NRS ALBRO LAKE

 

Naval Radio Station

 

 

NRS Albro Lake - 1950s

Photo by (N) F.O.A.C

Source: Radio Communications and Signals Intelligence in the Royal Canadian Navy

 

Established near Dartmouth, Nova Scotia in 1942, Naval Radio Station (NRS) Albro Lake call sign CFH, served as a naval radio communications station for the Atlantic Coast. The station was divided into a receiving site at Albro Lake and a transmitter site at Newport Corner, Nova Scotia. Set up under a veil of secrecy during the height of the North Atlantic U-boat threat, this small village near Halifax became the home of an invaluable weapon during the Battle of the Atlantic. Despite a price tag of more than $6 million, an exorbitant expense in those days, the facility more than paid for itself in Allied shipping saved. Its signal could be heard and read from Murmansk to the Falklands and half way around the world. Renamed HMC NRS Albro Lake on July 1, 1956, the station served under that name until her closure. The growth of Dartmouth from a small town into a city created problems for receiving radio signals at Albro Lake. The Navy decided to relocate the radio station and as a result, Albro Lake closed in 1968. A new radio communications station, Canadian Forces Station Mill Cove, was opened 40 miles southwest of Halifax. The cutover occurred from August 31 to September 18, 1967.

 

Naval Radio Station ALBRO LAKE

Complement of 2nd Watch - 12 Jul 1943

 

From the collection of William Kenneth Littlefair, PO Tel, RCNVR

 

Courtesy of Bill Littlefair

 

(1) Bruce Vodrey CDR TIP  (2) Tom Hilton Tel Spare D/B Areas  (3) Pete Jackson C.P. Tel I/C  (4) Morgan Dill, Lieut D I/C  (5) Jack Lang P.O. Tel I/C Maintenance  (6) Claude Wighe P.O. Tel, I/C 2nd Watch  (7) Lionel Gould L/Tel of Watch

 

(8) Morley Fenson L/Tel, 6300  (9) Stan Naherne T.O., 16845  (10) Norm Hayes Tel 6300 D/B  (11) George Pulsford Tel, svc 5  (12) Don Hayward L/Tel, 4740  (13) Ross Andreis CDR Perforator  (14) Gord Cranston D.B. Areas

 

(15) Al Clark Tel  (16) Jim Wawthorne T.O., 105 Monitor  (17) Bob Irwin Tel, 12865  (18) Carl Gagnier Tel Spare DIB areas  (19) Coats T.O. 425

 

(20) WK Littlefair L/Tel, svc 5  (21) Stan Leyland Tel, D/13 areas  (22) Harry Tompson 111

 

Five members of HMCS Albro Lake's softball team in the North End Softball League

 

Tiny Hooper, Joe Morrow, Haurice Seniuk, David Cake, Bill Furzecott

 

The Halifax Mail Star 18 Jun 1955

 

Researched by / Courtesy of George Newbury

 

 

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