NE Indiana Radio History

[Lawppy]

I thought i'd start this thread and see who bites.

I'm interested in learning more about the history of radio in Northeast Indiana and even the Tri-State area of Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. I only came around to FM radio in the late 90's, so my knowledge is a little scarce. Here's what I do know. If anyone wants to add to this, feel free.

-My dad grew up in Fort Wayne and has very fond memories of WOWO. He also remembers their FM station. He remembers 1380 in their top 40 days, pre-97.3 and also WKJG-FM on 106.1.

-In the early 90's I remember WLKI from Angola, IN, then broadcasting on 100.1, hyping a move up the dial to 100.3. I also remember the novelty of hearing one of my parents favorite stations on a different spot on the radio dial.

-Being particularly fond of 96.3 WHYT in Detroit, I always liked to pull in that station from Coldwater. One day in 1994, I tuned in to hear an AC station. This ended up being new sign-on WKQM in Churubusco. Now I wish we had more stations like that one!

-I remember the sign-ons of WQKO (91.9) and WTHD (105.5) in Howe and LaGrange, IN in 1994. WQKO started out with a Christian heavy metal format. No joke.

-WCVM (94.7) Bronson, MI signing on in 1998 with a simulcast of WQKO, which had long ago shed the heavy metal in favor of a preach and teach format.

-Smooth Jazz came to Fort Wayne in 2002 on 106.7. They made a lot of this new station, but I think they realized that broadcasting from Hicksville, OH, 25 miles away from even the closest pass to the city, the station didn't stand much of a chance so they lost interest IMO. They actually gave up on serving Fort Wayne and in 2005 turned it into an Auburn station as 'Froggy', which it remains today.

Other random memories-
-Listening to 97.3 because I knew even at 10 years old that our local CHR station sucked (and still does.)
-Those Two Guys in The Morning.
-The annual April Fools gag where WQHK and WMEE would swap frequencies.
-Discovering that Fort Wayne had not one, but TWO CHR stations (106.3 being the other). That was a big deal to me.
-Discovering right around the same time that Fort Wayne also had a hip-hop station. Again, that was a huge deal to me.
-'Big Red Country' on 96.3, which very quickly became 3WD and then became CHR as 'Hits 96.3'. The beginning of the evolution to today's current 'Wild' format.
-Going to Indiana with my parents once a month and scanning the dial to hear if 106.3 had a different format than the month before.

I'm sure you guys have way more to add to this. Any good stations from the past? Stations that no longer exist? Different frequencies/allotments?

 

[ChrisInMI]

My dad has mentioned that he listened to WOWO in Lansing while going to Michigan State in the early/mid-'70s. When I told him it was now a News/Talk station like just about everything else on AM, he seemed pretty disappointed... but I don't know what he expected.

I remember listening to B106 while driving through Fort Wayne en route to a family reunion in Branson, MO, in 1996. Getting to hear any kind of CHR radio on vacation (even bad CHR radio) was a treat for me since Hot-AC-In-CHR's-Clothing WKQI was the closest thing Detroit had to CHR at that time. WMEE, I believe, had already shifted to Hot AC by that time... the edgiest song they played was "You're Makin' Me High" by Toni Braxton, lots of '80s gold, no hip-hop. (I also got to listen to WKFR, which I assume is the "sucky" CHR you are mentioning... back in '96, it sounded pretty good to my ears, with the "Hometown Countdown" and such.)

 

[gr8oldies]

Here’s my brief history of Ft. Wayne/NE IN Radio. I grew up near Lake Wawasee until 1967, when I moved to Celina, OH. I lived and worked in Ft. Wayne from 1988-81, just before the onslaught of 80-90s and frequency changes. The first station I remember listeningf to WOWO.


