Radio Tower 36: Telefunken

The Radio Tower

Today's episode is a special cross-over with the Long Island History Project as we bring you the story of the Telefunken site in West Sayville. This forgotten story in radio history involved the technological titans of the day, Tesla and Marconi, along with Germany's Telefunken company, one of the most advanced concerns in the world.

The station Telefunken built in West Sayville in 1912 was unrivaled. It was embraced by the local community - until the outbreak of war in 1916. Things turned decidedly darker after that.

Connie Currie describes for us her efforts, along with other radio enthusiasts, to try and save the site and existing buildings in the 1990s. Joe Sikorski joins us to discuss his new film, Invisible Threads: From Wireless to War, which documents the early days of the site and how it helped pull the US into World War I.

You can catch a sneak preview of Invisible Threads this Friday, November 12th, at Lessing's Bourne Mansion in Oakdale. Tickets are only available online through the Tesla Science Center, our co-sponsors.

Hope to see you there!