Worked in Trail, British Columbia
Donald L. Hings, an engineer and inventor, equipped the Canadian and British military with an early version of the portable two-way wireless radio (walkie-talkie) during the Second World War.
Born in 1907 in Leicester, England
Resided and worked in Trail, British Columbia
Died in 2004 in Burnaby, British Columbia
Born in Leicester, England, he moved to Canada with his mother and father when he was three.
In 1937 Donald Hings created a portable radio signalling system for his employer CM&S, which he called a “packset”, but which later became known as the “Walkie-Talkie”. He was working at Cominco in Trail, British Columbia.
In 1939 CM&S sent Hings to Ottawa to redevelop his new invention for military use, and he worked there from 1940 to 1945. During these years, he developed a number of models, including the successful C-58 Walkie-Talkie which eventually sold eighteen thousand units produced for infantry use.
Following the war, he moved to Burnaby, British Columbia, where he established an electronics R&D company, Electronic Labs of Canada. He held more than 55 patents in Canada and the United States.
In 2006, Hings was inducted into the Telecommunications Hall of Fame.
Trail is a town in the West Kootenay region of the Interior of British Columbia. It was named after the Dewdney Trail, which passed through the area.
