The Philip B. Petersen Collection Broadcast October 4, 1989

     All through the 1920s, 30s, 40s, 50s, and part of the 60s, the largest concentration of radio and electronic parts and equipment stores anywhere were located in downtown New York City.  This is the same location where the New York Port Authority Twin Tower buildings now stand.  This area was commonly called Radio Row and Cortlandt Street, even though these stores were on several streets.  Greenwich, Vesey, Fulton, West Broadway and, of course, Cortlandt Streets were familiar to all active radio amateurs.  Up and down both sides of the streets there were plenty of stores with names like Harrison Radio, Terminal Radio, Bland the Radio Man, Arrow Radio, SUN Radio, G and G Radio, Leeds Radio, Gross Radio and many more with plenty of electronic parts and equipment.  Most radio amateurs would make several trips during the year to the big city usually with a single purpose in mind: to purchase some components to design and build some new device to improve his radio station.  During the great depression years, all radio amateurs designed and built their own transmitters and receivers and the state of the art was always improving.  There was always a new circuit or technique to be developed to improve your station and you could always buy the parts at Radio Row.  We went there knowing that we could find the parts needed to start the design of whatever our electronic circuit required.  In a week or two, everything would be wired up on a breadboard and tested.  The term "breadboard" meant it was built on a piece of plywood or similar material.  This is also referred to as "homebrewing."  "Homebrew" in radio means home made.
     You got to know the dealers well.  Oftentimes you would meet some of your radio amateur friends and have what radio amateurs call an "eyeball QSO."  This means you are talking with a fellow radio amateur face-to-face in person.
     After World War II, all kinds of war surplus electronic equipment became available at very low prices.  Many of these were high-quality military radio equipment that originally cost thousands of dollars and could be purchased for 25 to 50 dollars.  With some design modifications, we could easily upgrade our stations.  Without a doubt, these modified war surplus equipments did much to improve the state of the art of all kinds of radio communications.
     On one of my last shopping trips to Radio Row, I noticed that some of the stores were closed and there was a big truck making borings deep into the ground.  I had just met my amateur radio friend Clarence, W2KW, and he told me that the Port Authority was going to build two of the tallest buildings in the world there and that truck was making underground soundings for the foundations.  A few of the stores moved away to other parts of the city.
     In the next few years, all of the buildings in which these many radio and electronic stores were located completely disappeared without a trace, much to the dismay of many radio amateurs, engineers and scientists.
     On this location now stand two of the tallest buildings in the world, the Twin Towers, that to many appear like giant tombstones placed on top of a once flourishing American radio-electronics industry, reminding us of days gone by.

October 4, 1989

** Broadcasts recordings preserved and presented here by Mr. Robert Buss and Mr. Bernie Ricciardi, Phil's friends and fellow Marconi Chapter 138 QCWA members **

Page updated January 12, 2004  page created June 11, 2001