SPARK Museum of Electrical Invention facts for kids
The SPARK Museum of Electrical Invention is an exciting museum in Bellingham, Washington, USA. It used to be called the American Museum of Radio and Electricity. This museum offers fun ways for everyone to learn about electricity, radio, and other inventions. These amazing creations changed how people lived! The museum has a huge collection of items. They show human creativity from the 1580s all the way to the 1950s.
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How the Spark Museum Started
The museum began in 1985. It started as a hobby collection by Jonathan Winter, who lived in Bellingham. He collected old radio sets, parts, diagrams, recordings, and old magazines.
Jonathan's collection grew and grew. By 1998, it became an official place called the Bellingham Antique Radio Museum. It had over 800 radio sets from his collection.
In 2001, the museum moved to a bigger building. It was 23,000-square-foot (2,100 m2) big! At this time, it changed its name to the "American Museum of Radio and Electricity." John Jenkins, who used to work at Microsoft, joined as a co-curator. He added his own large collection to the museum. This included early wireless and electrical devices. He also had very rare books. Some of these books were first editions from 1560. Famous scientists like Robert Boyle and Michael Faraday wrote them.
In 2012, the museum changed its name again. It became the Spark Museum of Electrical Invention.
What You Can See: Museum Collections
The museum has different areas that show how electricity and radio developed over time. These include:
- The start of the Electrical Age (1600–1800)
- How electricity led to new inventions (1800–1900)
- The beginning of radio and wireless communication (1863–1920)
- When radio came into people's homes (1920–1927)
- The "Golden Age" of radio (1928–1950)
Cool Exhibits to Explore
The museum has many amazing things to see and do. Here are some highlights:
- A big exhibit about the "War of the Currents." This was a famous disagreement between Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla about electricity. You can see rare items here. There's also a working copy of Tesla's "Egg of Columbus."
- A copy of the radio room from the famous ship, the Titanic. It has real Marconi wireless equipment.
- Examples of early automated musical instruments from the 1850s. These let people enjoy music without playing an instrument. You can also see old phonographs.
- A working 1929 theremin. This is a musical instrument you play without touching it! You can even try playing a modern Moog Theremin.
- A full collection of Atwater Kent "breadboard" radios.
- One of the very few Spartin Visionola home entertainment centers. This cool machine had a radio and a movie projector. It played movies with sound from a record!
- A huge collection of 19th-century electrical equipment. This includes early telegraphs, telephones, electric motors, and induction coils.
- A collection of electric lights and related items. This includes several lamps from Thomas Edison's own lab.
- Huge Tesla coils used for demonstrations. One is called the "MegaZapper." It's 8 feet tall and used in the museum's Electrical Show!
- A Collins 1909 wireless telephone.
- A room set up like a 1930s living room.
- A special area where you can learn about static electricity.
- Old static electricity equipment from the 1800s. Benjamin Franklin and others used these to study static electricity.
- A working RCA CT-100 Television.
- A 1915 telephone used by Henry L. Higginson. He used it for the first phone call across the whole country!
- A copy of the famous W.M. Welch chart. This chart showed electromagnetic radiation. Many colleges used it in the 1940s.
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Spark Museum Radio Living Room
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Spark Museum Static Lab
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Spark Museum Antique Static Equipment
Learning at the Museum
The museum has special programs to help kids learn about science. They visit schools and offer classes. These programs help public schools, private schools, and home-school groups. They offer assemblies, science classes, and special tours.
The museum also has community programs. These include "Science Saturday" classes, summer camps, and talks. You can learn about radio, electricity, and physics. Hands-on classes teach about static electricity, magnetism, motors, circuits, and crystal radios.
In 2018, nearly 2,000 students learned through the SPARK education program.
Fun Events at Spark Museum
The museum hosts many different events. Some past events include:
- The Chuckanut Radio Hour
- Midnight Mystery Players
- Art Of Jazz Series
- Sustainable Connections
- LinuxFest Northwest
- Bellingham Robot Festival
- An Evening with Benjamin Franklin
- Lectures by Museum President John Jenkins, like "The roots of radio" and "The war of the currents."
See also
- 20th Century Technology Museum
- Museum of Radio and Technology
- Museum of Broadcast Communications
- National Radio Hall of Fame
