The History of Radio Is Thriving in This Fascinating, Hidden Bay Area Museum

The first entertainment broadcast was in the Bay area where musical concerts were broadcasted by dangling a microphone in front of a wind-up gramophone.

Jim Fink, an Alameda native, volunteers at the Bay Area Radio Museum in Alameda, California, on March 2, 2024. Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group/TNS

By John Metcalfe From Bay Area News Group

SAN JOSE, Calif.—Walk into a nondescript building in Alameda—which happens to have once been the first telephone exchange on the island, circa 1900—and you’ll find yourself plunged into an electronic wonderland of Inspector Gadget-type widgets and gizmos.