Modesto Radio Museum

The history of commercial broadcasting in the valley, and more, beginning in 1933

© All rights reserved Modesto Radio Museum, Modesto, CA 95355

MUSEUM INFORMATION - The Modesto Radio Museum Foundation was created in early 2005 comprised of former and current broadcast radio people and other interested parties in Modesto, CA. The purpose of the museum is to establish a virtual repository of the people, apparatus and documents of commercial radio broadcasters of Modesto and the area. The museum honors the people related to it's development connecting the past with the present to inform and preserve the heritage of those pioneers who brought commercial radio to Modesto and the area beginning in 1933.

Payola Scandal Rocks '50s Radio It actually began in 1958, with the infamous "game show" scandals, in which federal investigators revealed that the wildly popular NBC- TV show "Twenty-One" and "$64,000 Question" were rigged. That scandal led to the investigation of similar practices in radio

Museum Guestbook - Ogden's Guestbook

Guestbooks - After you have had a chance to look around our website we would appreciate you taking a few minutes to sign our Guestbook and leave us your comments. Your comments, questions or suggestions are important to help us improve our site. Thank you!

Learn about the history of computing and experience over 600 unique artifacts, from rare slide rules and mechanical calculators to the earliest one-of-kind computers at the Computer History museum.

Can you help? Do you have something that we could use ? Photos, recordings, news articles? Contact us.

KTUR 1390 KHz Turlock, CA - Reverend Paul J. Pietsch, founder of Missionary Gospel Fellowship in Turlock, suggested in 1946 that some Christian businessmen in Turlock start a new radio station in Turlock.

Max Sayre and Cal Purviance video interview conducted at Modesto Jr. College in 2002.

Conelrad Emergency

Broadcasting System

The first commercial broadcast station on the air in Modesto was KTRB on June 18, 1933.

Broadcasting Equipment 1930's to 1990's Broadcasting Equipment 1930's to 1990's Here are few photos of some of the equipment used by broadcasters beginning in the 30's through the 80's.

KMOD, Modesto, California, came on the air March 20th, 1950 on 1360 kilocycles AM with a power of 1,000 watts with studios located on Adams Ave off Old Oakdale road in east Modesto.

Tokyo Rose broadcasts Japanese Propaganda during the war.

KDJK, Oakdale 95.1 MHz Photo Gallery

Fred Allen (born John Florence Sullivan on May 31, 1894 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, died March 17, 1956 in New York City) was an American comedian whose absurdist, pointed radio show (1934–1949) made him one of the most popular and forward-looking humorists in the so-called classic era of American radio.

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Visitors since 11-10-2005

24 Things that are about to become extinct in America.

Free Find Search

George Stevans Shares his memories of radio broadcasting in the Modesto, California area.

Working at 95/KDJK radio was probably the best years of my life. It not only gave me the freedom to do on the air whatever my creative heart desired. It also helped introduce me to the woman I would marry and gave me a lifetime of memories in such a short period. I would never have imagined all the things that happened to me would begin on a ride home from an Oakland’s A’s game. -Beaver Brown

Anyone who worked in radio or TV stations prior to the early '80s will remember how the news they presented on the air reached them.

Former Modesto Radio Museum Director, Robert "Bob'' Mohr, passed away January 1, 2010 after a long fight with Lymphoma. Mr. Mohr's career spanned nearly 50 years in radio broadcasting beginning in Ventura in the 50's and ending at Citadel's KESP in Modesto in 2008.

Radio jingles are those short, catchy musical interludes that tell you the name of the station, the program you’re listening to, identify news networks and other on-the-air features.

Many people associate 1941 with the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7th, "a date which will live in infamy," as President Roosevelt put it. But while the entry of the United States into World War 2 certainly overshadowed everything else, 1941 was a memorable year for a number of other reasons not the least was it's music.

Tim St. Martin, Mr. Modesto Radio on the local airwaves for over 30 years and still going strong.

Print Logos and Ads for local stations mostly from the seventies.

KTRB's Bob Lang video interview in 2004.