"Circuits of Victory"
Online Signal Corps Museum
Jeff Dissell (left) and Mark Stinnett (right) found an interest in old Signal Corps Equipment around the year 2000. Mark was a member of an organization called the Military Vehicle Preservation Association and Jeff rode along with Mark to an local MVPA First Florida Chapter display one weekend. Mark had two old EE-8's as part of his display and eventually the discussion turned to making those two tired, old field phones work.
Well, the two got those phones working and the rest of the story has yet to be written.
COV considers itself a "living history" museum and as such does not generally participate in re enacting activities. It is our strong belief that the equipment we restore and display is a bridge between generations that can be firmly gripped in the hands and operated as it was in its own time.
The COV display, wherever it is shown, is a tribute to the brave men and women who have served this great nation and continue to serve while in uniform. It is our honor to make this working equipment available to those who actually used it during darker and younger times. It is important to us to let those who have come before us know that we find their trials important and the COV display stands as a testament to their bravery.
Move your cursor over the picture below for World War Two equipment details
The photo above shows a small portion of the equipment that Mark and Jeff had acquired and restored as of 2002. This photo was taken during a display at Gold Head State Park in north Florida. Fully 95% of the equipment shown works as it was originally intended to work and the remainder will work as time allows restoration. Original tools and repair techniques, taken from original technical manuals, are used to restore each piece. This is the mission of "Circuits of Victory".
Projects currently underway at Circuits of Victory include a BD-72 12 line
combat switchboard. As seen in the photograph below, the switchboard is missing
three lines, the two switchboard lights and the ringing generator has the handle
of an EE-8, not the original handle. The cabinet will have some pieces replaced
and the legs will be sandblasted. New Old Stock (NOS) patch cords have been
located and will be installed. All of the metal will be cleaned and refurbished,
including the original wood screws and hinges.
This BD-72 suffered from 60 years of Texas summers and the original rubber,
wherever it was used, was baked until any moisture was destroyed.
After a coat of new OD paint, this switchboard will look like new. This will be
a tough restoration, but this is what Circuits of Victory does best.
(Due to conditions which may adversely affect the equipment in any COV display such as weather, COV retains the right to alter all or part of any scheduled display without notice. While inconvenient for the public, safeguarding this equipment for the future must be a higher priority. Thank you for understanding this policy.)
There is a disturbing trend flowing through the military display community to
disallow the presentation of military firearms as an integral part of any military
vehicle static display. The apparent logic used to dictate such foolishness is
that the display of firearms may be "offensive" to members of the public who
visit a display.
COV vehemently disagrees with this assessment and considers such a blatant lack of
coherant logic to be unacceptable. Therefore, it shall be the policy of COV to
avoid any event that does not allow the display of fully assembled firearms
or edged weapons as a part of a legitimate, safe static display.
In many years of presenting the COV Signal Corps Museum display,we have
NEVER had a single member of the public find our display to be offensive.
In fact, the opposite has been true on hundreds of occasions where the public is
grateful that this equipment is being saved and restored so that generations to
come can witness technology from the past. The same is true of those who display
other collections as well.
COV will not, by participation in events that do not allow weapons, condone the
erasing or denial of historical truth due to political fabrication.
