WNLC (AM)
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| |
| Frequency | 1510 kHz |
|---|---|
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Hall Communications |
| History | |
First air date | September 13, 1936 |
Last air date | 1997 |
Former call signs | WWJY (1998) |
Former frequencies |
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WNLC was a radio station broadcasting at 1510 AM in New London, Connecticut, United States. It broadcast from 1936 to 1997, having been the first station established in New London, and was last owned by Hall Communications.
WNLC signed on September 13, 1936,[1] broadcasting on 1500 kHz with 100 watts during the daytime only.[2] The station was owned by the Thames Broadcasting Corporation and built by Daniel E. Noble, an engineer who had built WCAC, an early educational station at the University of Connecticut. The transmitter was grounded to the nearby railroad tracks.[3] Original studios were in the Mohican Hotel with transmitter at Winthrop Point.[1] It was the first radio station in the state east of the Connecticut River.[4] The station maintained affiliations with the Mutual Broadcasting System and the regional Yankee and Colonial networks.[5]
The 1938 New England hurricane slammed into New London with force. It knocked WNLC off the air for three weeks and crumpled its tower, while the storm surge battered the transmitter building and washed out the front and back walls.[6] The station continued to operate from its studios in the Mohican Hotel, broadcasting news on the hotel's speaker.[6] It was able to return to the air when a shortwave transmitter arrived from WOR, fed by power from the hotel; other outlets in the region also aided in restoring operations.[6] The station was permitted to operate at night in 1939 and with 250 watts in 1940; NARBA reallocation moved it and other stations on 1500 to 1490 kHz effective March 29, 1941.[2]
WNLC was prepared to move from the world of radio to television. Gerald J. Morey, executive of Thames, disclosed in 1952 that the station had planned for potential television facilities with an audio chain ready for television, a partly built FM radio site on Raymond Hill, and sufficient studio space.[7] The television station, however, was never built, and in November 1956, the Federal Communications Commission ordered WNLC and others to build their television stations or lose their permits.[8]
Instead, Morey focused on improving the WNLC AM facility, especially after WSUB (980 AM) went on the air from nearby Groton in 1957.[5] In August 1958, it filed to move to 1510 kHz, relocate its transmitter, and broadcast with 5,000 watts; the FCC granted the application in November 1960.[2] The frequency change cleared the way for a new station to open at Greenwich on 1490.[9] The new facility was highly directional to the southeast, operating from an eight-tower array; four towers were used in daytime operation and six at night.[5] A second boost took place in 1964, this time to a daytime power of 10,000 watts.[2] WNLC got a sister FM station on December 29, 1969 when WTYD (100.9 FM) began broadcasting.[10]