(WKJG-FM was on 97.3, not 106.1 unless that was very early. WKJG AM/FM sold to Federated in 1971, the AM at 1380 became top 40 WMEE and the FM became WMEF, which was Beautiful Music. Before that, WLYV-1450 reigned as top 40 king (CKLW was strong in Ft. Wayne as well). WMEE came on with Drake formatics and jingles, and WLYV was country by 1973 I believe. In late July 1973, WMEE flipped to 97.3 FM and 1380 became WQHK, The Hawk 1380, with a heavily crossover-oriented Country format which kept the Top 40 formatics. That drove WLYV to oldies.

What is now WBTU was WAWK-FM, simulcasting 1140 by day, and running Beautiful Music by night as “Patterns in Stereo”. WNWN in Coldwater, MI was known as Stereo Country 98, and I used to get them in Ohio regularly. They were a little less gung-ho about being a Kalamazoo move-in then. I’d see them at the country concerts that at least used to be held at DJ Country Buck Lake Ranch in Angola.


The CHR battle before the WMEE/WDJB war was in 1981, when WPTH dropped it’s TM Stereo Rock reels for live CHR programmed by Mark Elliot. The calls were changed to WFWQ and they called themselves 95Q. CHR was short-lived as they became A/C and eventually the calls were changed to WAJI. In the late 80s, Majic 95.1 ran Urban love songs at night, them oldies at night, The oldies later went to co-owned 101.7.

When WKSD became WBYR, studios were built one floor above WAJI in a medical building. The stations were not and are not co-owned.

Here’s an idea of what the Ft. Wayne FM dial looked like in the mid-80s,
FM 88.3 WLAB Contemp Christian
89.1 WBNI NPR
90.3 WBCL Christian/Bible Collegfe
92.7 WQTZ, Decatur Oldies

95.1 WAJI Ft. Wayne A/C
97.3 WMEE
98.1 WDFM Defiance OH A/C
98.9 WKSD, Van Wert, OH A/C (WBYR in 1989, Classic Rock)
100.1 WLKI Angola
100.9 WCRD/WNUY Bluffton IN
101.7 WEZV Beautiful Music
102.1 WIMT Lima OH Country
103.1 WOWO-FM Huntington
103.9 WXKE Rock 104
105.5 WIFF (?) Auburn IN
105.9 Defiance OH Classic Rock
106.3 WRZQ Columbia City A/C
106.9 WMRI Marion IN Beautiful Music
107.3 WRSW Warsaw IN A/C



I’m sure others can fill in other details.

 

[kirkiefan]

WPGW (AM) was granted an FM in 1973 while still playing a potpourri of adult standards,polka, and all ABC demographic networks (except for the FM network.) Glenn West was aging and his station became cluttered and eventually sold it to former WOWO employee Bob Brandon in the summer of 1974 switching it to adult contemporary "PG-14" and finally got the FM on one year later. Brandon sold it to Rob Weaver in 1980 and the FM stopped simulcasting the AM swicthing to "Jay Country" which remains today.

WIUC Winchester was sold to new owners in 1979 and eventually became WZZY roughly around 1981.

WBOL Union City was a short-lived AM playing classic country in the mid 1990s. Its FM WTGR played classic rock and fared better and eventualy moved the studio to Greenville filling the local void left by defunct WDRK(now CC-owned WDSJ).

Before WMEE moved to FM in 1979,the callsign was WMEF playing beautiful music.

WADM AM & FM adopted a new moniker "Adam Radio" a reference to Adams County in the early 1980s playing A/C.

WCIT Lima drops live Top 40 in 1975,dumps its on-air staff and "Great 94" branding and automates as "Rock 94" using TM automation reels and jingles. Its popularity wanes, tries "automated/live assist" in late 70s and switches formats throughout the 80s rather frequently until sold in the late 90s.

WHUT-AM/WLHN-FM Anderson is sold to Moody Bible Institute and becomes WGNR..not sure of year.

 

[Lawppy]

I also got to listen to WKFR, which I assume is the "sucky" CHR you are mentioning... back in '96, it sounded pretty good to my ears, with the "Hometown Countdown" and such.

