Ask Mr. Answer Person: "What can you tell me about Tatro Radio?"

Jacob e-mails: "Mr. Answer Person, I noticed on a recent obituary that the individual worked at the L'Tatro radio factory in Decorah.  I did not realize there was a radio factory in Decorah in the 1930s.  Where was the factory located?

Mr. Answer Person replies: You're referring to the obituary for "Al" Bergan, who grew up near Harmony, Minnesota and graduated from Decorah High School in 1929.  While a student at Luther College, Al and his brother Ken worked at the L. Tatro factory in Decorah.
 
The company was started by Lysle Tatro and his brother Dewey (for whom the Tatro Airport in Decorah was named).  Lysle Tatro studied radio engineering and invented a 32 volt radio that could be powered by a farm battery.  That was important because rural electrification had not yet happened in most of America.

In 1930 the company started producing radios, eventually moving into the present Armory Building on the corner of Water Street and Mechanic Street.  Decorah businessman Harry Montgomery bought out the Tatros in 1931.  The business quickly expanded to a peak payroll of 400 employees.  But it also quickly collapsed, largely due to the Great Depression.  In 1939 the company and closed and sold off.

The best history of Tatro Radio is from a publication called "Radio Age."  A copy of its article is posted here.


http://www.decorahnews.com/tatroradio.pdf