This is a list of the first fifteen construction permits that were granted by the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for commercial FM stations. These were all issued on October 31, 1940.
Background
On May 24, 1940, the FCC had announced the establishment, effective January 1, 1941, of an FM radio band operating on 40 channels spanning 42–50 MHz, with the first five channels (42.1 to 42.9 MHz) reserved for educational stations, and the other 35 (43.1 to 49.9 MHz) available for commercial operation."FCC Order No. 67" Federal Register, May 25, 1940, page 2011. On October 31, 1940, the first 15 commercial station Construction Permit authorizations were issued."New FM Call Letters Proposed", Broadcasting, November 15, 1940, page 77. Many of the grantees already operated standard AM stations in the same community, and some had previous experience operating "high frequency band" stations, including high-fidelity "Apex" AM, and experimental FM.
Although educational FM stations received standard four-letter call signs like those issued to AM stations, initially a new form of call sign was mandated for the commercial FM stations, with an initial "W" for those located east, and "K" for those west, of the Mississippi River, followed by the last two digits of a station's frequency assignment (31 to 99) and closing with a one or two character regional identifier, such as "B" for Boston, "C" for Chicago, and "NY" for New York City.
Effective November 1, 1943, the FCC modified its policy for FM call letters,"Standard Broadcast Station Call Letters for All Outlets Starting Nov. 1, FCC Rule", The Billboard, September 4, 1943, page 7. with commercial stations now receiving call signs from the same block of four letter call signs as the AM and educational FM stations, plus the new optional suffix of "-FM"."New Calls Named For FM Stations", Broadcasting, October 4, 1943, page 49."New FM Calls", Broadcasting, October 18, 1943, page 14. On June 27, 1945, the FCC announced the reassignment of the FM band to 80 channels from 88 to 106 MHz, which was soon expanded to 100 channels from 88 to 108 MHz."FCC Allocates 88-106 mc Band to FM" by Bill Bailey, Broadcasting, July 2, 1945, pages 13-14."FCC Allocations Order Text", Broadcasting, July 2, 1945, pages 64-68. The FCC provided that, during a transitional period, stations could simultaneously broadcast on both their old and new frequencies.
Fourteen of the fifteen initial grants resulted in operating stations—the one exception was the Brooklyn, New York grant to Frequency Broadcasting Corporation. Half of the fourteen constructed stations ended operations during the FM band's difficult financial period of the 1940s and 1950s, with the other 7, highlighted in the table below in beige, ultimately surviving.
Table of October 31, 1940 assignments
CommunityOwnerEarlier Related StationsOctober 31, 1940 AssignmentApex (VHF AM)ExperimentalFMStandardAMOrig.Freq.(MHz)Orig.CallSignNovember 1, 1943Call LettersFCC History CardsStatusDetroit, MichiganEvening News Assn.W8XWJWWJ44.5W45DWENA1940-1979WXYT-FM Detroit, MichiganLos Angeles, CaliforniaDon LeeKHJ44.5K45LAKHJ-FM1940-1981KRTH Los Angeles, CaliforniaSchenectady, New YorkCapitol Broadcasting Co. Inc.44.7W47AWBCADeleted 1952 as WBCA Schenectady, New YorkNew York, New YorkMarcus Loew Booking AgencyWHN46.3W63NYWHNFDeleted 1955 as WMGM-FM New York, New YorkNew York, New YorkNBCW2XWGWEAF45.1W51NYn/a1940-1981WQHT New York, New York New York, New YorkW. G. H. FinchW2XWF45.5W55NYWFGG1940-1981WFAN-FM New York, New YorkBrooklyn, New YorkFrequency Broadcasting Corp.45.9W59NY---1940-1942Deleted May 13, 1942, as W99NY (construction permit) New York, New YorkEvansville, IndianaEvansville On the Air Inc.WEOA-WGBF44.5W45VWMLLDeleted June 13, 1956, as WMLL Evansville, IndianaMount Washington, New HampshireYankee NetworkW1XER43.9W39BWGTRDeleted October 1948 as WMNE Portland, MaineBinghamton, New YorkHowitt-Wood Radio Co.WNBF44.9W49BNWNBF-FMDeleted August 11, 1952, as WNBF-FM Binghamton, New YorkBaton Rouge, LouisianaBaton Rouge Broadcasting Co.WJBO44.5W45BRWBRL1940-1981WFMF Baton Rouge, LouisianaColumbus, OhioWBNS Inc.W8XVHWBNS44.5W45CMWELDDeleted July 14, 1953, as WELD, Columbus, OhioSalt Lake City, UtahRadio Service Corp. of UtahKSL44.7K47SLKSL-FM1940-1981KSFI Salt Lake City, UtahChicago, IllinoisZenith Radio Corp.W9XENW9XZR45.1W51CWWZR1940-1981WUSN Chicago, IllinoisMilwaukee, WisconsinJournal Co.W9XAZW9XAOWTMJ45.5W55MWMFMDeleted April 1950 as WTMJ-FM Milwaukee, Wisconsin
References