Re: WBZ/WBZA Historic Site

[mwaters@wesleyan.edu (Martin J. Waters)]

>Rick Kelly wrote:
<snip>
What do you think would be our first
>step?

        I'm trying to collect information right now with the idea that
eventually I'll write a summary arguing why this is an important historic
site. What's not clear at all to me right now is where I would go with
that. Mark Casey knows something about the ownership of the building. I
plan to write a letter to the Springfield Historic Commission describing
the significance of this site and asking what they do in terms of marking /
protecting this kind of site. I'm planning to run an ad in the Springfield
newspaper asking for anyone with recollections of WBZA as listener or
employee and to see if the local Irish-American radio program (on WACE,
BTW) would make an announcement to that effect. A friend who runs the
monthly Irish-American newspaper in Springfield has asked me to write an
article about the WBZ/WBZA site. It's in the old Irish neighborhood, known
as Hungry Hill, which also is the name of the newspaper. Many of the former
Westinghouse factory employees are Irish-American. I'm also planning during
May to take a day and do some research in the library and anywhere else I
can think of in Springfield. I'm planning to try out my claim that this is
the only site of its kind still in existence by posting something
nationally on AIRWAVES, on the old-time radio group, and the group that the
radio and TV engineers have and see if someone shoots me down.

        Does anyone here know of any WBZ engineers or retired/former
engineers who might have been with the station when WBZA still operated (up
to 1962), who might be helpful? I don't necessarily mean someone who worked
in Springfield, but perhaps someone who was in Boston then.

>>I had written:
>> At the moment, I'm trying to check out a report that, in
>>addition to the towers, supposedly some equipment remains inside the
>building.
>>I thought someone posted on this group that he/she had been into the
>>building several years ago and seen this stuff, but I apparently didn't
>save
>>the post.
>
>Rick wrote:
>Hadn't heard that one.  Word around town is that the building is
>unfortunately abandoned:  I doubt there is much left besides the towers
>there.  But who knows?

        As Mark Casey's post said, he saw no equipment there when he was
able to look inside the place about six years ago. The building, as he also
noted, is not abandoned. A trucking company is using at least part of it as
a warehouse.

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