 Gilbert Street 
Norfolk, Virginia 23511-2699 

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 

R Christopher Goodwin and Associates, Inc. conducted these investigations between October 1995 
and 1996 on behalf of tine U S. Department of the Navy, Atlantic Operations, Naval Facilities 
Engineering Command (NAVFACENGCOM). The Navy Cold War Communication Context was 
undertaken to develop a historical and thematic overview of the Navy's Cold War communication 
program between 1946 and 1989. The nation-wide context was prepared as a companion volume to 
the Legacy-funded Navy Cold War Guided Missile Context, and was designed to assist in identifying 
and evaluating the relative significance of Cold War built resources associated with the Navy's 
communication program. Development of a nation-wide context will allow the Navy to undertake 
assessments of Cold War-related built resources without conducting extensive investigations to 
develop an appropriate historic context or thematic framework. The historic context and comparative 
data presented in this study can be applied in the analysis of site-specific data. 

The study presents comparative data on the various Navy installations and property types associated 
with the Navy's shore-based communication program during the Cold War. This included the 
development of a chronological overview of the Navy's role in communication activities, which 
spanned the period from World War through the Cold War era. Major property types constructed to 
support the Navy's shore-based communication program also are addressed in this study. 

Resources that are less than 50 years old must meet the criteria of "exceptional importance" under 
the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) to qualify for listing Focusing on built resources 
constructed within the last 50 years serves as a proactive approach intended to assist cultural 
resource managers in making informed decisions about significant Cold War-era resources and to 
selectively preserve these resources before they are lost or indistinguishably altered. 

The Navy Cold War Communication Context is organized into four major chapters: Introduction, 
Methodology, The U.S. Navy's Role in the Cold War Communication Program, 1946-1989, and 
Property Types Associated with the Navy's Shore-Based Communication Program Chapter I 
provides an overview of the project and research objectives The methodology section (Chapter II) 
discusses the scope of the archival and field investigations, and analysis of data. Chapter III presents 
a chronological overview of the Navy's role in the Cold War communication program. This includes 
an examination of technological developments associated with Navy communication systems. The 
section on property types (Chapter IV) identifies the types of properties that were constructed 
specifically to support the Navy's communication program. 

Appendices were developed to supplement the narrative text. Appendix A, Navy Installations 
Associated with the Navy's Cold War Communication Program, provides a summary of the various 
Navy installations that were directly Involved in the Navy's communication program during the Cold 
War Appendix B, The U.S. Navy's Cold War Communication Systems, contains a more 
comprehensive list of shore-based communication systems developed for the Navy. Appendix C 
contains a list of the U.S. Navy's active ship force levels between 1946 and 1989 Appendix D contains 
a technical glossary and a key to abbreviations. Appendix E contains resumes of key project 
personnel. 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
LIST OF FIGURES
LIST OF TABLES

I. INTRODUCTION

• Overview of Project ............................................................................................... 1
• Research Objectives ............................................................................................... 1
• Previous Investigations ............................................................................................ 2

II. METHODOLOGY

• Archival research ...................................................................................................... 5
• Field Investigations .................................................................................................... 5
• Data Synthesis........................................................................................................... 6
• Organization of the Report.......................................................................................... 6

III. THE U.S. NAVY'S ROLE IN THE COLD WAR COMMUNICATION PROGRAM, 1946-1989

• Introduction ................................................................................................................ 9
• Early Wireless Communications: 1900-1920................................................................ 9
  • Navy's Early Interest in Wireless Technology
  • Establishing a Chain of High-Powered Communications Stations
  • Research & development (R&D) Efforts During World War I
  • Expansion of the Navy's Communications Network During World War I
• The Electronics Age and Depression Years: 1920's-1930's............................................ 13
  • Post War Organization of the Naval Shore System
  • Upgrading the Navy's Radio Stations
  • Post War R&D Activities
• Naval Communications During World War II: 1940-1945 ............................................. 18
  • Developments in Radar Technology
  • Naval Intelligence Efforts
  • Expansion of the Navy's Communication Network
  • Reorganization of the Naval Communication Program
• Truman and Eisenhower Years: 1946-1960 ................................................................... 20
  • Establishment of the Intelligence Community
  • Expansion of the Military's Surveillance Network
  • Formation of the Naval Communication System
  • Continued R&D Efforts
  • Expansion of the Navy's Shore Facilities
  • Establishment of the Naval Security Group Activity (NSGA)
• The Vietnam Era: 1961-1972 ........................................................................................ 35
  • Expansion of the U.S. Naval Communication Station (NAVCOMMSTA), Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico
  • Role of Early Satellite Communications
  • The Navy's Satellite Communication Research Facilities
• Post Vietnam Era: 1973-1989 ....................................................................................... 38
  • Advancements in Satellite Communications
  • Role of Military Communications and Surveillance Activities
• Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 39

