U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Physical Measurement Laboratory

The Story of an Old Timer: Golden Age of Radio

Share

radio receiver kit

If the Radio Section had pioneered the adventure series - the radio comedy and the "commercial" (for soap) and other products - they would have "owned" the Golden Age of Radio.

But they did very much more.

NBS gave accessibility to the Golden Age by developing radio receivers and making them available.

portable radio receiver
The first "boom box?" A portable radio receiver complete with batteries and the Morning Glory Horn.

Complete instruction on how to build a receiver and plans to build your own radio set through NBS circular (originally available for five cents (later for ten cents) came with plans to build a radio receiver from $6.50 up to $75.

Time and frequency

Contacts

Created March 10, 2017, Updated August 16, 2022