1. Radio and Broadcasting Museums: Web-based and Brick and Mortar
2. Radio and Broadcasting Library Collections: Web-based and Brick and Mortar
3. Radio and Broadcasting Government Resources: Domestic and International
4. Advertisers and Manufacturers from the Golden Age: An Often Overlooked Resource
5. Radio Station and Network Archives: Domestic and International
6. A Copyright Research Survival Kit from The Government and Academia
   (See Sidebars for More Provenance and Education Resources)
   

Introduction

Whether you collect Golden Age Radio ephemera, recordings, radios, transcriptions, or premiums, researching The Golden Age of Radio era will occupy a great deal of your time. Provenances, especially, are the key element to any protocols a collector must employ to determine the details of a Golden Age Radio Series or recording. This section will attempt to provide you with as many resources as we can compile to assist you with your research projects. We welcome any and all suggestions to help expand this section to the benefit of all.

There are more sources of research materials and than most of us can imagine, but for the most part they'll fall into a few common categories. Some you'll have already considered or employed, and some may surprise you. Here's some of the more obvious places to start your research:

• Brick and Mortar Libraries
• Colleges and Universities
• Historical Societies
• Museums
• Book Stores

Here's some you may or may not have considered:

• The Internet
• Governmental Agencies
• Advertisers from The Golden Age of Radio
• Radio Collecting Societies and Clubs
• Specialized Radio Museums
• Presidential Libraries of the Era
• Individual Collectors
• Radio Scripts
• Newspaper 'morgues' in virtually any major city

The Internet is one of the fastest growing resources for researching all manner of nostalgia, ephemera, antiques, and both preservation and restoration activities. We hope to assemble an extensive list of Internet Resources applicable to every facet of The Golden Age Radio Collecting hobby. You're welcome -- and encouraged -- to both share and contribute to this growing list of active resources.

If you're on a high-speed internet connection you'll be in a better position to pursue research on the internet, but if you're still on a dial-up telephone modem connection, this list of links will save you hours of time, pinpointing the resources you find most helpful.

• The Antique Wireless Association Museum (1952 - present)
  
  The Antique Wireless Association Museum
  Edward Gable, Curator
  187 Lighthouse Road
  Hilton, New York 14468
  Phone: (585) 392-3088
  egable@rochester.rr.com
  
  
• The Radio History Society's Radio - Television Museum (1999 - present)
  
  RHS Radio - Television Museum
  2608 Mitchellville Rd
  Bowie, Maryland
  Phone: (301) 390-1020
  
  
• The American Museum of Radio and Electricity (1985 - present)
  
  The American Museum of Radio and Electricity
  1312 Bay Street
  Bellingham, WA 98225
  Phone: (360) 738.3886
  FAX: 360.738.3472
  
  
• The Museum of Radio and Technology (1985 - present)
  
  The Museum of Radio and Technology
  1640 Florence Ave
  Huntington WV 25701
  Phone: (304) 525-8890
  
  
• The Shortwave Radio Listener's QSL Card Museum
  
  What are QSL Cards? Beginning in 1912, a system of universal codes were developed for early amateur radio transmissions, to allow radio station operators a language-neutral means of confirming or communicating elements of their transmissions. Here's a summary of the "Q" codes commonly employed:
  
  

  "Q" Codes commonly used in amateur radio practice

  Code	Meaning	Sample use
  QRL	Is this frequency busy?	Used almost exclusively with Morse code
  QRM	Man-made interference	There's another QSO up 2 kHz that's causing you a lot of QRM
  QRN	Static crashes	The band is noisy today; I'm hearing a lot of QRN
  QRO	Increase transmitting power	I need to QRO when propagation is poor.
  QRP	Low(er your) transmitting power	I'm using a QRP transmitter here, running only 3 watts
  QRS	Send your Morse code more slowly	Please QRS, I'm new to Morse code
  QRT	Stop sending	I've enjoyed talking to you, but I have to QRT for dinner now
  QRV	Ready to receive	Will you be QRV in the upcoming contest?
  QRX	Hang on a minute, I'll be right back	Please QRX one
  QRZ	Who is calling me?	QRZ? I hear someone calling, but you're very weak
  QSB	Fading of signal	I'm hearing a lot of QSB on your signal
  QSL	Acknowledge receipt	I QSL your last transmission
  QSO	A conversation with another ham	Thanks very much for the QSO
  QSY	Change frequency	Let's QSY up 5 kilohertz
  QTH	Location	My QTH is South Park, Colorado
  QTR	Exact time	QTR is 2000 Z

  
  In order to prove or ensure that a transmission was received, the receiving party would send the transmitting party a 'QSL Card' acknoledging the transmission. Early radio networks utilized QSL cards as a means of determining their signal strength -- and advertiser's reach -- to the surrounding communities, providing promotional incentives on the QSL Card itself, to encourage literners in the areas being canvassed to return them to the transmitting station. They could then use the count of the resulting received QSL cards to 'sell' their 'advertising power and reach' to potential advertisers. Many Golden Age Radio Collectors have extensive collections of QSL Cards dating back as many as 90 years.
  
