A few days ago, a good radio friend of mine asked if I had any information about a certain AM broadcast station that existed in the town of Bridgewater, Massachusetts back in the 1920's (around 1927). Well, this was the first time I had heard anything regarding another broadcast station in Bridgewater, MA. I am the Chief Engineer of WBIM-FM, 91.5 at Bridgewater State College. (We're planning our 40th Anniversary in 2012.) So when I heard about a station from the past that operated in Bridgewater, it peaked my curiosity.
So, I did a little research and found that.... YES, there was a broadcast station in Bridgewater from October, 1924 through August, 1925. It was Station WFBN, owned and operated by "Radio Sales and Service", a company owned by three local individuals. WFBN operated on 1330 kc/s with 10 watts of power. Back then, 10 watts at 1330 kc/s covered a good deal of real estate. Ace radio historian Donna Halper added some info about this long forgotten piece of radio history. Apparently, Station WFBN reported about a fire in a nearby candy store, located in the Bridgewater Commons area. The fire department upon hearing about the fire on WFBN sprang into action and quickly doused the flames before it could have made the building (and the candy store) a total loss. Apparently, the station got the recognition it deserved. BUT, recognition didn't pay the bills. And by August, 1925, WFBN became a little footnote in broadcasting history as it left the air for good.
Radio broadcasting was still in its' infancy at the time. Today, a 10 watt signal could be put on the air with a minimal investment. But back in the 1920's, maintaining a transmitter was a full-time job, considering crystal controlled units were still several years down the road. Considering the name of the company, "Radio Sales and Service", it was probably just a sideline for this company to have a radio station to be able to sell radios to the local population and nothing else. Who knows? But I hope to find out more about this little station as time goes on. And with WBIM-FM's 40th Anniversary coming soon, I hope to mention about the long lost local station that used to exist back in the 20's during our little narrative we plan to have during the event in 2012. If anyone has any info about Station WFBN (not to be confused with the Chicagoland LPTV station of the same call-letters), I would love to hear about it! Many thanks to Donna Halper and "Grampa Gary" for bringing this little station to my attention. 73!
Peter Q. George (K1XRB)
Whitman, Massachusetts
So, I did a little research and found that.... YES, there was a broadcast station in Bridgewater from October, 1924 through August, 1925. It was Station WFBN, owned and operated by "Radio Sales and Service", a company owned by three local individuals. WFBN operated on 1330 kc/s with 10 watts of power. Back then, 10 watts at 1330 kc/s covered a good deal of real estate. Ace radio historian Donna Halper added some info about this long forgotten piece of radio history. Apparently, Station WFBN reported about a fire in a nearby candy store, located in the Bridgewater Commons area. The fire department upon hearing about the fire on WFBN sprang into action and quickly doused the flames before it could have made the building (and the candy store) a total loss. Apparently, the station got the recognition it deserved. BUT, recognition didn't pay the bills. And by August, 1925, WFBN became a little footnote in broadcasting history as it left the air for good.
Radio broadcasting was still in its' infancy at the time. Today, a 10 watt signal could be put on the air with a minimal investment. But back in the 1920's, maintaining a transmitter was a full-time job, considering crystal controlled units were still several years down the road. Considering the name of the company, "Radio Sales and Service", it was probably just a sideline for this company to have a radio station to be able to sell radios to the local population and nothing else. Who knows? But I hope to find out more about this little station as time goes on. And with WBIM-FM's 40th Anniversary coming soon, I hope to mention about the long lost local station that used to exist back in the 20's during our little narrative we plan to have during the event in 2012. If anyone has any info about Station WFBN (not to be confused with the Chicagoland LPTV station of the same call-letters), I would love to hear about it! Many thanks to Donna Halper and "Grampa Gary" for bringing this little station to my attention. 73!
Peter Q. George (K1XRB)
Whitman, Massachusetts