WGH-FM

WGH-FM (97.3 MHz) is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Newport News, Virginia, serving Hampton Roads.[1] WGH-FM is owned and operated by Max Media and airs a country music radio format.[6] It uses the slogan "97-3 The Eagle."

WGH-FM
CityNewport News, Virginia
Broadcast areaHampton Roads
Frequency97.3 FM MHz (HD Radio)
Branding"New Country 97-3 The Eagle"
Slogan"#1 for New Country and Commercial Free Hours"
Programming
FormatHD1: Country[1]
HD2: Business talk "Money Talk" (WGH simulcast)
Ownership
OwnerMax Media
(MHR License, LLC)
Sister stationsWGH, WVBW, WVHT, WVSP
History
First air dateNovember 1948[2]
Former call signsWGH-FM (1948–1984)
WNSY (1984–1985)
WRSR (1985–1986)[3]
Former frequencies96.5 MHz (1948–1955)[4]
Call sign meaningWorld's Greatest Harbor[5]
Technical information
Facility ID72102
ClassB
Power74,000 watts
HAAT120 meters (390 ft)
Transmitter coordinates36°57′47.0″N 76°24′42.0″W
Links
WebcastWGH-FM Webstream
WGH-HD2 Webstream
WebsiteWGH-FM Online
WGH-HD2 Online

Studios and offices are on Greenwich Road in Virginia Beach, Virginia.[7] The transmitter is on Newport News Point, near Interstate 664.[8]

Station history

WGH-FM first signed on the air in November 1948, one of the first FM stations in Virginia.[9] It broadcasts at 74,000 watts in an area of the country where today the maximum power for FM radio stations should be 50,000 watts. But because the station dates back to 1948, before the Federal Communications Commission set rules for FM power levels, it is grandfathered at the higher power.

The call letters for WGH-FM and its sister station WGH (1310 AM) stand for World's Greatest Harbor, a slogan for the Hampton Roads or Tidewater area of Virginia, where there is a large shipbuilding industry and both commercial and military ports.[10] WGH and WGH-FM are the only stations in Virginia to operate with three-letter call signs.[11]

For many years in its early days, WGH-FM was a classical music station.[12] On September 1, 1983, after Commcor bought the station, the classical format was abruptly dropped and flipped to soft rock as WNSY-FM, "Sunny 97."[13] A year later, it flipped to Top 40 as "Y-97".[14] The next year, after Susquehanna Broadcasting took over, the station changed call letters to WRSR and rebranded as "97 Star", while keeping the current format.[15] The WGH-FM calls would return on December 15, 1986.

On August 29, 1990, the Top 40 format was dropped and the station began stunting with all-Elvis Presley. On September 3, it flipped to its current country format as "Eagle 97.3."[16][17]

References
  1. "Arbitron Station Information Profiles". Nielsen Audio/Nielsen Holdings. Retrieved July 18, 2015.
  2. Broadcasting Yearbook 2010 (PDF). ProQuest, LLC/Reed Publishing (Nederland), B.V. 2010. p. D-567. Retrieved July 18, 2015.
  3. "Call Sign History". Federal Communications Commission, audio division. Retrieved July 18, 2015.
  4. "FCC History Cards for WGH-FM".
  5. "Call Letter Origins: Key and Listing". Bob Nelson. Retrieved July 18, 2015.
  6. "WGH Facility Record". Federal Communications Commission, audio division. Retrieved July 18, 2015.
  7. https://www.google.com/maps/place/5589+Greenwich+Rd,+Virginia+Beach,+VA+23462/@36.8441949,-76.182162,17.58z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x89ba9609946c7bb1:0x40382729fb5bfc12!8m2!3d36.8426693!4d-76.1801071
  8. http://radio-locator.com/cgi-bin/patg?id=WGH-FM
  9. Broadcasting Yearbook 1977 pg. C-220
  10. History of Newport News, Virginia
  11. White, Thomas. "Three-Letter Roll Call". earlyradiohistory.us.
  12. http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC-YB/1982/C%20Radio%20NE%20to%20Terr%20BC%20YB%201982%20All-4.pdf
  13. http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1980s/1983/RR-1983-09-09.pdf
  14. http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC-YB/1985/B-Radio-NE-to-Ter-B-Radio-All-BC-YB-1985.pdf
  15. http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC-YB/1986/B-Radio-NE-to-Ter-B-Radio-All-BC-YB-1986.pdf
  16. http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1990s/1990/RR-1990-09-07.pdf
  17. http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC-YB/1991/B-Radio-NE-MT-1991-B&W.pdf
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