Oldest religious broadcast?

[Scott Fybush]

Dan.Strassberg wrote:
> Well, maybe the FCC stopped sending out such letters when the info
> appeared on the FCC's Web site. I remember seeing such a letter in
> 1952 in the files of then campus-limited carrier-current WRPI, which,
> along with a number of other campus-limited college stations had
> gotten the FCC to "reserve" its call sign so that it could not be
> taken by another station. 

I wonder when that practice ended? I'm thinking no later than the 1970s, 
and probably sooner.

I've acquired some relatively complete historical files from some 
stations dating back to the 1950s, and have never seen a letter like the 
one Dan describes. I wonder if someone at WRPI made a specific request 
for that historical information?

> It was from that letter that I learned that
> the previous holder of the WRPI calls was the Police Department of
> Ashland OH. That WRPI was obviously a neighbor on the dial of George
> Carlin's fictional Wonderful WINO, which, if you recall, was at
> 1700--just above the police calls.

The late Mr. Carlin would probably be amused to know that there's now an 
FM construction permit bearing the wonderful WINO callsign. It's at 89.9 
in Odessa, New York, near Ithaca, and since it belongs to the Radio Free 
Ithaca community group, it probably comes by the callsign honestly!

(Ithaca is also at the heart of the Finger Lakes winemaking region.)

It doesn't appear that the FCC has issued the WINO calls previously.

s