Yes, that would be the one. They were decent in the mid 90's shortly before Cumulus bought them. Nowadays it's pretty much unlistenable. They call themselves 'Today's Best Music' yet they play 'Call Me' by Blondie from 1980! You can't be Contemporary Hit Radio and play Blondie! Contemporary insinuates that it's CURRENT music! If your kitchen was still decked out in 1980 styles and decorations, you certainly would not call it a contemporary kitchen.

WNWN in Coldwater, MI was known as Stereo Country 98, and I used to get them in Ohio regularly. They were a little less gung-ho about being a Kalamazoo move-in then. I’d see them at the country concerts that at least used to be held at DJ Country Buck Lake Ranch in Angola.

WNWN was one of my parents three favorite stations. I can't pinpoint an exact date for when WNWN started gearing to Kalamazoo, but I can very vaguely remember hearing them in the late 80's and they were very much a local station then. Also, it was the only station that would come in on most of our alarm clock radios. Their tower was just 4 miles away from the house I grew up in. Growing up by that tower and seeing the tower barely peeking above the tree line at my house may very well be one of the reasons why I got into FM DX'ing.

As far as their history, WNWN was spun off from WTVB in Coldwater. The AM signed on in 1949 and the 1,000 watt FM station was added at 98.3 by the late 50's. 98.3 later became WANG and eventually moved to 98.5 in the late 70's. Shortly after that, they became WNWN 'Stereo Country 98'.

 

[gr8oldies]

Sometimes WKFR would drift into Ohio. Seems in the 80s they were automated the old fashioned way and voice tracked (probably on carts). Could be wrong. Of course, how can you call Deborah Harry Blondie when she's gray?

 

[Apollo7979]

WBOL Union City was a short-lived AM playing classic country in the mid 1990s. Its FM WTGR played classic rock and fared better and eventualy moved the studio to Greenville filling the local void left by defunct WDRK(now CC-owned WDSJ).

WHUT-AM/WLHN-FM Anderson is sold to Moody Bible Institute and becomes WGNR..not sure of year.

Actually the Union City, IN AM was WBNN, a daytimer located at 1030 on the dial. WBNN indeed had a classic country format plus a fair share of agricultural programming. I remember the station put a great signal into Richmond when it was on the air with just 250 (or was it 500) watts. Its license was returned to the FCC in 1998, but I’m pretty sure the station was off the air for about a year prior to this. I don't recall the WBOL calls, but for much of its existence, the station was WBNN. Union City, IN wasn't without a license for long. WOEI (now WJYW)--WBNN and WTGR's non-comm sister station--finally went on the air in 1998. Does anyone have official dates for WBNN's first and last air date?

Licensed to Union City, OH, WTGR went on the air the day after Thanksgiving in 1991 after stunting with a loop of Survivor’s “The Eye of the Tiger” with an adult contemporary format. The station would eventually flip to classic rock, but I couldn’t tell you when. About 5 years ago, they flipped to country with a mix of local and satellite talent. The FCC site refers to WTGR being under two different sets of calls previous to 1991, but the station didn't never utilized them on air. I remember this station’s sign on because it really gave WOXY’s reception a one-two punch in Richmond at the time.

WHUT & WXXP in Anderson were sold to Moody in December 1997. Before the sale was finalized, WHUT featured a nostalgia format and WXXP was hot AC. The stations went off the air for roughly a month in December 1997 and reemerged as WGNR/WGNR-FM in January 1998 with an Inspirational format on the AM and the traditional Moody Radio mix of talk, music, and Bible teaching on the FM. WGNR-FM would quickly become the flagship Moody station in Indiana by simulcasting their entire program line-up on WHPL in Lafayette and WIWC in Kokomo. WGNR’s radio network has expanded to about a half-dozen other stations throughout the state since.

Back to Fort Wayne, could somebody tell me a little bit more about WOWO-FM? When did the station begin as WOWO-FM? When did it move to 102.9? Did it simulcast 1190 part-time or was it a complete simulcast? If not, what was its format? How well did it do ratings-wise at the time in Fort Wayne?

