Room 202

This gallery features both console and table model radios and shows how cabinet design became increasingly important as American families welcomed “furniture that talks” into their living rooms. Visitors can listen to a 1928 RCA radio/phonograph unit playing vintage music and see another radio/phonograph housed in a cabinet resembling a small grand piano. A 1920s “portable” radio is as bulky and heavy as a large suitcase. This room also features our “Recent Acquisitions” corner that exhibits ever-changing unusual recently donated artifacts. Decorative loudspeakers that are works of art are here, including one that hangs on the wall and has a hand-painted forest scene on its cone.