Leslie Frederick Wainwright (my father)
prepared by Roger Leslie Wainwright
Last updated September 1, 2003
Born: June 15, 1915
Birth Place: Wainwright family farm near Deep River, Iowa
Died:
Buried:
Parents: Frederick Wainwright and Ellen (Ella) Swain Wainwright
Siblings: Wanda Arlene Wainwright Black
Eva Marie Wainwright Brackett
Married: Eula Ferne Birchmier on July 10, 1943
Children: Roger Leslie born may 10, 1947
Gary Frederick born August 10, 1949
Barbara Janice born August 4, 1955
Other Information
I obtained the following information from a Department of Defense Personnel Security
Questionnaire that Leslie Wainwright filled out on June 30, 1959 when he applied for a SECRET
security clearance.
Education:
1. Sept. 1920 - May 1928 Rural District #8, Deep River Twp., Tilton, Iowa
2. Sept. 1928 - May 1928 Rural District #9 Deep River Twp., Deep River Iowa
graduated eighth grade
3. Sept. 1929 - May 1933 High School, Deep River, Iowa graduated High School.
(Dad was very proud that he graduated second in his graduating class. When I asked him how
many graduated in his class, he said two. That makes for a nice joke, but actually he graduated
second in his class out of nine students. he said a girl beat him out of the top spot.)
4. Sept. 1933 - June 1938 Iowa State College, Ames, Iowa B.S.E.E.
List of residences since 1937:
Jan. 1937 - June 1937
2210 Lincoln Way, Ames Iowa
(graduated from Iowa State)
June 1937 - Sept 1937
R.R #2 Deep River, Iowa
Sept. 1937 - June 1938
2210 Lincoln Way, Ames Iowa
June 1938 - July 1938
R.R #2 Deep River, Iowa
July 1938 - Aug. 1938
Street address unknown, Muscatine, Iowa
Aug. 1938 - Aug. 1938
2213 West main, Shelbyville, Illinois
Aug. 1938 - Sept. 1938
705 4th Street, Grundy Center, Iowa
Sept. 1938 - Oct. 1938
715 E. McGregor St., Algona, Iowa
Oct. 1938 - Nov. 1938
Box 41, Rockwell City, Iowa
Nov. 1938 - Dec. 1938
no street address, Humbolt, Iowa
Dec. 1938 - Mar. 1939
222 N. 8th Street, Petersburg, Illinois
March 1939 - April 1939
Box 257, Kahoka, Missouri
April 1939 - May 1939
222 N. 8th Street, Petersburg, Illinois
May 1939 - Sept. 1939
no street address, St. Ansgar, Iowa
Sept. 1939 - Oct. 1939
311 S. Main St., Memphis, Missouri
Oct. 1939 - Dec. 1939
307 S. Jefferson, Mount Pleasant, Iowa
Dec. 1939 - Jan 1040
713 Iowa Avenue, Muscatine, Iowa
Jan. 1940 - Feb. 1940
R.R #2 Deep River, Iowa
Feb. 1940 - Jan. 1941
866 West 5th St., Dubuque, Iowa
Jan. 1941 - May 1941
1014 A Avenue N.E., Cedar Rapids, Iowa
May 1941 - July 1943
1534 Washington Ave. S.E., Cedar Rapids Iowa
(Married July 10, 1943)
July 1943 - Aug. 1944
1627 Second Ave., S.E., Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Aug. 1944 - Dec. 1945
1742 First Ave., N.E., Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Dec. 1945 - Dec. 1949
227 28th St. Dr. S.E., Cedar Rapids, Iowa
(I was born May 10, 1947, and Gary was born August 10, 1949)
Dec. 1949 - about 1966
618 34th St. N.E., Cedar Rapids, Iowa
1966 - present
630 34th St. N.E., Cedar Rapids, Iowa
This document also indicates Dad was in ROTC while at Iowa State from Sept. 1933 - June 1934,
and Sept. 1934 - June 1935 as a Private.
The document lists the following trips outside the United States as of June, 1959:
1. Windsor, Canada Sept. 6, 1948 - Sept. 6, 1948 (Visit)
2. Kenore, Port Arthur, Ft. Williams, Canada Aug. 2, 1952 - Aug. 4, 1952. (Vacation)
3. Winnipeg, Kenora, Canada July 31, 1954 - Aug. 5, 1954 (Vacation) (I remember this trip)
Other Information
Here is a Biographical Sketch written by Leslie F. Wainwright in 1969 as he retired from Collins
Radio and was looking for a new job. I retyped word for word to preserve electronically -- Roger
Wainwright
Mr. Wainwright received his B.S.E.E. degree from Iowa State University in June, 1938. He
joined Stanley Engineering Co., Muscatine, Iowa as a field engineer. he was placed in charge of a
survey crew laying our REA rural electric lines, operating in Iowa, Illinois and Missouri.
In 1940 he joined the J.S. Hartt Consulting Engineering Firm, Madison, Wisconsin. The
work with this firm was in connection with a historic cost evaluation of Interstate Power Co.,
Dubuque, Iowa.
In January, 1941, he joined Collins Radio Company as an operator on the assembly line
building large transmitters. After a training period he was assigned to the Final Test Department as
a test engineer. This consisted of testing transmitters: 32RA, 32RB, 16F series, 231D series,
TDO/TDH series, 20K, 20T, 16EA, TCS, TCC, 30K series, 21A and 730 series. In 1943 he was
transferred to the position of test supervisor and in 1944 was made superintendent of Final Test
Department B. He was responsible for final inspection and testing of large fixed transmitters, some
mobile transmitters, and all broadband studio equipment. Mr. Wainwright joined the Engineering
Department Transmitter Group in 1947. There he assisted the project engineers on the 21L, 21M,
Am/FRT-5, AN/FRT-24. OA252, 205G-1, 205J-1, 300J-2, 550A-1, 20V, 20V-1, 20V-2, 20V-3,
and 21E/M. After the 830 FM series of transmitters were developed they were also assigned to me.
In 1964 the collateral work on the entire audio line of equipment including the 642A tape machine
and the 900C was transferred to him. This made the total of all equipment active and inactive more
than 450.
As collateral engineer on the broadcast transmitter he was responsible for all of the customer
modifications covering remote control systems, frequencies, and other special requirements.
Mr. Wainwright has done a limited amount of work on 20BU-3A and 20BU-10A linear
Amplifiers.