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  • Visit
    • General Information
    • Group Tours
    • The MegaZapper Electrical Show
    • Virtual Visit
    • Rent Space at the Museum
    • Shop at the Museum
    • Explore the Area
    • Contact SPARK
  • Education
    • Field Trips
    • Teacher Resources
  • About SPARK
    • About SPARK
    • Blog
    • Sign up for our E-Newsletter
    • Work at SPARK
  • Events & Programs
    • Calendar
    • Science Camp 2022
    • SPARK Book Club
  • Collections
  • Support Spark
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    • Volunteer at SPARK
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Collections

Following a continuous thread of invention and discovery, the SPARK Museum collection contains a wealth of unique and rare artifacts dating from the earliest days of scientific electrical experiments in the 1600s through the 1940s and the Golden Age of Radio. Artifacts from the laboratories of the early pioneers of electricity, from magnets and Leyden jars to Edison light bulbs, magnificent vacuum tubes, telegraphs and telephones, all are well-represented at our history museum in Bellingham.

Thousands of radios are in the collection, ranging from the early “Herzian-wave” devices to a complete set of early Atwater Kent “breadboards” to scores of exceptional and beautifully crafted floor and table-top radios. The collection also includes rare music boxes, early phonographs, and many examples of radio broadcasting technology and memorabilia from the best-known radio companies and broadcasters.

Other rare pieces include the largest collection of 19th-century electromagnetic apparatus found in any private collection, and rare and original books, treatises and scientific papers by such authors as Gilbert, Newton, Galileo, Benjamin Franklin, Volta, Hertz and Marconi. These texts illustrate the crucial steps and turning points in the development of electricity and radio, and they are housed right here in Northwest Washington!

The following is just a sample of the extensive collection at SPARK Museum!

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    • 1) Dawn of the Electrical Age (1600-1800)

      Dawn of the Electrical Age (1600-1800)


      Our collection begins with one of the first modern applications of the Scientific Method by Sir William Gilbert in 1600. His revolutionary book, De Magnete, is here in the Museum. In addition this gallery features rare artifacts from the study of static electricity, placed in the context of an authentically recreated 18th century laboratory–just like the ones Benjamin Franklin and other “natural philosophers” of the era might have used. Here are but a few of the highlights:

    • 2) Electricity Sparks Invention (1800-1900)

      Electricity Sparks Invention (1800-1900)

      This exhibit features artifacts and inventions from an unparalleled century of scientific achievement in relation to electrical innovation. The worlds first batteries, electrical motors, electric lights, telephony, telegraphy and medicinal devices are on display. Inventions by Edison, Tesla, Morse, Hughes, Volta and other giants of this century are available for viewing. Here are a few examples:

    • 3) The Beginning of Radio and the Wireless Era (1853-1920)

      The Beginning of Radio and the Wireless Era (1853-1920)

      This gallery features a recreation of the Wireless Room on the Titanic, the Collins Wireless Telephone and many inventions and innovations of the early radio pioneers. See the tools used to prove the existence of Radio Waves and the inventions that changed the way the world communicated. Here are a few examples on display:

    • 4) Radio Enters the Home (1920-1927)

      Radio Enters the Home (1920-1927)

      This gallery features one of the most comprehensive collections of early home radio technology in the world. The rise of radio launched the information age and this gallery shows the inventions that made it possible.

    • 5) The Golden Age of Radio (1928-1950)

      The Golden Age of Radio (1928-1950)

      This gallery features the most comprehensive collection from the Golden Age of Radio. During this period Radio brought the nation together around historic broadcasts. The rise of Ham Radio Technology enabled people to communicate around the world from the comfort of their home. Come see the inventions and science that supported the Golden Age of Radio.

Hush-a-Phone

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Strowger Telephone

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Volta Cannon

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Joseph Priestley Friction Machine

Joseph Priestley Friction Machine

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Electrical Sportsman

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Grunow Teledial Receiver: ca 1937

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David Sarnoff Horn Loudspeaker: ca 1924

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Herzian Wave Radiator and Resonator

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Hughes Telegraph

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Leyden Jars

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SPARK Museum of Electrical Invention

1312 Bay Street
Bellingham, WA 98225
Phone: 360.738.3886

Wednesday to Sunday
11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

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