Marconi-RCA Wireless Museum Open

Welcome!  
Discover the history of ship-to shore radio at the site of "The World's Greatest Coastal Station"!  

INTRODUCTION:  In 1914, radio pioneer Guglielmo Marconi’s company built a wireless receiving station here paired with a transmitting station in Marion, Massachusetts intended to provide commercial point-to-point radio service between the United States and Norway.  Following World War One and with the intervention of the US government, Marconi’s American assets were acquired by the newly formed Radio Corporation of America.  By 1921, RCA’s Chatham station with call sign WCC was in full operation, but now for maritime ship-to-shore service.  It would soon become the largest US coast station in terms of message volume.  The campus of 10 original buildings on 11.3 acres has been preserved by the Town of Chatham as the Marconi-RCA National Register Historic District, and the original Operating Building is now home to our museum. 

WHAT YOU WILL SEE:  Through informative panels and interactive video displays, explore Guglielmo Marconi’s life and Cape Cod legacy, artifacts from Chatham Radio WCC’s history including the actual radio set from the hospital ship SS Hope, and the role of ship-to-shore communication in 20th century world events.   Experience firsthand how a radio operator touching a Morse code key in Chatham could communicate using wireless telegraphy with counterparts aboard passenger and cargo ships sailing the seven seas, and learn about the talented and skilled people who conceived, built and operated Chatham Radio / WCC.  

Through informative panels and interactive video displays, explore Guglielmo Marconi’s life and Cape Cod legacy, ship-to-shore wireless telegraphy communication with artifacts from Chatham Radio / WCC’s history including the actual shipboard radio from the hospital ship SS Hope, and the role of maritime radio in 20th century world events.  The featured “Golden Age of Trans-Atlantic Ocean Liners” exhibit tells the unique stories of six famous passenger ships with photographs, graphics and video clips.  These ships carried high society, royalty, dignitaries, stars of radio and film, humble immigrants seeking a better life in America, travelers, tourists and victorious armies.  Get a sense of what it was like to have been aboard, famous people you might have met, and historical events you might have witnessed.  Chatham Radio / WCC linked passengers and crew to their loved ones and businesses.  Experience firsthand how a radio operator touching a Morse code key in Chatham could communicate with counterparts aboard ships sailing the seven seas, and learn about the talented and skilled people who conceived, built and operated Chatham Radio / WCC.

From 1942 through 1945, Chatham Radio played a special role in defeating Germany's Third Reich during World War II's Battle of the Atlantic by intercepting Enigma-encrypted radio messages between Kriegsmarine headquarters and its ships at sea.  “Station C”, as it was known then, forwarded these intercepts to Washington, D.C. for decoding.  Station C also alerted the Navy’s radio direction-finding network to locate and track enemy vessels.  Our Navy Years exhibit features working electronic Enigma cipher machine simulators, inviting you to try your hand at message encryption.

Take a few minutes to browse the unique items in our Museum Shop during your visit.

Before you leave or at any time during daylight hours, take a walk up the Antenna Field Trail, the museum’s free outdoor gallery, open year ‘round.  The trail is a winding path through the flora and fauna of Cape Cod with interpretive signs describing the station’s antennas and history.  Some of the antennas are scaled replicas of the originals, actively used today by amateur radio operators to communicate around the world.