  
• The Telephone Museum of Gridley Illinois (2000 - present)
  
  The Telephone Museum Foundation of Gridley
  318 N. Center Street
  Gridley, Illinois 61744
  Phone: (309) 747-3177
  
  
• The Bell System Memorial Online Museum (1997 - present)
  
  The Bell System Memorial Website
  David Massey
  2853 Spicewood Lane
  Kennesaw,GA,US 30152
  Phone: 770-426-5715
  
  
• Broadcasting In Chicago (1929 - 1989); An On-line Museum of Chicago Broadcast History
  
  

• The Thousand Oaks Library Foundation's American Radio Archive, City of Thousand Oaks, California (1984 - present)
  Highlights: Rudy Vallee, Carlton E. Morse, Fletcher Markle and Norman Corwin Collections
  Thousand Oaks Library
  1401 E. Janss Road
  Thousand Oaks, CA 91362
  Phone: (805) 449-2660
  
  
• Brigham Young University's L. Tom Perry Special Collections Arts & Communicatiosn Archives (1957 - present)
  
  Bringham Young University
  5030 Harold B. Lee Library
  Provo, UT 84602
  
  Phone: (801) 422-3175 (reference)
  
  
• The Doheny Library of The University of Southern California (1932 - present)
  
  Doheny Memorial Library
  3550 Trousdale Parkway
  University Park Campus
  Los Angeles CA 90089-0185
  Phone: (213) 740 2924
  
  
• Bowling Green State University's Music Library and Sound Recordings Archives (1897 - present)
  
  Music Library and Sound Recordings Archives
  Wm. T. Jerome Library, Third Floor
  Bowling Green State University
  Bowling Green, OH 43403
  
  Phone: (419) 372-2307
  Fax: (419) 372-7996.
  
  
• The University of Maryland's Library of American Broadcasting (1972 - present) a.k.a., Broadcast Pioneers Library
  
  Library of American Broadcasting
  Hornbake Library
  University of Maryland
  College Park, MD 20742
  Phone: (301) 405-9160
  Fax: (301) 314-2634
  
  
• The University of Maryland's National Public Broadcasting Archives (1990 - present)
  
  National Public Broadcasting Archives
  University of Maryland
  College Park, MD 20742
  Hours: 10 am - 5 pm, Monday-Friday
  Phone: 301-405-9160
  Fax: 301-314-2634
  
  
• The Media History Project of The School of Journalism and Mass Communication, College of Liberal Arts, University of Minnesota
  
  The School of Journalism and Mass Communication
  College of Liberal Arts
  University of Minnesota, Twin Cities Campus
  101 Pleasant Street S.E.
  Minneapolis, MN 55455
  
  
• The Vitaphone Project (1991 - present)
  
  The Vitaphone Project
  Corresponding Secretary
  5 Meade Court
  Piscataway, NJ 08854
  Phone: (732) 463-8521
  FAX: (732) 463-8521
  
  
• The Radio GoldIndex Database (1967 - present)
  
  Radio GoldInDex Database
  J. David Goldin
  P.O. Box 542
  Newtown, CT. 06470
  Fax: 203-426-2525
  Phone: 203-426-2524 (after 11:00 A. M. eastern time only)
  
  
  

• The Library of Congress (1800 - present)
  
  The LOC's Recorded Sound Reference Center
  
  The LOC's Sound ONline Inventory and Catalog (SONIC)
  
  The Library of Congress
  101 Independence Ave, SE
  Washington, DC 20540
  Phone: (202) 707-5000
  
  
• The Smithsonian Institution, Smithsonian Center for Materials Research & Education (SCMRE)
  
  Links to Caring for Antique Communication Devices: Phonographs, radios, telephones, and other communication devices
  
  SCMRE
  Museum Support Center
  4210 Silver Hill Road
  Suitland, Maryland, 20746
  Phone: (301) 238-1240
  FAX: (301) 238-3709
  
  
• The Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum
  
  The Herbert Hoover Presidential Library-Museum
  P.O. Box 488
  210 Parkside Dr.
  West Branch, IA 52358
  Phone: (319) 643-5301
  Fax: 319-643-6045
  
  
• The National Archives & Records Administration (1934 - present)
  
  The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration
  8601 Adelphi Road
  College Park, MD 20740-6001
  Phone: (866) 272-6272
  
  
• The American Historical Association (1884 - present)
  
  The American Historical Association
  400 A Street, S.E.
  Washington, DC 20003-3889
  Phone: (202) 544-2422
  Fax: (202) 544-8307
  
  

• Western Electric History Website (1997 - present)
  
  Western Electric History
  David Massey
  2853 Spicewood Lane
  Kennesaw,GA,US 30152
  Phone: 770-426-5715