WGCH-FM?

Believe it or not, the current WGCH was not the first radio station in Greenwich. That honor belongs to the original WGCH, which broadcast not on the AM dial at 1490, where it has been since September 17, 1964, but at 95.9 on the FM side - a frequency that is currently occupied by WEFX (95.9 - The Fox) in Norwalk.

While trolling today for some goodies in regard to our current incarnation, I stumbled upon the work of Dick Bertel, who produced a program on the all-too-brief history of WGCH-FM. Fascinated, I immediately downloaded the nearly 40-minute effort and just finished listening to it. What pleases me most about it is that Mr. Bertel has included several audio clips. To my knowledge, this is the only audio proof of WGCH-AM.

I'm a big believer in the preservation of such things. No - I don't own every recording of everything I've done in radio, but I do have the items that mean the most to me. For instance, the first time my name was said on the air was when I won a contest on WVIP (AM) in 1984. I have a tape of that moment. I also have a "scoped" tape (without commercials and full songs) of my first night on the air - September 2, 1990 on WMJV (Majic 105). Obviously, I have too many other tapes and CD's to keep track of since moving on to WREF, WLNA/WBNR, and of course, WGCH.

There are literally countless websites dedicated to the history of early broadcasting in the United States, and some cool ones from the UK as well. Individual stations get the treatment as well. Try a Google search and you'll see what I mean.

I have long thought that a project on the history of WGCH would be fun to do, with pictures, artifacts and naturally, audio clip. As a history buff, I want to know what came before I arrived on that Sunday morning in March of 1997 to train for my first shift. For instance, I can tell you that before I was Sports Director, there was my old friend John Connelly. I've been told that Todd Schmidt preceded John, and perhaps Pete Gersec or Mark Yusko before that. See? It gets fuzzy - and I'm only into the 1990's.

I've stated that we've done football on WGCH for 44 years now, but to be honest, that's because I've assumed, based on what people have told me, that we began covering games in 1964 - when we first went on the air. I'd like to know more! Who else called these games?

I know there are some people with the wealth of knowledge, but now it becomes a question of time and energy - two things that are tough to find right now.

So with that said, please take a look at the pictures (just a couple), and download the recording that tells the story of the original WGCH - on the FM dial. It's a trip back to a very different time.

UPDATE (7/5/15): I've been asked - seven years since the original post - to add an addendum. A reader named Nancy wrote: "I'd appreciate it if your history included my father, Henry (Hank) Hovland, who was hired by Walter Lemmon to be the general manager of WGCH in 1964. He was the manager there until his death in 1972. He was a perfectionist and the ultimate professional in how he believed a radio station should be run, and he expected no less of all the employees. Almost every broadcast was live, every day. He was very active in the business community of Greenwich and belonged to the Rotary Club, working to get commercial time and sponsorship of many area activities. He also worked with Greenwich High School to start a student group interested in the radio field. My father was an amazing radio announcer, having started his career at WHO in Des Moines, Iowa after WWII. Walter Lemmon may have gotten WGCH its license and funding, but my father put it on the air."

Thank you, Nancy. I didn't know this story. Duly noted, and thank you to your father as well.