History
The museum then re-opened by appointment only through Gloria Wilson, Vice President and General Manager of WCSC Radio. Then, in 1988, College of Charleston President Harry M. Lightsey, Jr. accepted an endowment from the Rivers family for the establishment of the John Rivers Communications Museum at 58 George Street on the college campus. Ken Hanson (1912-1999), of Clearwater, Florida, collected the majority of the beautiful display items in our museum. Mr. Hanson began his collection in 1930 while operating a chain of motion picture theatres in central Florida using portable equipment and the new “sound-on-film” movies.
WCSC, which began on May 14, 1930 as an AM radio station, is the oldest broadcast station in Charleston. Since June 19, 1953 it has been the oldest television station in continuous operation in the state of South Carolina.
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The
museum’s collection was formerly housed in the WCSC Broadcast
Museum at 80 Alexander Street and was an educational extension of
WCSC, Inc. The museum was originally conceived in 1975 by John M.
Rivers, Sr. and John M. Rivers, Jr. as an educational repository
for original broadcast equipment formerly used by WCSC. It also
included artifacts brought from the Seigling Music House, located
on King Street, and later incorporated the Hanson Collection. The
museum, which was operated by curator Patsy Hicken, closed in 1981
after Ms. Hicken’s death. 
John
Rivers, Sr. (1903-1988), after whom our museum was named, spent
his life in Charleston, SC, where he enjoyed a distinguished career
in broadcasting. From 1938 to 1973 he was president of WCSC, Inc.
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