Residents still interested in seeing a display recognizing 100 years of WOMT radio still have a chance.
WOMT 100 and Radio Collector Steve Kanter have teamed up with the Manitowoc Public Library (MPL) to present a rare exhibition of radios spanning decades to the community.
MPL Program Coordinator Tim Gadzinski says Seehafer Broadcasting Vice President Terry Stevenson reached out to him a year earlier to ask if WOMT 100: A Century of Live Local Radio in Manitowoc would be possible.
He calls it a natural fit.
“Seehafer Broadcasting period is such a great community partner for the library,” he noted. “And it’s great to celebrate something like this. As I dug into it, finding out how much on the forefront of radio we were.”
Gadzinski says he hadn’t met Kanter before the display was created, but called it the most organized and quickest setup he’s seen at the library.
He calls all the radios fascinating.
“Everything from the super-cool art-deco transiter radios to the bigger old-school horn speaker radios,” he described. “What I like is that they are semi-ominous, like in a steam punk sort of way. But just so cool to look at.”
Gadzinski noted that the display has gotten great reviews.
“People are taken by how much thought, craftsmanship, and beauty went into just everyday objects,” he stated. “Everyone loves it, I mean everyone who’s seen it so far had nothing but positive things to say.”
WOMT 100: A Century of Live Local Radio in Manitowoc can be found on the main floor just as you enter the library.
WOMT first broadcast in 1926 from the Mikadow Theater on Washington Street.
It is also one of the oldest radio stations in Wisconsin.
