WWON (AM)

Last updated
WWON
Waynesboro, Tennessee
Frequency 930 kHz
BrandingBig Country 92.7 FM & 930 AM
Programming
Format Country
Ownership
OwnerJukebox Media, LLC
WWON-FM
History
First air date
January 31, 1970 (as WAAN at 1480)
Former call signs
WAAN (1970-1980)
WNBG (1980-1987)
WTNR (1987-2000)
Former frequencies
1480 kHz (1970-1987)
Call sign meaning
W 1
Technical information
Facility ID 50127
Class D
Power 470 watts (day)
91 watts (night)
Translator(s) 92.7 W224EC (Waynesboro)
Links
Webcast Listen Live
Website bigoldiesradio.com

WWON is a commercial AM radio station licensed to the city of Waynesboro, Tennessee, the seat of Wayne County, Tennessee. The station operates at the assigned frequency of 930 kHz, at a power output of 470 watts day, and 91 watts at night.

Contents

History

The birth of WAAN AM 1480

Wayne County's first radio station went on the air in January 1970, with studios located upstairs above Helton's Drug Store. "Orange Blossom Special" was the first song played on what was then the new 1480 WAAN radio. That first record was played by beloved former announcer and singer Neal "Tywhop" Jones.

In the mid-1970s the station changed hands and Grand Ole Opry members Ernie Ashworth and Ralph Davis became the owners for a brief period, along with Carl Swafford. In between the call letters WAAN and WTNR was the call letters WNBG.

Frequency move and callsign change

In the late 1980s, the station was moved to its present location in the old bank building on the Public Square in downtown Waynesboro. After years of paperwork the station changed frequency and call letters, and AM 930 WTNR was born. The call letters stood for Waynesboro, Tennessee Radio.

Aside from past owner Ernie Ashworth of Grand Ole Opry fame, country singer, actor, writer, and Waynesboro native Mark Collie also got his start on AM 930. Mark became a popular country music star. Also in the 1980s and early 1990s country singer Jacky Ward was an announcer. "Wile Willie" as he was called on the air, had success on the country charts with his hit "Big Blue Diamond". ("Wile" as in Wile E. Coyote of the "Roadrunner" cartoons.)

In July 1991, a new chapter in broadcasting began when WTNR-FM went on the air featuring hot new country music. AM 930 even simulcast the FM station until going all talk with syndicated talk shows. In 1994 the stations were sold to Ohio Broadcasting, and in 1998 the FM license was moved to Florence, Alabama. This left AM 930 in Waynesboro, as WTNR-FM became Froggy 94, and then The River 94.

Subsequently, all of Wayne County's other FM stations moved to Florence, leaving AM 930 as the only Wayne County radio station.

As WWON: the first time around

WTNR continued as a talk station until August 3, 2000 when the station was sold again and changed its call letters and format to WWON (W1) "Familiar Favorites." The station continued a great tradition of "Hometown Radio" providing Wayne County with local news, weather, and sports broadcasts. Due to these circumstances beyond their control, the owners were forced out of business. AM 930 WWON went dark in August 2005.

Rebirth after silence

Legends 930

Six months after WWON went silent, Huntingdon, Tennessee, residents Chris and Karen Lash returned WWON to the air, purchasing the station in February 2006. The Lashes quickly returned AM 930 to its country roots when Legends 930 W-WON was born. The station featured classic country music, with local, national and statewide news every hour. An interactive, and updated website with local news headlines was restarted, and coverage of Wayne County Wildcat sports, and Tennessee Titans football was added to the programming line-up.

Also new to the radio station and county was a monthly newspaper, direct-mailed to homes in Waynesboro. The Advisor, Waynesboro's Hometown News and Shopper began, giving Waynesboro and the county positive stories of the people, places and things relative to the local community.

AM 930 The Farm

On January 8, 2007, the station changed its name and added current country songs to its rotation, in response to a web-based poll of its listeners. The station was then known as "AM 930 The Farm". The station was an affiliate of the Tennessee Titans radio network. [1]

Kickin Country

On April 20, 2008 WWON was sold to Small Potatoes Broadcasting, LLC based in Nashville, Tennessee. The new owners kept a country format and changed to a new name: Kickin Country, KICKN.

WWON now

Big Oldies 930

In the summer of 2008 Small Potatoes Broadcasting, LLC. flipped the format to true oldies, calling the station "Big Oldies 930". The station derives a portion of its programming from Scott Shannon's The True Oldies Channel from ABC Radio. [2]

On October 26, 2011, WWON was sold to Jukebox Media, LLC. [3]

Related Research Articles

Wayne County, Tennessee County in Tennessee, United States

Wayne County is a county located in Tennessee. As of the 2010 census, the population was 17,021. Its county seat is Waynesboro. The county is named after General "Mad Anthony" Wayne.

Waynesboro, Tennessee City in Tennessee, United States

Waynesboro is a city in and the county seat of Wayne County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 2,449 at the 2010 census, up from 2,228 in 2000.

WSM-FM is a radio station in Nashville, Tennessee. It broadcasts a country music format, with an emphasis on recordings released since the 1990s.

