Centennial Celebration for WBT Charlotte And WDEL Wilmington, DE.
WBT WAS THE THIRD RADIO STATION LICENSED IN THE UNITED STATES
With the advent of radio forever tied to KDKA broadcasting the results of the 1920 election, the burgeoning medium spread beyond Pittsburgh during the early part of the decade. The year 1922 was a significant one for radio with the third broadcast license awarded to WBT Charlotte on March 18 of that year. (WGY Albany is recognized as the second radio station licensed in the U.S., signing on in February 1922.) March was a busy month for licensing these “wireless telephone broadcasting stations,” with WLW Cincinnati and KMJ Fresno among the long-standing stations that debuted that month.
This weekend WBT will celebrate its centennial anniversary, coinciding with the date of the “provisional” qualifier being removed from the station license 100 years ago. Sunday, April 10, 2022, has been declared “WBT Day” by the City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, and that night the city’s skyline will be lit up in the station colors of red, white, and “WBT Blue.”
The first station in the Southeast, WBT served the city of Charlotte, Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, and listeners “from Canada to Cuba” since April 1922. The signal was increased to the maximum of 50,000-watts ten years later in August 1932.
“Through the Great Depression, World War II, the Cold War, the Vietnam War, Hurricane Hugo, the 9-11-01 terrorist attacks, and countless local, state, and national events, residents have been able to rely on WBT for entertainment, news, and information for a century,” a station release read.
The “WBT Day” proclamation was presented to morning hosts Bo Thompson and Beth Troutman on Tuesday, April 5.
“Quite simply, we are humbled and honored,” PD Mike Schaefer said. “Recognition by the City and County of this unique milestone, and their proclamations of WBT Day means everything to the twenty-five team members of WBT, and to the over one hundred hard-working members of our extended Radio One Charlotte family.”
A 100th-anniversary celebration is scheduled for Saturday, April 9, with tickets available for the public. On Sunday, April 10, from 10am-1pm, WBT will air special programming to commemorate the station’s century of broadcasting.
STORY REPRINTED COURTESY OF INSIDE RADIO
