History

For Sweden, World War I had brought significant difficulties in maintaining contact with the outside world, especially over long distances. Most international telegrams were transmitted via cables that were both vulnerable and expensive to maintain, and the radio transmitters owned by Sweden were only suitable for shorter distances. When peace finally came, efforts began to find solutions that would prevent similar situations in the future.

In 1920, a proposal emerged for the Royal Telegraph Board to invest in making the connection across the Atlantic to the USA wireless by establishing a new “large radio station.” Such a direct link was believed to promote business dealings and state affairs concerning the great country in the west, while also facilitating contact between the many Swedish-Americans and their old homeland. The proposal was well-received and presented to parliament, which voted to allocate funds. The Telegraph Board then began examining potential radio systems and ultimately chose one provided by Radio Corporation of America (RCA). The reason was that they had more or less monopolized radio transmissions to and from the American East Coast, and using their system from the start would reduce the risks of potential compatibility issues. The fact that Swedish-born inventor Ernst Alexanderson was behind the system made it an even better choice.

“We negotiated according to the old customs, and as both Gustav and I were quite accommodating…by around noon, when 4-5 farmers had been visited, we found ourselves in a very pleasant mood.”

Excerpt from engineer Nils Norén’s report on the land negotiations

It was immediately clear that the new large radio station would be built on the Swedish west coast, as they wanted the shortest possible distance to the USA while ensuring the signal could bypass Norway, Denmark, and Scotland. This meant a location in central Halland, and the exact site was determined in autumn 1922 after engineer Nils Norén visited several potential locations in the area. The choice fell on several fields in the parishes of Grimeton and Hunnestad that met the requirements, and after a series of challenging negotiations with landowners, the area was secured for the Telegraph Board. Construction began at the turn of the year, and two years later, in winter 1924, the station was completed.

On December 1, 1924, the station, assigned the call sign SAQ, began operations and almost immediately handled 95% of Swedish telegram traffic to the USA. They also managed to reduce transmission times, and by May 1925, it took an average of just 17 minutes from when a “regular” telegram was submitted in Sweden until it was received by RCA in New York. The high speeds allowed them to fully utilize the window where Swedish and American office hours overlapped.

The two original RCA longwave transmitters were used extensively until the late 1930s and into the 1940s, despite facing competition from more modern and efficient shortwave transmitters. These newer transmitters were placed alongside the old machines, and by 1945, they handled almost all traffic through Grimeton. Nevertheless, the decision was made to retain the Alexanderson transmitters, partly as a backup system but also because their characteristics allowed radio transmissions to submarines underwater, a use that continued until the end of the Cold War. Although one was scrapped in the 1950s, the other remained and can be viewed today in the station’s transmitter hall. Despite being over a hundred years old, it is still in full working condition.