Pavek Museum — Electronic Communication History

Location
3517 Raleigh Ave
St. Louis Park, MN 55416

Hours
Wed – Sat: 10:00 am – 5:00 pm

Contact
952-926-8198

About the Museum

Since opening in 1988, The Pavek Museum of Electronic Communication has brought generations together through stories of history, art, and technology. Its dynamic experiences encourage innovation, while historical collections and hands-on learning preserve knowledge of the past.

The museum encompasses over 12,000 sq. ft. of antique radios, televisions and broadcast equipment, making it one of the largest and finest collections of its kind in the world. A substantial portion originated with Joe Pavek, a founder and the museum’s namesake. Contributions from radio and TV stations in the area have continued to enlarge the collection, helping establish a permanent, living repository of historical significance.

The Museum’s Collections

The Minnesota Collection includes products from more than thirty radio and television manufacturers that operated in Minnesota in the 1920s. Visitors can also see a wide range of historic broadcast equipment, including cameras, consoles, microphones, and more.

The John T. “Jack” Mullin Collection traces the development of recording technology. While serving in the Signal Corps in Europe during WWII, Mullin brought home two AEG Magnetophon tape recorders from a German radio station. After returning to the United States, he was hired by Bing Crosby to record Bing’s popular radio program—the first use of tape recording in American broadcasting. The Pavek acquired Mullin’s famous collection in 1990.

Additional highlights include an RCA Theremin, a Spark Gap Generator, and a Philco Mystery Control Radio.

The museum also houses the Minnesota Broadcasting Hall of Fame, which celebrates the personalities behind the equipment. Its extensive library contains technical and service information about electronics and electronic communication, offering a valuable resource for students, hobbyists and historians.

Pavek Museum History

Joe Pavek began collecting in 1946 while teaching electronics at Dunwoody Institute. He noticed students dismantling some beautiful radios as part of their training and took one home to protect it from being destroyed. That first act of preservation became a lifelong pursuit. Joe later founded Twin City Nut and Bolt, and as the company expanded, he visited customers in neighboring states. His travels brought him into contact with more old radios, which he kept at his business.

By the 1970s, Joe was looking for someone who could assume responsibility for the collection and make it available to the public. When the collection was scheduled for auction in 1984, Earl Bakken, co-founder of Medtronic and inventor of the wearable pacemaker, intervened. Earl had paid his way through college by repairing radios and televisions, and he recognized both Joe’s enthusiasm for the objects and their educational value.

Earl Bakken, Joe Pavek, and Paul Hedberg of the Minnesota Broadcasters Association joined together to establish the non-profit organization that became the museum’s umbrella. The Pavek’s grand opening took place on October 29, 1988, on the fiftieth anniversary of the War of the Worlds broadcast. Joe Pavek died less than a year later at 81 years of age.

Earl Bakken urged the museum to use its collections as a way to teach children. In 1991, the museum introduced its Broadcast Experience, allowing students to study the history of electronic communication and produce their own 1960s-style radio broadcast. Workshops in coding and electromagnetism are offered as well. Since then, museum staff have conducted more than 5,000 workshops for over 100,000 school children.

Events

The museum is available to rent for events. The exhibit collection may be demonstrated only by a museum staff member. For additional information, email Kaeleen Laird [email protected].