The Antique Telecommunications Museum

James is hosting this month's IndieWeb blog carnival on the topic “museum memories.”

One of my favorite museum trips was when my spouse took me to see the Antique Wireless Association's Communication Technologies Museum for my birthday a few years ago. I didn't know about this museum before we went — my spouse had come up with the idea to take me there on their own, and the thoughtfulness made it extra nice. It's a small museum, and a tour guide walked us and one other couple through the museum, and for several of the exhibits, showed us the devices in action.

One of my favorite exhibits was a set of teletype machines, all linked together. A teletype is similar to a typewriter, but keypresses can be transmitted and received. Typing on one of these machines sends a code for each character — traditionally the 5-bit Baudot code. When a teletype on the other end of the line receives Baudot code, it types out the same character as the unit sending the code. The museum was kind enough to let visitors type on one of the teletypes, and it was extremely cool to see them communicate with each other, with another unit duplicating what we typed.

I love mechanical keyboards/typewriters and computer history, and teletypes were one of the earliest ways of interacting with computers. As I wrote about previously, the feeling of transmitting information over a distance also has a strange pull for me. I think there are a few reasons why things like teletypes create this feeling so much more than e.g., the internet. First, they aren't nearly as mundane, and the unfamiliarity makes me think more about what's actually happening. Second, the protocol is much simpler, and it's easier to visualize what's happening over the wire and how that connects to what I'm typing. It feels more real and immediate, and more tied to the physical realm.

Another stand-out exhibit was an early arc transmitter that we got to see in action. Kathy Loves Physics has a good video on YouTube explaining these, but in short, high voltage arcs are generated in rapid succession across a small gap, and this creates oscillating radio-frequency emissions. These were some of the earliest wireless devices, and the museum had a working unit on display. The guide demonstrated running the generator for this transmitter, and it was impressive to watch the powerful arc and hear the immense noise it makes.

Other exhibits included replicas of radio broadcast and communications rooms from various eras of civilian and military history, and we got to look up close at all the transmitters, receivers, and audio gear for these studios. The biggest was a control room from a Voice of America station. This exhibit had a large arc of control panels filled with dials, gauges, and screens, and a row of cabinets containing the transmitters and other hardware. Across from this was a section in the back with rows of shelves containing lovingly catalogued receivers and transmitters that hadn't fit elsewhere in the museum.

Postscript

Thanks to James for hosting this month! This was a fun trip to remember, and I appreciated the chance to think over what made it so interesting and enjoyable. Until next time!