WSM (AM) Country music radio station in Nashville, Tennessee

WSM is a 50,000-watt clear channel station located in Nashville, Tennessee. It broadcasts a full-time country music format at 650 kHz and is known primarily as the home of The Grand Ole Opry, the world's longest running radio program. The station's clear channel signal can reach much of North America and nearby countries, especially late at night. It is one of two clear-channel stations in North America, along with CFZM in Toronto, that still primarily broadcast music; as recently as 2020, the station was live and locally originated during the overnight hours, but the overnight host position was eliminated in February 2020. Nicknamed "The Air Castle of the South," it spawned two sister stations on newer mediums: WSM-FM, and television Channel 4, both of which were later sold separately. WSM-FM is no longer affiliated with WSM, while the owners of WSMV and WSM jointly operate the television network Circle, which airs on a subchannel of WSMV and simulcasts portions of the Opry with WSM. WSM is owned by Opry Entertainment Group, a joint venture of Ryman Hospitality Properties, NBCUniversal and Atairos.

WTNR is a radio station licensed to Greenville, Michigan. Owned by Cumulus Media, the station broadcasts a country music format targeting Grand Rapids.

WANT Radio station in Lebanon, Tennessee

WANT is an FM radio station licensed to Lebanon, Tennessee, broadcasting at 98.9 MHz. Most of WANT's broadcast day is simulcast over 1490 AM WCOR, with some exceptions.

WWEG Radio station in Myersville, Maryland

WWEG is a commercial FM radio station licensed to serve Myersville, Maryland. The station is owned by Manning Broadcasting, Inc. and broadcasts a classic hits format.

WYDE is a commercial AM radio station. The station is owned by the Crawford Broadcasting Company and airs a Southern Gospel radio format with some Christian talk and teaching programs. It is simulcast with WYDE-FM 92.5 MHz in Cordova.

WQLT-FM is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Florence, Alabama, United States. The station airs an adult hits radio format, with a heavy emphasis on oldies. It is owned by the Big River Broadcasting Corporation and is operated by the family of noted record producer Sam Phillips, a native of Florence. The studios and offices are located on Sam Phillips Street in Florence.

WIOE (AM) Radio station in Fort Wayne, Indiana

WIOE is a commercial oldies radio station licensed to serve Fort Wayne, Indiana. Owned by Brian Walsh, the station services the Fort Wayne Metropolitan Area and much of surrounding Northeastern Indiana as a full-power simulcast of WIOE, licensed to nearby South Whitley. WIOE also simulcasts over Fort Wayne translator W282CH. The WIOE studios are located in both Warsaw, and Fort Wayne, while WIOE's transmitter resides in Fort Wayne's East Central neighborhood along with W282CH's transmitter of Fort Wayne. In addition to a standard analog transmission, WIOE broadcasts under the C-QUAM AM stereo standard, and is available online.

WADB is a country music radio station serving the southern Monmouth and northern Ocean county area of New Jersey. Licensed to Asbury Park, its studios are located in Toms River and its transmitter is in Tinton Falls. The station is owned by Townsquare Media.

WBCK Radio station in Battle Creek, Michigan

WBCK is a radio station in Battle Creek, Michigan, United States, owned by Townsquare Media. It broadcasts in the FM radio band at 95.3 MHz and has a news-talk format.

WQEZ Radio station in Fort Campbell, Kentucky

WQEZ is a radio station broadcasting a soft adult contemporary format. Licensed to Fort Campbell, Kentucky, United States, the station serves the Clarksville-Hopkinsville area. The station is currently owned by the Five Star Media Group subsidiary of Saga Communications through licensee Saga Communications of Tuckessee, LLC. Its tower and transmitter located on Stateline Road in Oak Grove, Kentucky immediately outside the main gates of the Ft. Campbell, Kentucky military installation.

WCVQ Radio station in Fort Campbell, Kentucky

WCVQ is a Fort Campbell, Kentucky-licensed radio station broadcasting a hot adult contemporary format in the Clarksville-Hopkinsville broadcast area. The station is currently owned by the Five Star Media Group subsidiary of Saga Communications under licensee Saga Communications of Tuckessee, LLC. and is also broadcasting on HD radio.

KPRO was a terrestrial American radio station licensed to serve the city of Marshall, Texas. KPRO was last owned by RCA Broadcasting LLC. The station broadcast the Galaxy Nostalgia Network, a nostalgia talk format.

WPAD Radio station in Paducah, Kentucky

WPAD is a radio station broadcasting a sports format. Licensed to Paducah, Kentucky, United States. The station is owned by the Bristol Broadcasting Company, Inc.

WSEV operates as Sevierville, Tennessee's first and only local AM radio station. While other stations are licensed to Sevierville, their studios are based in Knoxville, Tennessee.

WSDQ Radio station in Dunlap, Tennessee

WSDQ, is a radio station broadcasting a country music format. Licensed in Dunlap, Tennessee, United States, the station is currently owned by S. Travis Hickman and features a country music format with local personalities and programming along with news and features from ABC News Radio, Westwood One, and others. WSDQ's AM signal at 1190 kHz, operates as a daytime-only, Class D non-directional AM station at 5,000 watts daytime and 1,000 watts critical hours, while the co-located FM translator is allowed to operate around the clock.

WHLM (AM) Radio station in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania

WHLM is a radio station broadcasting a full-service oldies/classic hits format. Licensed to Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, United States, the station is currently owned by Columbia Broadcasting Company. The station is news intensive with local and national news at the top and bottom of every hour during the day.

WTNR may refer to:

References

  1. ↑ "Titans Radio in Tennessee". Titans Radio.
  2. ↑ "Radio Stations". Scott Shannon's True Oldies Channel. Archived from the original on July 28, 2008. Retrieved December 19, 2008.
  3. ↑ "Application Search Details".

Coordinates: 35°18′30″N87°44′42″W / 35.30833°N 87.74500°W / 35.30833; -87.74500

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.