KZ5LAND
Canal Zone Ham Operators Archives
To honor the men and women, both civilian and military, who operated a ham shack in the Canal Zone.
My name is Mike Paulson and my mother is/was KZ5MP. I can remember as a very young boy the many hours she spent on the radio. She and the radio were the life line for so many people in the Zone. Whether there was a National Emergency or a Family Emergency or even that lucky quick patch to the U.S. to say hello, she and other hams did what they could to help out. And then there was the international interest of speaking to someone anywhere in the world, because the Canal Zone was situated in a very prime location with all that water around us for the radio waves to bounce back and forth without any interference. I remember one night she started speaking to someone on the east coast of the U.S., then it was France, Italy, Africa, Middle East, Russia, China, Australia, Hawaii, west coast U.S., mid U.S., and finally back to the east coast. Talk about around the world in 80 days, she did it in less than 4 hours
Me and MOM
I am working to create a comprehensive, historical record of ham operators who were active in the Panama Canal Zone from 1920 to 1979. I need your help!
The Canal Zone was home to a unique population who shared a very special time-limited experience. Ham operators played an important role in it with phone patches and messages back and forth to the US for both Civilian and Military personnel. For all you DXer’s out there they were a prized contact.
I am seeking to identify all the Canal Zone ham operators through their QSL Cards. Sound impossible? Not with your help!
You can help by looking through your QSL cards and doing one of these things:
1. Scan the front and back of your KZ5 cards at 100dpi and email the scans to me at kz5land@yahoo.com .
2. If you would like, you can send me the cards for scanning and I will return them to you post haste. Just include a SASE.
3. Donate cards or documents to the Archive.
Ultimately, after I have been able to gather as much information as possible, I plan to turn it over to a museum or library of Canal Zone or Ham Radio history.
I do this to honor my mom, and all the other Canal Zone Hams. Please, be a part of this effort to record our history!
73
Addendum: On March 11, 2018 Mike Paulson, the creator of KZ5LAND, passed away peacefully after a long battle with lung cancer. He was surrounded by his family, and many friends, who loved him very dearly. The maintenance of this site, and all related inquiries, has been passed on to Bob Davies (K7BHM). For more information, please see the “In Memoriam” tab above.
March 12, 1976
KZ5 Territory
Only place in the world the sun can rise on the west coast and set on the east coast.