November thru April - We are open during the winter "by chance" or "by appointment."  We are usually closed January and February but appointments are always welcome. If you are coming to Virginia City during the winter just to visit the museum, we suggest that you make an appointment, (please be SPECIFIC as to DATE AND TIME you want to visit.) Be aware that weather conditions can change rapidly here and snow storms are common at this time of the year.

E-mail for museum hours confirmation or appointments: Western Historic Radio Museum

Location:  Parish House, 109 South F Street, Virginia City, Nevada

Mailing address:  P.O. Box 73, Virginia City, NV 89440        

   Looking for Information/Value about your Radio?      

 Please read the following section before you send an e-mail or telephone

If you want to identify your radio and you know the manufacturer but not the particular model, check The Radio Attic - The Radio Attic's Archive has thousands of  photos of identified radios and certainly provides the best chance to find a photo and model number to identify your radio. Trying to identify a radio where the manufacturer is not known is a time consuming effort that is rarely successful. Technical data, such as schematics and manuals, can be found online. For schematics that were published in Rider's Perpetual Troubleshooter's Manuals try Nostalgia Air. For communications equipment, military or ham gear manuals try BAMA (Boat Anchor Manual Archive.)  Current URLs for both sites can be found using almost any search engine.

We do not answer any e-mails asking for current selling prices of vintage radios. Here's why. On values or current prices for vintage radios, remember that prices vary from location to location and are dependent on condition, method of sale, time of the year, seller/buyer motivation and many other variables. Without a real physical inspection of the radio, we don't know anything about its actual condition and condition is the most important factor in determining collector interest and resultant selling prices. Photographs are of limited value to determine actual condition as photos will only show major cosmetic problems and show almost nothing about the electronic condition of the radio. You will have to determine the value of your radio by doing your own research. You can try your local library for antique radio price guide books for a general idea of value, though these books are generally only useful to determine your radio's "collector interest" relative to other vintage radios. We recommend searching eBay for an example of your radio in similar condition to estimate the value of your's. By observing the radio auctions on eBay you can discern collector interest and get "up-to-date" information on current prices for your particular radio. To net eBay prices though, you must be willing to sell on eBay along with packing and shipping your radio when sold.

For radio history, there are several books covering the subject that can be found either at your local library or by purchasing from book stores. For 1920 radios, Alan Douglas' three volume set,  "Radio Manufacturers of the 1920s," is by far the best source of detailed information on radio and manufacturing of that period. For 1930-40s, usually the Internet will provide information on the various manufacturers and their products. For detailed information on Zenith Radio products, "Zenith - The Early Years - 1919 - 1935" and "Zenith - The Glory Years - 1936 - 1945" by  Cones & Bryant are excellent sources. For information on Philco, "Philco Radio 1928-1942 by Ron Ramirez is a detailed source. For vintage ham gear, Raymond Moore's "Communications Receivers - The Vacuum Tube Era - 1932 -1981" is the best source.

Want to Use Our Photographs or Our Information from this Website?

All radio photographs and all text on all of the pages comprising this entire website are property of Henry Rogers-Western Historic Radio Museum and are subject to copyright laws. Written permission (e-mail) is required for use of any of our radio photos or any of our text on any other websites or for any other purpose, this includes using our photos or our text for your eBay auction! We only ask that proper credit be given for our efforts.

 Send an e-mail to:  Western Historic Radio Museum

The Western Historic Radio Museum will not answer e-mails requesting current values of antique, vintage or collector radios.

About the Museum

The Vacuum Tube display features tube evolution from 1915 to 1960	Grandfather Clock-Radios

The radios on display are from my own collection - a passion that began over forty years ago. Back in 1964, I received an old Zenith "Cube" (Model 6-S-222) as a fourteenth birthday present. That was all it took!  I bought a Radiola 60 consolette a few weeks later. The seven dollar price tag seemed like alot to a teenager, but I was hooked. I haunted the second-hand stores and the Salvation Army/Goodwill stores looking for other radios that could be purchased for a few dollars. I did manage to acquire several other sets during the sixties, including a rare Patterson PR-10.  As a teenager,  I worked summers in the local radio-tv repair shop which helped with my repair projects and with learning. Unfortunately, the only survivor of my teenage collecting years is the old Radiola 60 consolette (and it is on display in the museum.) Most of the radios in the museum have been collected since the early 1970s and are mostly from Reno or Carson City and the surrounding areas. During the seventies, I tried to collect mainly pre-1923 radios but, by the mid-eighties, these radios were becoming increasingly difficult to find. I then began to look at sets from the thirties. And then, eventually, the forties! I have also been collecting vintage ham gear (on again-off again) since the mid-sixties. As a result, our collection has become representative of the evolution of electronic technology and of industrial art design used in radios for the home and the very different designs used for communications equipment. Of course, horn speakers, vacuum tubes, microphones and telegraph keys all seem to come along with collecting radios. After twenty-five years in the industrial electronics field, we decided to open the museum in 1994. Nowadays, will still look for almost any kind of radio or radio-related item but our favorite finds are still radios with local Nevada history.