WTRN
Encyclopedia
WTRN is an American commercial AM radio station, licensed to the borough of Tyrone, Pennsylvania
. The station operates at the federally assigned frequency of 1340 kHz with a full-time power output of 1,000 watt
s. WTRN is the flagship station for the Allegheny Mountain Network (AMN).
; approximately 20 miles southeast of Tyrone in Huntingdon County. Inspired by the station's success, Simpson built the first station in his group, WKBI (AM) in St. Marys, Pennsylvania
. As this was the very first station in his group, WKBI served as the flagship station for the other stations that Simpson would build and put on the air over the next four decades.
Desiring to put a station on the air in his newly-adopted hometown of Tyrone, Simpson petitioned the FCC for an AM license to be assigned to Tyrone. A construction permit was granted, and Simpson signed WTRN on the air on January 12, 1955. Simpson also successfully applied for an FM license to also be assigned to Tyrone. That station, WGMR (which was sold to Forever Broadcasting in Altoona in 2008), was granted license to operate at 101.1 mHz and signed on August 15, 1961.
As WTRN was close to his home, Simpson moved AMN's corporate operations to this station. Many of AMN's properties were in communities that were large enough to make the radio business profitable, but perhaps not quite large enough to support a typical radio station's staff at the time. Thus, many duties were centralized (traffic, billing, upper management) in the Tyrone office, requiring only airstaff and sales consultants at the individual stations. This business model would start to become the accepted standard following the first round of FCC ownership limit changes that began in 1992.
Cary Simpson, in addition to his duties as AMN President, manages WTRN and does occasional on-air work such as parade broadcasts and interviews.
WTRN also provides a window to Tyrone to many who have moved away. They have teamed up with Open Door Visions, a Tyrone company to provide webcasts of Tyrone Golden Eagles football. Broadcasts may be found at http://www.tyronepa.com during the football season.
In the early summer of 2009, WTRN began broadcasting in Tyrone on W264BZ. http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/fmq?list=0&facid=1058
W264BZ is an FM translator, which retransmits the WTRN 1340 AM signal on the FM band at 100.7 MHz. The FM coverage is equal or better to the AM coverage area, especially at night.
Tyrone, Pennsylvania
Tyrone is a borough in Blair County, Pennsylvania, northeast of Altoona, on the Little Juniata River. Tyrone was of considerable commercial importance in the twentieth century. It was an outlet for the Clearfield coal fields, and it was noted for the manufacture of paper products. There were...
. The station operates at the federally assigned frequency of 1340 kHz with a full-time power output of 1,000 watt
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
s. WTRN is the flagship station for the Allegheny Mountain Network (AMN).
History
WTRN's beginnings were part of a boom in local radio station construction in the northern and central part of Pennsylvania that began in 1950. In 1947, Allegheny Mountain Network founder Cary H. Simpson helped build WHUN, where he also would serve as program director, in his hometown of Huntingdon, PennsylvaniaHuntingdon, Pennsylvania
Huntingdon is a borough in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania. It is the county seat of Huntingdon County. It is located along the Juniata River, west of Harrisburg, about halfway between Pittsburgh and Harrisburg, in an agricultural and fruit-growing region, with valuable forests and deposits of...
; approximately 20 miles southeast of Tyrone in Huntingdon County. Inspired by the station's success, Simpson built the first station in his group, WKBI (AM) in St. Marys, Pennsylvania
St. Marys, Pennsylvania
St. Marys is a city in Elk County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 14,502 at the 2000 census. Originally a small, Bavarian Catholic town, St. Marys was founded December 8, 1842. It is home to Straub Brewery and the first Benedictine convent in the United States. In 1992, the...
. As this was the very first station in his group, WKBI served as the flagship station for the other stations that Simpson would build and put on the air over the next four decades.
Desiring to put a station on the air in his newly-adopted hometown of Tyrone, Simpson petitioned the FCC for an AM license to be assigned to Tyrone. A construction permit was granted, and Simpson signed WTRN on the air on January 12, 1955. Simpson also successfully applied for an FM license to also be assigned to Tyrone. That station, WGMR (which was sold to Forever Broadcasting in Altoona in 2008), was granted license to operate at 101.1 mHz and signed on August 15, 1961.
