Telefunken Ruins

On our explorations through Long Island we stumbled across a vast site filled with old building foundations and a strange excavation site filled with many objects dating back to the turn of the century. Along with old machinery, we found piles of strange and colorful bottles and artifacts from earlier days. This is an extremely vast complex existing right underneath the noses of most Long Islanders.

Many history buffs know about the sinking of the Lucitania early on in WWI. What some may not know is that there was a radio transmission betraying its coordinates, which led to the sinking. That signal came from Sayville on Long Island. There is a complex once owned by Germans near the tracks by the soccer field on Cherry Street. It was called "Telefunken" and is now abandoned and mostly demolished.

The complex was built in 1911 and was one of the most advanced wireless stations in existence during WWI. According to some sources not only was the signal to sink the Lucitania given here but also a command to attack America and prevent them from joining in the war. This last message was supposedly delivered to the US by England and was instrumental in bringing the US into the war.

The messages leaving the complex were encrypted in code for secrecy and on the surface would seem innocuous. One such transmission was, "Myra has diphtheria". According to sources listed below, there was a man in New Jersey, Charles E. Apgar, who became curious of these nonsensical transmissions and began writing them down. This was how the US found out about the betraying signals.

The station was taken over immediately by the US Navy and was managed under their care for the duration of the war. After the war it was taken over briefly by the Mackay Company, and then by the Federal Aviation Administration or FAA. The site was abandoned in 1995 and was damaged by vandals and weather. There is currently a group called the Friends of Long Island Wireless History working to preserve the site. Their website is also listed below and is a good resource for information.

There are a few things to note about this complex. First of all it is very large and includes miles of woodland and labyrinthine trails. There are two towers that as of yet have not been fully explained. They are at least 2 stories high, with no discernible doors or windows. There is speculation that these towers were actually supports for a larger radio tower. Supposedly the tower was 500ft high. There are trees growing on the roof. There was also an old rusty cart with wires coming up from the ground and old electronic equipment resting in a rusted pile. With most of the complex cleared out, it was odd that this equipment still remained in a building that no longer had any walls or ceiling..

Upon further investigation of the complex we found a strange excavation site. It was about a quarter mile from any of the buildings. It was located in a clearing deep in the woods. There were large ditches and piles of old equipment. There were pulleys and old metal wiring, as well as larger structures whose purpose was unknown. The excavation site was filled with old bottles dating from the turn of the century to the 1940's. There were blue Milk of Magnesia bottles and other specimens in many different colors and shapes. We found a Sagitos Farms milk bottle in great condition. There were other bottles from all kinds of companies no longer in existence on Long Island. Some were clearly hand blown glass, and there were a few with glass stoppers still intact. Everywhere you turned there was something old and probably valuable that was at one time probably considered garbage. It was a little bit tricky clambering down the holes and mounds of dirt and machinery, but each find was more and more worth it.

Also strewn around the area were various china or porcelain sets consisting of bowls and cups but a good majority of these were broken. There were some old light fixtures and other small components probably used in the buildings at some point. There were no signs of any buildings nearby and no immediate signs that these woods would have held such treasures. It is uncertain whether these sites are still being excavated or are remnants from an older investigation.

As we walked around the old paved paths and looked at the flat cement bases of the buildings, we could not help but speculate about what each one was used for. Most of the buildings looked like they were swept clear off the premises, starting at ankle height. There were very few signs of what each of these structures once served as. Some of the only visible signs were chunks of metal, an occasional pipe, or a power line. The complex has a very lonely and vacant feel.

The excavation site and Telefunken itself raised many questions. How did the researchers know to dig right here where there were no buildings? How are there only foundations of buildings without any corresponding rubble? What did this complex look like in its heyday? Many of these questions still go unanswered. Most Long Islanders are unaware of what lies not far from their own backyards and schools.