 

[gr8oldies]

The owners of WOWO at the time purchased what was top 40 WHUZ (then WJRY) Huntington, first doing commercial free top 40 then eventually simulcasting WOWO except for Komets hockey games. Then they just had the jock do the format on FM only. (Had to have been weird..talking to the eastern US but during hockey games the jock was talking to Aboite Twp. More info is available on www.historyofwowo.com. 103.1 was WHLT-FM at one time, its AM was 1380. WMEE's Tony Richards became the PD of Z103, instituted a top 40 format and the station became a farm team for budding or between gigs Ft. Wayne air talent. Richards left to take overnights at Geoff Vargo and Mark Elliot's 95Q, but after a few shifts he was back at WMEE, where as far as I know he is the GM. 1300's towers were cut down in an act of vandalism while the station was silent.
WBNN was 180 watts, and I did hear it in Lafayette.

 

[gr8oldies]

Before it was WXXP "Experience 98", 97.9 in Anderson was WLHN, which was Beautiful Music before morphing into A/C. 1470 WHUT was at one time a top 40. Gary Todd, former WIBC morning man, bought the combo and wanted to target what he called Circle North (Indianapolis and suburbs north of the circle. This went over like a lead balloon.
If we're talking Anderson we might as well talk Muncie and some unique ops...Bill Shirk's Top 40 AM 990..shoehorned into the dial at 250 watts daytime, with 6, count em 6 towers. Across town was stodgy MOR CBS affiliate WLBC, and WLBC-FM with Drake- Chenault's automated Solid Gold Rock and Roll format. "This is Don Burton with editorial comment".

 

[Apollo7979]

The owners of WOWO at the time purchased what was top 40 WHUZ (then WJRY) Huntington, first doing commercial free top 40 then eventually simulcasting WOWO except for Komets hockey games. Then they just had the jock do the format on FM only. (Had to have been weird..talking to the eastern US but during hockey games the jock was talking to Aboite Twp. More info is available on www.historyofwowo.com. 103.1 was WHLT-FM at one time, its AM was 1380. WMEE's Tony Richards became the PD of Z103, instituted a top 40 format and the station became a farm team for budding or between gigs Ft. Wayne air talent. Richards left to take overnights at Geoff Vargo and Mark Elliot's 95Q, but after a few shifts he was back at WMEE, where as far as I know he is the GM. 1300's towers were cut down in an act of vandalism while the station was silent.
WBNN was 180 watts, and I did hear it in Lafayette.

Thanks for the info, gr8. Wow! Only 180 watts for WBNN, eh? I remember finding that station while twirling the dial during my high school days. It came in so crystal clear in Richmond I thought we got a new AM at the time before I heard the top of the hour ID. I'm also wanting to say the station was called "The Barn," but I could be thinking of another station.

 

[gr8oldies]

Have to correct myself: WHLT was 1300.
I can't give a definitive answer about WBNN being The Barn, but they did carry the Agri Broadcasting Network.

 

[Lawppy]

105.9 Defiance, OH Classic Rock

I had no idea of this station. When was this one on the air? When did they move to 105.7?

I know the move to 105.7 was probably made possible shortly after Auburn, IN vacated 105.5. Did this in turn make the 105.9 allotment open up in Wabash, IN? Or were these two stations packed together on the dial?

Very interesting to read about NE Indiana radio before my time! Looking forward to reading more.

 

[gr8oldies]

Now I'm wondering if I misspoke about Defiance.

 

[Corky Marlowe]

WZOM Defiance was originally 105.9. Not sure when the move to 105.7 was, maybe when Maumee Valley bought them in '93. They were oldies until CHristmas 2002, when they went country (105.7 The Bull).

 

[Prais]

You are correct about Defiance on 105.9. When they began in the 70's they were top 40. They had a pretty good signal in Ft. Wayne, on Coloseum Blvd.

Columbia City was 106.3, wfdt in the mid-70'started by Joe Sweeney,
who owned Rochester and Monticello, too.