As WTRN was close to his home, Simpson moved AMN's corporate operations to this station. Many of AMN's properties were in communities that were large enough to make the radio business profitable, but perhaps not quite large enough to support a typical radio station's staff at the time. Thus, many duties were centralized (traffic, billing, upper management) in the Tyrone office, requiring only airstaff and sales consultants at the individual stations. This business model would start to become the accepted standard following the first round of FCC ownership limit changes that began in 1992.
WTRN Today
WTRN, like its affiliate stations, continues to be community-focused, despite a trend of many rural radio stations with larger market penetration to serve larger markets. News Director Jean Dixon, who has been with the station since its sign-on, continues to air an hour-long local news block at 10am weekday mornings, which also includes interviews with local townspeople. Another longtime AMN staffer, Peg Baney, does sales for WTRN.Cary Simpson, in addition to his duties as AMN President, manages WTRN and does occasional on-air work such as parade broadcasts and interviews.
WTRN also provides a window to Tyrone to many who have moved away. They have teamed up with Open Door Visions, a Tyrone company to provide webcasts of Tyrone Golden Eagles football. Broadcasts may be found at http://www.tyronepa.com during the football season.
In the early summer of 2009, WTRN began broadcasting in Tyrone on W264BZ. http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/fmq?list=0&facid=1058
W264BZ is an FM translator, which retransmits the WTRN 1340 AM signal on the FM band at 100.7 MHz. The FM coverage is equal or better to the AM coverage area, especially at night.
AMN Affiliate Stations
- WEEO-FMWEEO-FMWEEO-FM is a talk radio formatted broadcast radio station licensed to McConnellsburg, Pennsylvania, serving the McConnellsburg/Chambersburg area. WEEO has had several previous formats including CHR and alternative rock as "Hot 103.7" and "Revolution 103.7"...
Chambersburg http://www.revolution1037.net/ - WKBI-AM St. Marys http://www.b94fm.net/
- WKBI-FMWKBI-FMWKBI-FM, known as "B94", is a Hot AC music formatted radio station based in Saint Marys, Pennsylvania. It is part of the Allegheny Mountain Radio Network, a group of rural northern Pennsylvania radio stations based in Tyrone Operated by Cary Simpson.-History:...
St. Marys http://www.wkbi.net/ - WQRMWQRMWXMT is a commercially licensed FM radio station licensed to Smethport, Pennsylvania, the seat of McKean County. The station broadcasts at 106.3 MHz with an effective radiated power of 1,030 watts...
-FM Smethport http://www.wqrm.net/ - WFRM-AMWFRM (AM)WFRM is a commercially licensed AM radio station, licensed to Coudersport, Pennsylvania, the seat of Potter County. WFRM broadcasts at the federally assigned frequency of 600 kHz at a maximum power output of 1,000 watts day, 46 watts night...
/FM Coudersport http://www.wfrm.net/ - WNBTWNBT (AM)WNBT is a radio station broadcasting an Adult Standards/MOR music format. Licensed to Wellsboro, Pennsylvania, USA, the station serves the Elmira-Corning area. The station is currently owned by Farm & Home Broadcasting Company and features programing from Citadel Media....
/WNBT-FMWNBT-FMWNBT-FM is a radio station broadcasting a Pop Contemporary Hit Radio music format. Licensed to Wellsboro, Pennsylvania, USA, the station serves the Elmira-Corning area. The station is currently owned by Farm & Home Broadcasting Company and features programing from Citadel Media....
Wellsboro http://www.wnbt.net/
Former AMN Affiliate Stations
- WIYQ Ebensburg (now WRKWWRKWWRKW is a commercially licensed radio station, licensed to Ebensburg, Pennsylvania. The station is owned by Forever Broadcasting of Johnstown and maintains studios and offices at 109 Plaza Drive in Johnstown. WRKW operates at the federally assigned frequency of 99.1 megahertz with an effective...
) - WFGE Tyrone/State College
- WBLFWBLFWBLF is a news radio station licensed to Bellefonte, Pennsylvania serving State College, Pennsylvania. It is currently owned by Magnum Broadcasting, Inc. WBLF was founded by Cary H...
Bellefonte - WKMCWKMCWKMC is an oldies radio station broadcasting in Altoona, Pennsylvania. It is licensed to the community of Roaring Spring, Pennsylvania; located approximately 12 miles southeast of Altoona....
Roaring Spring - WEEOWEEO (AM)WEEO is an American radio station licensed to serve Shippensburg, Pennsylvania. The station simulcasts a country music format with sister station WIOO called "Country Gold Radio"....
Shippensburg