WFBR (AM)
Encyclopedia
WFBR is a radio station
broadcasting a Talk/Personality format. It is licensed for Glen Burnie, Maryland
. The station is currently owned by Way Broadcasting Licensee, LLC.
The station was assigned the WFBR call letters by the Federal Communications Commission
on November 30, 2004
.
The station signed on in 1961 as WISZ, with 500 watts and owned by Butch Gregory, a Vice-President at Westinghouse. He lovingly and expertly built much of the equipment including an antenna phaser unit, and the main studio control console. R. J. ("Bob") Bennett was the first station manager; Program Director was Matt Edwards. The initial format was what is now called Adult Standards or Nostalgia, but was identified by the station as a "Big band Sound". Within two years the format had gravitated to "Country" with the addition of legendary country DJ Ray Davis, whose show was broadcast as a remote from Johnny's New and Used Cars (the "Walking Man's Friend). WISZ-FM 95.9 Mhz
was added as a simulcast in 1962, broadcasting from a 90 foot tower in Brooklyn Park, MD. The transmitter was in a garden shed.
WISZ-AM's antenna installation was in a swamp off Crain Highway in Glen Burnie and consisted of seven towers (4 daytime, and four nighttime, with a common base tower). The directional pattern protected WINX in Washington, DC on 1600 kHz, as well as other 1590 stations to the northeast. The "null" towards Washington was so pronounced that at certain points only a mile away, the towers could seen but not heard.
The station's mascot was an owl- "The WISZ Old Owl"
That station became WLIF in 1990, then WJFK (AM) in 1991, then WJZ (AM) in 2008.
Currently, the WFBR call letters are used by the former WJRO, a small AM radio station on 1590 kHz in Glen Burnie, Maryland
, which coincidentally, was the home of the late Charley Eckman.
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...
broadcasting a Talk/Personality format. It is licensed for Glen Burnie, Maryland
Glen Burnie, Maryland
Glen Burnie is a census-designated place in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States, and is a suburb of Baltimore. The population was 67,639 at the 2010 census...
. The station is currently owned by Way Broadcasting Licensee, LLC.
The station was assigned the WFBR call letters by the Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
on November 30, 2004
2004 in radio
The year 2004 saw a number of significant events in radio broadcasting history.-Events:*30 October - In the UK a 163-metre-high radio mast at Peterborough collapses in a fire.-Debuts:...
.
The station signed on in 1961 as WISZ, with 500 watts and owned by Butch Gregory, a Vice-President at Westinghouse. He lovingly and expertly built much of the equipment including an antenna phaser unit, and the main studio control console. R. J. ("Bob") Bennett was the first station manager; Program Director was Matt Edwards. The initial format was what is now called Adult Standards or Nostalgia, but was identified by the station as a "Big band Sound". Within two years the format had gravitated to "Country" with the addition of legendary country DJ Ray Davis, whose show was broadcast as a remote from Johnny's New and Used Cars (the "Walking Man's Friend). WISZ-FM 95.9 Mhz
was added as a simulcast in 1962, broadcasting from a 90 foot tower in Brooklyn Park, MD. The transmitter was in a garden shed.
WISZ-AM's antenna installation was in a swamp off Crain Highway in Glen Burnie and consisted of seven towers (4 daytime, and four nighttime, with a common base tower). The directional pattern protected WINX in Washington, DC on 1600 kHz, as well as other 1590 stations to the northeast. The "null" towards Washington was so pronounced that at certain points only a mile away, the towers could seen but not heard.
The station's mascot was an owl- "The WISZ Old Owl"
WFBR callsign history
The WFBR call letters have a long and storied history in the Baltimore media market. Beginning in the 1920s, they were assigned to the 1300 kHZ signal, which was originally known as WEAR. "WFBR" stood for "World's First Broadcasting Regiment", and was organized by the officer's association of the 5th Regiment, Maryland, in whose Armory on Preston St. it broadcast from. It was the first broadcast radio station in the state of Maryland.That station became WLIF in 1990, then WJFK (AM) in 1991, then WJZ (AM) in 2008.
Currently, the WFBR call letters are used by the former WJRO, a small AM radio station on 1590 kHz in Glen Burnie, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
, which coincidentally, was the home of the late Charley Eckman.