In January, 1976, one of the owners (Steve Klabon) died in a car wreck on rt. 24 and it's had lots of owners and formats, since.

Despite what has been incorrectly posted elsewhere, Jurek and Klabon used (old buddy) Hal Munn to find an fm frequency for West Lafayette in about 1975 (later to become WGLM).

WASK stopped it at the fcc, and Jurek (made lots of money in
West Lafayette Real Estate, selling a GREAT tower site down the road
from Burger Chef) built WNDZ in Merrillville, (with a psychic partner,
sold his shares and has lived very happily ever after.

An owner or two later, WNDZ moved to Portage, IN. Jurek bought wrin (and later wlqi) Rensselaer, also owned and leased many broadcast towers.

I'm looking for Wayne Paradise of WIFF, Auburn.

 

[gr8oldies]

I didn't think either Defiance allocation was on the air as far back as the 70s. Just WONW AM 1280, which ran A/C in morning drive, Beautiful Music midday and country at night.
Lafayette is an interesting market. I thought that 106.7 in West Laf was an 80-90 drop in, which wouldn't have been available in the 70s.
There was also the big 93.5/92.7 switch in order to reallocate 104.9 back to Muncie from Hartford City. (Wouldn't it have been cheaper to buy WWHC and move it in?). Hartford City moved from 104.9 to 93.5, which meant WZWZ Kokomo moved to 92.7; WXUS Lafayette moved from 92.7 to 93.5, and I think WLRT in or near Kankakee moved from 93.5 to 92.7. (WZWZ is now 92.5).

 

[kb9wsl]

From 1980 until 1985 WRSW-FM had two or three soft AC formats, from TM, Peters Productions and Radio Arts. WRSW-AM had TM's Stereo Rock format...on AM !!

 

[Prais]

Prior to 1980, WRSW-FM was Beautiful Music.

 

[Flying-Dutchman]

Despite what has been incorrectly posted elsewhere, Jurek and Klabon used (old buddy) Hal Munn to find an fm frequency for West Lafayette in about 1975 (later to become WGLM).

WASK stopped it at the fcc, and Jurek (made lots of money in
West Lafayette Real Estate, selling a GREAT tower site down the road
from Burger Chef) built WNDZ in Merrillville, (with a psychic partner,
sold his shares and has lived very happily ever after.

Prior to the 1980's, 106.7 was a Class B frequency and Lafayette was short
spaced to Chicago, Marian, and others. 106.7 could not have been allotted.
Check the FCC records and you will find I allotted 106.7 to West Lafayette.
David Stephenson former owner of 92.7 WXUS in Lafayette was the only one who
filed comments on my petition for rulemaking.

So, I am puzzled when I read the above account. Under FCC rules only AM
channels were available in Lafayette before the mid 1980's So, perhaps these
guys were trying to put an AM in Lafayette in 1975. FM was not possible.

Furthermore, in the 1980's, I flooded the Lafayette market with new FM allotments.
I did this so the speculators would get off my a$$ and let me have a station of my
own and it worked. I got two.

WASK never made any attempt to block any of my FM drop ins and I considered Hal
Youart a good guy and an ethical person.

 

[Prais]

Well, I know what we did, and what I wrote is what happened.

It was around 72 or 73. We had to go before the West Laf planning Comish to get the tower approved - and they approved it. Hal Munn found it. Lauren Colby was our Washington Attorney.It was such a "sure thing" that we bought 5 acres of property just before WASK stopped it. O, well.

The freq appeared in the Broadcasting Yearbook assigned to West Lafayette. We bought the land from a railroad and it was so long ago that I really can't remember who bought it.

As I loook back, I'm glad WASK stopped it, because there was much greater cash in the sale of the (then hot) property and the am in Merrillville/Portage.

Most everyone involved in the deal is now deceased, so it's a moot point anyway. I bought/sold many stations/construction permits/towers, since, and am happily retired from radio.

I hope you did as well as I did.