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 typical mid '30s farm radio |
 a typical late 40s, small battery operated portable |
Few homes in rural areas of the country were wired with AC power during the 1920s - late '40s.
Farm radios were made to operate from a local type DC power line, a battery package, car battery or a windmill. The typical 1920’s battery radios do not fall into the category of a “Farm Radio”.
DC power line: The most common of DC power supplied to homes in some areas was 32 volts. Many companies made radios that would operated on 32 volts DC.
Battery Package: The most common type of Farm radio requires a battery package or battery-pac. These “battery-pacs” where so called because they contained all the voltages in one package needed to operate the radio. There are some exceptions where some radios may require two “pacs” (one for the “A” supply, another for the rest of the voltages).
These “battery
pacs” were usually unique to the brand and model of the particular
radio. Early on, they had to be purchased from the dealer that sold
that model radio. As the popularity of these radios increased, most
battery companies (Ray-O-Vac, Burgess, Eveready etc.) offered their
version for a replacement battery package.
Windmill or Car battery: This type of radio usually had a
“vibrator” type of power supply that converted a 6 volt DC source
to 110 volts pulsed DC which fed the radio’s primary of a
power transformer. The power transformer operated as if it were
supplied with AC. Some of these type radios where universal and had
a switch to also operate on 110 volts AC or DC. Some windmills would
supply a charging voltage to keep a 6 volt car battery or a radio’s
battery charged. Rural folks would usually have more than one
battery (depending on their financial situation), one set for their
vehicle (if they had one) another for the radio.
Information about 1920's battery radio speakers
Information about 1920's battery powered radios
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