KRBA Lufkin, First Radio Station in ETX?

[gbranch]

There is an article in the Friday Lufkin Daily News about a new Texas Historical Marker that has been given to KRBA. KRBA went on the air in 1938 and was, what the newspaper called "the only form of electronic media in an area that spanned from Houston to Dallas to Shreveport."

http://lufkindailynews.com/news/local/article_56d92eaa-f395-11df-8152-001cc4c03286.html

A similar story on KLTV news this morning called KRBA "the first radio station in East Texas."

Now I know that KFRO was on the air in Longview in 1935, and I believe that 1490 was on the air in Tyler earlier than that (1931, maybe?)

I congratulate KRBA for being on the air for 72 years, but I don't think that they can claim that they were the first station in East Texas.

 

[jd]

Now I know that KFRO was on the air in Longview in 1935, and I believe that 1490 was on the air in Tyler earlier than that (1931, maybe?)

I congratulate KRBA for being on the air for 72 years, but I don't think that they can claim that they were the first station in East Texas

You're absolutely right. According to what I have been able to piece together from old publications, there's no way KRBA was first in East Texas. Some of the first stations include the ones you mentioned already and all began with just 100 watts, although a few increased their daytime power to 250 watts in the late 1930's. KFRO supposedly came on the air in 1934 as a daytimer on 1370. KOCA (now KDOK) Kilgore dates back to 1936, operating back then on 1210. Over in Palestine KNET reportedly was on 1420 daytime only beginning in 1936. And in Lufkin, KRBA was listed as a daytimer on 1310 with 100 watts in 1938 (but one source showed them to be on the air in 1937).

The granddaddy of them all was indeed KGKB in Tyler, although its early history is a little unclear. In early 1931 the station was shown to be operating in Brownwood but later that year KGKB was listed as a Tyler station with 100 watts on 1500. By 1938 they were operating from 7 A.M. to 11 P.M., still with just 100 watts.

So providing all the information I've seen is correct it appears that KRBA comes in at number five.

 

[gbranch]

I had never seen the 1934 sign on date for KFRO. Must have been late 1934? Most long time Longview-ites remember KFRO being in the long-gone Curtis Building downtown. I found a 1939 map of Gregg and Upshur Counties that shows KFRO located on south Hwy 149 (now Green St) near what appears to now be Radio St. in south Longview. I had always wondered how Radio St. got it's name as there were no radio stations anywhere near. but now I know that it was named such as this was the first location of KFRO.

 

[jd]

I had always wondered how Radio St. got it's name as there were no radio stations anywhere near. but now I know that it was named such as this was the first location of KFRO.

I wondered about that street, too, so thanks for passing it along. Looking again, I noticed that there are a couple of early sources with essentially the same location for KFRO. The 1935 Broadcasting Yearbook gives an address of "Green at Radio St.," as does the 1938 edition of Radio Annual (S. Green at Radio St.). But the latter lists the studio location as "620 Glover Crim Bldg." Amazingly, that building stills exists and they're renting!

www.loopnet.com/Listing/13727074/140-East-Tyler-Longview-TX/

By the way, credit is due to David Eduardo for his website that contains a wealth of historical radio publications: www.americanradiohistory.com/ Or maybe it should be described as a "cornucopia of radio info."