The Wireless Tower YXQ Ballybunion Palm Sunday 1914 Danny Houlihan’s Irish Experience

The sun rose over Knockanore hill as the local workers made their way by foot and bike to the 72 acre wireless station to finalise the last mast the 500 foot on the Universal Radio Wireless Station YXQ, located on sandhill road Ballybunion North Kerry Ireland. 

Morning tea was ready at the brown wooden buildings surrounding the site, in the months to follow the station would transmit morse messages to its sister station at Newcastle New Brunswick In Canada and intern would receive coded messages from Canada and monitor shipping activity on the Atlantic during World War 1.

The day would go down into history locally as a storm front closed in from the Atlantic on the massive 500ft Tower resulting in severe damage to the central tubular mast prior to first contact with Newcastle New Brunswick in Canada.

The station would later on the 19th of March 1919 with the Marconi Company using a telephony transmitter transmit human voice for the first time from East to West from Ballybunion to Louisbourg Cape Breton Nova Scotia. This episode Celebrates the 105 Anniversary of that historic event and our connection with Canada.

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