WNGZ (1490

kHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in terms of SI base uni ...

) is an AM

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

Watkins Glen, New York Watkins Glen is a village and census-designated place in and the county seat of Schuyler County, New York, Schuyler County, New York (state), New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,829. Watkins Glen lies between the ...

. The station is owned by Seven Mountains Media. The AM station first signed on in 1968 and has undergone numerous call letter and format changes since 1990. From 2014 to 2020 the AM station carried a classic country format.

FM translators

The following

FM translator A broadcast relay station, also known as a satellite station, relay transmitter, broadcast translator (U.S.), re-broadcaster (Canada), repeater ( two-way radio) or complementary station (Mexico), is a broadcast transmitter which repeats (or tr ...

s simulcast WNGZ and are used in the station

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's goods or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create and ...

ing. It also provides

high fidelity High fidelity (hi-fi or, rarely, HiFi) is the high-quality reproduction of sound. It is popular with audiophiles and home audio enthusiasts. Ideally, high-fidelity equipment has inaudible noise and distortion, and a flat (neutral, uncolored) ...

stereophonic Stereophonic sound, commonly shortened to stereo, is a method of sound reproduction that recreates a multi-directional, 3-dimensional audible perspective. This is usually achieved by using two independent audio channels through a configurat ...

sound for the format.

History

The station originally signed on in 1968 as WGMF (for Watkins Glen/Montour Falls), a daytime-only station on 1500 kHz. Initially airing at the same frequency as

clear-channel station A clear-channel station is a North American AM radio station that has the highest level of protection from interference from other stations, particularly from nighttime skywave signals. This classification exists to ensure the viability of cross ...

WTOP WTOP may refer to: Radio stations *WTOP-FM 103.5 FM, a radio station in Washington, D.C. *WHUR-FM 96.3 FM, a radio station licensed to Washington, D.C. that held the WTOP-FM call letters from 1949 until 1971 *WFED 1500 AM, a radio station licensed ...

in Washington, D.C., WGMF later moved to 1490 kHz to broadcast 24 hours a day. In the late 1980s, while still a daytimer, WGMF simulcast the signal from WNGZ (104.9 FM), which, due to topography, had poor reception in Watkins Glen (WNGZ was licensed to nearby Montour Falls but targeted to listeners in the Elmira-Corning area). In 1990, WGMF originated a locally programmed oldies format as "Famous 1490". In 2004, the station aired an

adult standards Adult standards (also sometimes known as the nostalgia or Big Band format) is a North American radio format heard primarily on AM or class A FM stations. Adult standards started in the 1950s and is aimed at "mature" adults, meaning mainly tho ...

format as WTYX. The station was assigned the WRCE call letters 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 January 22,

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

. WRCE's tower collapsed on December 14, 2009, killing a worker and causing the station to go silent.Fybush, Scott (2009-12-21)
KDKA's Fred Honsberger Dies
''NorthEast Radio Watch''. Retrieved 2009-12-21. A new tower was constructed in 2010 by chief engineer Benjamin Van Patten. From June 30 to July 4, 2011, WRCE ran a simulcast of "The Bunny," a temporary radio station operated by the band

Phish Phish is an American rock band formed in Burlington, Vermont, in 1983. The band consists of guitarist Trey Anastasio, bassist Mike Gordon, drummer Jon Fishman, and keyboardist Page McConnell, all of whom perform vocals, with Anastasio being the ...

for the weekend-long Superball IX concert festival at Watkins Glen International. The Bunny also broadcast on Sirius XM's Jam On station and streamed on the Phish website, with an eclectic mix of music and live broadcasts of all eight concert sets performed by Phish over the weekend. Along with the rest of Backyard Broadcasting's New York assets, WRCE was sold to

Community Broadcasters, LLC Community Broadcasters, LLC is a Watertown, New York based radio holding group that owns radio stations in its own market and surrounding areas. It was founded by media executives Bruce Mittman and Jim Leven, and started out in 2006 by buying st ...

effective August 26, 2013 at a price of $3.6 million. Shortly after purchasing the station, Community Broadcasters ended the simulcast of 104.9 WNGZ and its affiliations with the

Motor Racing Network Motor Racing Network (MRN) is an American radio network that syndicates broadcasts of auto racing events, particularly NASCAR. MRN was founded in 1970 by NASCAR founder Bill France, Sr. and broadcaster Ken Squier, and is a wholly owned subsidiary ...

Performance Racing Network The Performance Racing Network or PRN for short is a radio syndication network controlled by Speedway Motorsports (SMI) founded in 1981. PRN airs NASCAR Cup Series and Xfinity Series events held at Speedway Motorsports owned tracks. PRN fi ...

, Indy Racing Network, and

Watkins Glen International Raceway Watkins Glen International, nicknamed "The Glen", is an automobile race track in the northeastern United States, located in Dix, New York, just southwest of the village of Watkins Glen, at the southern tip of Seneca Lake. It is long known a ...

. The station carried the

ESPN Radio ESPN Radio, which is alternatively branded platform-agnostically as ESPN Audio, is an American sports radio network and extension of the ESPN television network. It was launched on January 1, 1992, under the banner "SportsRadio ESPN". The netw ...

Network for a very short period in 2014 before the station switched formats to a satellite-provided classic country format. In 2019, Community Broadcasters sold its New York assets to Seven Mountains Media. On July 3, 2020, WRCE adopted an

active rock Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock stations play a balance of new hard rock songs with valued classic rock favorites, normally with an emphasis on the harder edge o ...

format branded as "Wingz 93" and its call sign was changed to WNGZ, absorbing the format and call sign of the former WNGZ, which became FM 104.9 when that station was sold off to a religious broadcaster.Seven Mountains Media Flips Five Stations In Elmira
, ''RadioInsight''. July 3, 2020. Retrieved July 5, 2020.

References

External links

WNGZ official website
* * * * {{Seven Mountains Media NGZ (AM) Radio stations established in 1969 1969 establishments in New York (state) Schuyler County, New York Active rock radio stations in the United States Seven Mountains Media