W2XAD/WGEO and W2XAF/WGEA, Schenectady, NY - General Electric's Twin Shortwave Stations
WGEO and WGEA - the twin shortwave stations of the General Electric Company in Schenectady, NY - were the most important shortwave stations in the United States up until World War II. They began life in 1926 as experimental stations 2XAD and 2XAF (later changed to W2XAD and W2XAF). In the beginning, they simply rebroadcast the programs of sister medium wave station WGY, but as shortwave broadcasting grew in importance and listeners, dedicated programs were being broadcast for the international audience. In addition to English, the stations had regular programs in Spanish, Portuguese, French, Dutch, Czech, and Chinese. In 1939, the Federal Communications Commission allowed the country's experimental shortwave stations to relicense as commercial operations, and these stations then became known as WGEA and WGEO.
In July of 1939, WGEA and WGEO debuted the country's most powerful shortwave transmitter, a 100 kW monster nicknamed Big Bertha. It utilized a new 100 kW GE power tube that featured a demountable filament. Big Bertha alternated service between WGEA and WGEO, primarily broadcasting programs in Spanish and Portuguese to South America.
During World War II, the stations broadcast the programs of the Office of War Information (OWI), later to be renamed the 'Voice of America' (VOA). The two stations provided important coverage of Europe and South America. After the War, the stations continued to operate as relays for VOA programs until a reorganization and consolidation of VOA transmitters resulted in their shutdown in 1963.
Most of the images in this collection are by courtesy of the Museum of Innovation & Science in Schenectady.
Dr. Peter Wold, head of Union College Physics Dept., with 3 students, broadcasting the audible breakdown of atoms into electronics in a physics experiment, broadcast over WGEA and WGEO; Nov., 1939.
