WBCN, Channel-13, and the old Hancock tower

[Kevin Vahey]

Hi Dave

You mentioned the WMTW link

For reasons that were never fully explained to me the Boston link to
Saddleback Mountain in NH passed through 25 Granby Street which was
Boston Catholic TV/WIHS/WSBK.

Can you shed any light on this?  My guess is that WMTW-TV must have
gotten the Sunday Mass feed from BCTV and somehow that is how the
circuit was created.

On Sun, Nov 28, 2021 at 9:20 PM Dave <bostonradio.org-list@wsfd.ath.cx> wrote:
>
> On 11/24/21 12:00 PM,
> boston-radio-interest-request@lists.BostonRadio.org wrote:
>
>  >From: A Joseph Ross <joe@attorneyross.com>
>  >Date: Tue, 23 Nov 2021 23:44:19 -0500
>  >Subject: Re: RIP Al Perry - former GM of WBCN
>  >
>  >I wonder if anyone is left who ran the original WBCN and
>  >the Concert Network.  I wonder how many people are left,
>  >besides me, who were listeners in those days.
>
> Ahhh.  WBCN.
>
> Long time lurker, I'm going to finally crawl out from under this rock.
>
> My father, Jim Bonney was the titular Chief Engineer for WBCN in the
> 50's/60's.  And once, while he was on vacation, I made $ subbing in for
> him doing the weekly transmitter checks and log signing on the 27th/28th
> upper equipment floor of the old Hancock tower.  Does that qualify me as
> 'working' for WBCN?
>
> As a kid I would frequently accompany him on his rounds when he did his
> weekly station visits.  He built and was full-time Chief Engineer for
> WBUR but also, over the years, had 'Chief Operator' responsibility for
> WBCN, WERS, WPAW/WXTR, the Boston end of the WMTW-TV microwave link, a
> radio-page company, and other stations/facilities too numerous and/or
> lost in my memory to remember right now.
>
> Once at WBCN I even got to stand on top of the Hancock weather beacon
> when the tower monkey's were servicing the antenna.  Going up the stairs
> inside the flashing blue beacon was a memory-maker.
>
> Which brings me around to a Question I've had for years:
>
> On the upper equipment floor of the old Hancock tower, colocated with
> the WBCN transmitter was another, non-operating transmitter.  Which may
> have been a television transmitter.  I have seen an old reference to a
> Boston Channel-13.  Could this have been it?  And can anyone provide
> confirmation?  Was it ever licensed/operational?
>
> Thanx,
>
> Dave
>
>