Anode base from a vacuum tube.
Thanks to Tom Brent, a collector
of military radio equipment.
“The artifact is from the anode structure of a vacuum tube. Most vacuum
tubes are base-mounted and the connections (wires) for the other tube elements
(filament, cathode, grids) which are mounted inside the anode envelope must
come out the bottom of the anode enclosure. This particular artifact has
a “wall” at the top (this in itself is a bit out of the ordinary).
The square holes in the side which, as explained in the description for artifact
2-6-S-43, are part of the mechanism to hold the two halves of the assembly
together. What appears to be a “clamp” where the two halves meet
is indeed just that: vertical wires that are mounted solidly in base of
the tube are clamped by the two halves of the anode to form a rigid supporting
structure as well as to provide the electrical connection to the anode pin
in the base of the tube.”
The artifact is almost certainly associated with Unit 92, the Coast Guard
Loran station at the southeast tip of the island. We know that personnel
from the Loran station engaged in target practice at the Seven Site on one
or more occasions. We’ve found numerous M-1 carbine shell casings and broken
Coast Guard mess hall plates at the site. A burned out vacuum tube would
make a good target. |