WGOL (920 AM, "Real Country 920") is a

radio station Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based rad ...

licensed A license (American English) or licence (Commonwealth English) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another part ...

to serve

Russellville, Alabama Russellville is a city in Franklin County in the U.S. state of Alabama. At the 2020 census, the population of the city was 10,855, up from 9,830 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Franklin County. History After the War of 1812, ...

, United States. The station is owned by Pilati Investments Corporation.

Programming

WGOL broadcasts a Classic Country music format in

C-QUAM C-QUAM (Compatible QUadrature Amplitude Modulation) is the method of AM stereo broadcasting used in Canada, the United States and most other countries. It was invented in 1977 by Norman Parker, Francis Hilbert, and Yoshio Sakaie, and published in ...

AM Stereo AM stereo is a term given to a series of mutually incompatible techniques for radio broadcasting stereo audio in the AM band in a manner that is compatible with standard AM receivers. There are two main classes of systems: independent sideban ...

. In addition to its usual music programming, WGOL carries significant sports programming as a member of the

Alabama Crimson Tide The Alabama Crimson Tide refers to the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic varsity teams that represent the University of Alabama, located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide teams compete in the Na ...

Sports Network. This includes

Alabama Crimson Tide football The Alabama Crimson Tide football program represents the University of Alabama (variously Alabama, UA, or Bama) in the sport of American football. The Alabama Crimson Tide, Crimson Tide competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the Nat ...

men's basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

, women's basketball,

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

, and the ''Hey Coach'' call-in show with Crimson Tide head coaches.

History

This station first

signed on A sign-on (or start-up in Commonwealth countries except Canada) is the beginning of operations for a radio broadcasting, radio or television station, generally at the start of each day. It is the opposite of a sign-off (or closedown in Commonw ...

1949 Events January * January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2025 * January 2 – Luis ...

as WWWR. WWWR made national headlines in early 1950 when a three-foot rattlesnake forced the radio station off the air for "more than an hour." Engineers discovered the snake had "crawled into the tuning unit, shorting the circuit." In March 1986, SIS Sound of Russellville, Inc. reached an agreement to purchase WWWR from Franklin Broadcasting, Inc. The deal was approved by the

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, internet, wi-fi, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains j ...

on June 4, 1986, and the transaction was consummated on October 28, 1986. The station's new owners had the FCC assign new call letters WJRD on August 17, 1987. On November 15, 1997, William A. Grant Jr., the owner of WJRD license holder SIS Sound of Russellville, Inc., died. In March 1998, control of the company passed involuntarily to William A. Grant III and Walter B. Grant. The

approved this transfer on May 21, 1998, and it was formally consummated on the same day. The station was immediately put up for sale. In June 1998, McCurry Broadcasting Company, Inc. reached an agreement to purchase WJRD from SIS Sound of Russellville, Inc. The deal was approved by the FCC on July 29, 1998, and the transaction was consummated on August 12, 1998. The new owners applied for and received new call letters WGOL from the FCC on August 17, 1998. In December 1999, Wanda Patricia Underwood reached an agreement to purchase WGOL from McCurry Broadcasting Company, Inc. The deal was approved by the FCC on January 20, 2000, and the transaction was consummated on January 24, 2000. In April 2005, Pilati Investments Corporation (Karl H. Pilati, president) reached an agreement to purchase WGOL from Wanda Patricia Underwood. The station sold for a reported $171,500. The FCC approved the deal on August 25, 2005, and the transaction was consummated on August 31, 2005.

References

External links

WGOL official website

FCC History Cards for WGOL
{{AM Stereo radio stations GOL Classic country radio stations in the United States Sports radio stations in the United States Radio stations established in 1949 Franklin County, Alabama 1949 establishments in Alabama