70 years ago today...

[Scott Fybush]

Kevin Vahey wrote:
> Certainly didn't work all well for some Canadian stations not owned by 
> the government. ( see CFCF)
> 
> Scott - was it by accident or design that the NY and Chicago stations 
> were assigned to adjacent channels?

A little of both, I think. They were adjacent even before NARBA - 
660/670, 710/720, 760/770, 860/870. Before NARBA, there was a mandatory 
50 kHz spacing between local AM stations, so in each city stations were 
spaced in even 50 kHz increments up from the bottom of the dial. In the 
1928 dial realignment, the 50 kHz increments starting at 660 were almost 
the only ones that had US clear channels available every 50 kHz going 
up. (650/700/750/800 would have worked as well, but 680/730/780/830 hit 
a Mexican-Canadian clear at 730 and a regional channel at 780, while 
690/740/790/840 hit Canadian clears at 690 and 840.)

It might indeed have made sense to use 650/700/750/800 in New York, but 
then WLW might have ended up on 710 with even more painful short-spacing 
to WGN.