Allen County, Indiana Genealogy

Magnavoice, 1948-12 ISL_IND_Magnavox_194812_04 December 1948 at the Indiana State Library Digital Collections.

Page 35 in Welcome to our town Item ID ISL_IND_Pam_AllenCo09 1953 Indiana State Library Digital Collection.

Description This pamphlet gives a description of Fort Wayne and its various organizations, industry, businesses, schools, and recreation. It also includes a map of Fort Wayne. [ 44 pages ]

Sunday, October 13, 2024 discussion of this photo and later photos May 16, 2025 on True Fort Wayne Indiana History on Facebook.

Bueter Road plant was designed by Alvin M. Strauss when it was Capehart Farnsworth. Magnavox relocated to Fort Wayne from California in 1932. The company, which originally manufactured loudspeakers, made the move to be closer to the city's copper mills, according to the book. By the 1940s, Fort Wayne's Magnavox division began working alongside the Department of Defense, creating often-classified military systems and devices for both the department and NATO countries. Magnavox's annual sales exceeded $650 million and the company employed more than 7,000 people during its 40-year legacy. Not only known for military systems, the company had success with products including the fax machine and global positioning systems. Copied from a book review of Magnavox Government and Industrial Electronics Company, 1951-1991: A Legacy of Pride and Excellence by authors Daniel Aldred and David Peterson of the 330-page hardcover book, which was first released in November 2017 and reviewed in the Book on Magnavox history enters 2nd printing by Charlotte Stefanski published June 30, 2018 in The Journal Gazette newspaper. Magnavox was centered in Fort Wayne - Magna (Great) Vox (Voice) invented stereo speakers and Farnsworth invented television. The Brittany 21 inch t.v. was manufactured in Fort Wayne in 1950 and had the largest picture tube available at the time. Magnavox made the set and moved their company to Fort Wayne from California in 1930, from 90 Fun Facts in April 2011 at the The History Center.

1. Magnavoice publications in the Company Employee Newsletters in the Indiana State Library Digital Collection.

2. 
   Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Marion Marshall, and Polly Berge Magnavox advertisement for the 1951 movie Thats My Boy

3. June 11, 2020 post by The History Center on Facebook:

   Fort Wayne has long been a center for industrial manufacturing, ranging from railroads to high fidelity sound. One of the foremost powerhouses of the Fort Wayne industrial scene was The Magnavox Company. Founded in 1911, The Magnavox Company was originally named the "Commercial Wireless and Development Company," with their headquarters office in San Francisco and a research lab at the remote location of Napa, CA, for the purpose of developing more sensitive telephone devices. Known for radios, consoles and military communication devices, Magnavox moved its manufacturing facilities to Fort Wayne in 1930. After a two year stint in Chicago, the company headquarters were also moved to our city in 1932. By 1952, the Government & Industrial Division had taken over the majority of the workforce located in Fort Wayne, occupying approximately 318,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing and engineering floor space. To learn more about the history Magnavox, make sure to read our current issue of the Old Fort News, “Magnavox-The Forty Early Years: 1911-1951,” which includes excerpts from the newly published Magnavox Government and Industrial Electronics Company, 1951-1991…A Legacy of Pride and Excellence. Both works are available through the History Center’s gift shop. #sociallyhistory

4. 1953

   Posted by Indiana News 1 on Monday, August 17, 2015

   Monday, August 17, 2015 post by Indiana News 1 on Facebook:

National Video Game Day wouldn't be possible without Magnavox's Odyssey home video game system. According to the...

Posted by Indiana Historical Bureau on Monday, September 12, 2016

Monday, September 12, 2016 post by the Indiana Historical Bureau on Facebook:

National Video Game Day wouldn't be possible without Magnavox's Odyssey home video game system.

According to the Indiana State Museum, the "now-ubiquitous interactive video game[s]" was developed at the company's Fort Wayne operation. It was based on inventor Ralph Baer's designs and introduced in 1972 for $99, four years before Atari and Intellivision were released. The Fort Wayne History Center described the invention as "A cross between a board game and an electronic game, the first version of Odyssey had clue cards, score cards, 19" television screen overlays and controllers."

Read more about the video game system: 1972 Magnavox Odyssey Video Game

September 11, 2022 a post on True Fort Wayne Indiana History on Facebook shared How The World’s First Home Gaming System Was Made In Indiana Magnavox Odyssey, the first-ever commercial home video-game console, was born in a Fort Wayne boardroom 50 years ago and changed home entertainment forever. A long artcle by Tony Rehagen September 11, 2022 on Indianapolis Monthly.

September 23, 2022 post by National Museum of American History on Facebook:

50 years ago this month, the Magnavox Odyssey went on sale—a milestone in video game history. The Odyssey was the first console that could be played at home with your television. Did you ever play with one?

Though many of the Odyssey's features were groundbreaking, Magnavox's system was soon eclipsed by its rivals. In our newest blog post, our museum specialist asks: was the Odyssey just ahead of its time?

The Magnavox Odyssey predicted the future of video games

5. April 25, 2023 post by The History Center on Facebook:

   Magnavox, which opened their Fort Wayne plant in 1931, had long been participating in war production before the onset of the Cold War. During World War II, the company produced radio equipment as well as radar and sonar systems. Starting in the 1950s, Magnavox began working on Sonobuoy technology and would eventually produce millions of the underwater acoustic detection devices. In the 1970s AN/SSQ-53B Sonobuoy was developed by Magnavox as an improvement on previous models. Sonobuoys were first invented during World War II to combat the threat of German submarines, and, years later, advanced technologically in response to the increasing sophistication of Soviet submarines which were a threat to American and Allied shipping. Dropped by plane, Sonobuoys track the location of submarines by using acoustic sensors to detect underwater sound. They are designed to be deployed simultaneously for multiple points of data collection and then transmit the information to airplanes and ships. Sonobuoys continued to be produced in the Fort Wayne area under the Magnavox Electronic Systems name and was acquired by Hughes Electronics in 1995. When Hughes Electronics sold its aerospace and defense operations to Raytheon, the former Magnavox defense operations were transferred as well. Shortly thereafter, Raytheon spun off the sonobuoy operation to form Under Sea Systems Inc (USSI), in Columbia City, Indiana. In 1998, Raytheon sold USSI to a British defense consortium named Ultra Electronics, which continues to produce sonobuoys in their Columbia City facilities. #sociallyhistory

6. Fun Fact Friday: The Odyssey Video Game Console!

   Did you know the first video game console was produced by a company in Fort Wayne? #VideoGames #FunFactFriday #NowYouKnow

   Posted by PBS Fort Wayne on Friday, September 27, 2024

   Friday, September 27, 2024 post by PBS Fort Wayne on Facebook:

   Did you know the first video game console was produced by a company in Fort Wayne?

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