IV. PROPERTY TYPES ASSOCIATED WITH THE NAVY'S SHORE-BASED COMMUNICATION PROGRAM

• Introduction.....................................................................................................................41
• Shore-Based Communications Facilities...........................................................................43
  • Classification of Shore Communication Facilities
  • Transmitters Versus Receivers
• Receiver Stations..............................................................................................................45
  • Introduction
  • Evolution of Receiver Stations
  • Associated Property Types
    • Antenna Array
    • Receiver Buildings
    • Support Buildings
• Transmitter Stations............................................................................................................53
  • Introduction
  • Evolution of Transmitter Stations
  • Associated Property Types
    • Antenna Array
    • Transmitter Buildings
    • Helix Houses
    • Support Buildings
• Communication Centers.........................................................................................................81
  • Introduction
  • Evolution of Communication Centers
  • Associated Property Types
    • Terminal Equipment (TE) Buildings
    • Satellite Communications (SATCOMM) Earth Stations
• Direction Finder (D/F) Stations...............................................................................................85
  • Introduction
  • Evolution of D/F Stations
  • Associated Property Types
    • Antenna Array
    • Operations Building
    • Antenna Maintenance Shop
• Shore-Based Communications and Surveillance Systems..........................................................93
  • Classification of the Navy's Communications Systems
  • Strategic Versus Tactical Systems
  • The Navy's Frequency Spectrum
  • Radio Wave Propagation
• Search Radars........................................................................................................................103
  • Introduction
  • Evolution of Search Radars
  • Associated Property Types
    • Over-the-Horizon (OTH) Radars
    • AN/FPS-117 Radar
    • Phased Array Radars
• Direction Finders (D/F)...........................................................................................................111
  • Introduction
  • Evolution of Direction Finders (D/F) Systems
  • Associated Property Types
    • Model AN/GRD-6 Improved HFDF Antenna
    • Model AN/FRD-10 Circularly Disposed Antenna Array (CDAA)
    • Model AN/FLR-9 CDAA
• Tropospheric Scatter Systems..................................................................................................121
  • Introduction
  • Evolution of Tropospheric Scatter Systems
• ELF/VLF/LF Systems..............................................................................................................125
  • Introduction
  • Evolution of ELF/VLF/LF Systems
  • Associated Property Types
    • Model AN/FRT-72 LF "Marconi Triatic" Array
    • Model AN/FRT-87 VLF "Modified Goliath" Antenna
• HF Systems.............................................................................................................................131
  • Introduction
  • Evolution of HF Systems
  • Associated Property Types
    • Conical Monopole Antenna
    • Rhombic Antenna
    • Log Periodic Antenna
    • Inverted Cone Antenna
    • Omni Transmitter Antenna
    • Horizontal Omnidirectional Broadband Antenna (HOBA)
• VHF/UHF/SHF Systems............................................................................................................149
  • Introduction
  • Evolution of VHF/UHF/SHF Systems
• Satellite Systems.........................................................................................................................151
  • Introduction
  • Evolution of Satellite Systems
  • Associated Property Types
    • AN/FSC-78 and AN/FSC-79 Earth Satellite Receiver Station

BIBLIOGRAPHY 
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

APPENDIX A: NAVY INSTALLATIONS ASSOCIATED WITH THE NAVY'S COLD WAR COMMUNICATION PROGRAM 
APPENDIX B: THE U.S. NAVY'S COLD WAR COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS 
APPENDIX C: U.S. NAVY ACTIVE SHIP FORCE LEVELS, 1946 -1989 
APPENDIX D: TECHNICAL GLOSSARY AND KEY TO ABBREVIATIONS 
APPENDIX E: RESUMES OF KEY PROJECT PERSONNEL