WENK
Encyclopedia
WENK is an AM
radio station
based in northwest Tennessee
. In its first incarnation, WENK-AM 1240 went on the air with 250 watts day and night from the upstairs of a furniture store on October 26, 1946. WTPR-AM 710 went on the air with 250 watts daytime from the second floor of a building on the square in downtown Paris
in 1947. Both were owned by the Dixie Network
of Jackson. Both had a Variety format in those days.
WENK featured the talents of people like Hank Huggins and Lou Wrather during the early days. WTPR was home to future Nashville star Ralph Emery and future WPSD-TV
newsman Dan Steele.
WENK caught the Rock and Roll bug in 1956 and pretty much remained a popular music or Top 40 station until WWKF took that format in 1982. John Dixon Williams, a future WPSD-TV newsman and general manager was an early star. WTPR continued to play a variety of music over the years.
WENK increased its power to 1000 Watts in the early 1960s and WTPR was able to increase its power to 1000 watts daytime as well. During this period personalities like J.R. Moore and Ed Taylor were heard on WENK, along with Jolly George and John True. WTPR featured Bill McCutcheon. The late Gary Powley who worked at WTPR in the 1990s and until his death in 2005 actually got his start at WENK in 1968.
Present day President and General Manager Terry Hailey followed Gary Powley at WENK in 1968 and has been with the station ever since. Cindy Snyder was one of the driving forces behind WTPR in the 80’s and 90’s. Joe Van Dyke was long time general manager at WTPR for the Dixie Network
.
format which continues today. WTWL, Dover/McKinnon, was added in 1994 with call letters changed to WTPR-FM. The station was at 101.5, but changed to 101.7 in June 2005. WENK, WTPR and WTPR-FM are now a three way simulcast of ‘The Greatest Hits of All Time’ and are on AM1240, AM710 and FM101.7. The stations can be heard in southeast Missouri
, northeast Arkansas
…and all across northwest Tennessee
and southwest Kentucky
from Reelfoot Lake
to Kentucky Lake
to Clarksville
. Their sister stations WWKF and WAKQ (KF99/KQ105) play Contemporary Hit music or Top 40, the format they took from WENK in 1982.
AM broadcasting
AM broadcasting is the process of radio broadcasting using amplitude modulation. AM was the first method of impressing sound on a radio signal and is still widely used today. Commercial and public AM broadcasting is carried out in the medium wave band world wide, and on long wave and short wave...
radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
based in northwest Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
. In its first incarnation, WENK-AM 1240 went on the air with 250 watts day and night from the upstairs of a furniture store on October 26, 1946. WTPR-AM 710 went on the air with 250 watts daytime from the second floor of a building on the square in downtown Paris
Paris, Tennessee
Paris is a city in Henry County, Tennessee, United States, west of Nashville, on a fork of the West Sandy River. In 1900, 2,018 people lived in Paris, Tennessee; in 1910, 3,881; and in 1940, 6,395. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 9,763. It is the county seat of Henry...
in 1947. Both were owned by the Dixie Network
Dixie Network
The Dixie Network was a radio network which operated in the Southern United States primarily in the 1940s and 1950s. The stations often had the letters "DX" within their call signs, such as WDXN in Clarksville, Tennessee and WDXE in Lawrenceburg, Tennessee....
of Jackson. Both had a Variety format in those days.
WENK featured the talents of people like Hank Huggins and Lou Wrather during the early days. WTPR was home to future Nashville star Ralph Emery and future WPSD-TV
WPSD-TV
WPSD-TV is the NBC-affiliated television station for Western Kentucky's Jackson Purchase, Southern Illinois, and the Missouri Bootheel. Licensed to Paducah, Kentucky, the station broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 32 from a transmitter in Monkeys Eyebrow, Kentucky...
newsman Dan Steele.
WENK caught the Rock and Roll bug in 1956 and pretty much remained a popular music or Top 40 station until WWKF took that format in 1982. John Dixon Williams, a future WPSD-TV newsman and general manager was an early star. WTPR continued to play a variety of music over the years.
WENK increased its power to 1000 Watts in the early 1960s and WTPR was able to increase its power to 1000 watts daytime as well. During this period personalities like J.R. Moore and Ed Taylor were heard on WENK, along with Jolly George and John True. WTPR featured Bill McCutcheon. The late Gary Powley who worked at WTPR in the 1990s and until his death in 2005 actually got his start at WENK in 1968.
Present day President and General Manager Terry Hailey followed Gary Powley at WENK in 1968 and has been with the station ever since. Cindy Snyder was one of the driving forces behind WTPR in the 80’s and 90’s. Joe Van Dyke was long time general manager at WTPR for the Dixie Network
Dixie Network
The Dixie Network was a radio network which operated in the Southern United States primarily in the 1940s and 1950s. The stations often had the letters "DX" within their call signs, such as WDXN in Clarksville, Tennessee and WDXE in Lawrenceburg, Tennessee....
.
Station information
WENK purchased WTPR in 1989. WTPR then adopted WENK’s OldiesOldies
Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day....
format which continues today. WTWL, Dover/McKinnon, was added in 1994 with call letters changed to WTPR-FM. The station was at 101.5, but changed to 101.7 in June 2005. WENK, WTPR and WTPR-FM are now a three way simulcast of ‘The Greatest Hits of All Time’ and are on AM1240, AM710 and FM101.7. The stations can be heard in southeast Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
, northeast Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
…and all across northwest Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
and southwest Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
from Reelfoot Lake
Reelfoot Lake
Reelfoot Lake is a shallow natural lake located in the northwest portion of Tennessee, United States of America. Much of it is really more of a swamp, with bayou-like ditches connecting more open bodies of water called basins, the largest of which is called Blue Basin. Reelfoot Lake is noted for...
to Kentucky Lake
Kentucky Lake
Kentucky Lake is a major navigable reservoir along the Tennessee River in Kentucky and Tennessee. Created in 1944 by the Tennessee Valley Authority's impounding of the Tennessee River by Kentucky Dam, the lake is the largest artificial lake by surface area in the United States east of the...
to Clarksville
Clarksville, Tennessee
Clarksville is a city in and the county seat of Montgomery County, Tennessee, United States, and the fifth largest city in the state. The population was 132,929 in 2010 United States Census...
. Their sister stations WWKF and WAKQ (KF99/KQ105) play Contemporary Hit music or Top 40, the format they took from WENK in 1982.
Sister stations
- KF99-KQ105 - "Today's Best Music with Ace & TJ in the MorningAce & TJ ShowThe Ace & TJ Show is a syndicated morning radio show, previously on KISS 95.1 out of Charlotte, NC. The Ace & TJ Show debuted on KISS 95.1 on April 6, 1998. Their last day on Kiss 95.1 was Friday, May 20, 2011. Contract discussions with CBS Radio were not successful...
" - WWKF-FM 99.3 - Fulton, KentuckyFulton, KentuckyFulton is a city in Fulton County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 2,775 at the 2000 census. It was once known as the "Banana Capital of the World" because 70% of imported bananas to the U.S. used to be shipped there . U.S...
/Union City, TennesseeUnion City, TennesseeUnion City is a city in Obion County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 10,876 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Obion County. The name comes from its location at the union of two railroads, one running roughly east-west and the other roughly north-south... - WAKQ-FM 105.5 - Paris, TennesseeParis, TennesseeParis is a city in Henry County, Tennessee, United States, west of Nashville, on a fork of the West Sandy River. In 1900, 2,018 people lived in Paris, Tennessee; in 1910, 3,881; and in 1940, 6,395. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 9,763. It is the county seat of Henry...