Broadcast area | South suburban Chicago Northwest Indiana |
---|---|
Frequency | 1600 kHz |
Programming | |
Format | Full service (1959–1997) Adult standards (1997–2009) |
History | |
First air date | August 27, 1959[1] |
Last air date | April 10, 2009 |
Call sign meaning | W ChicaGO |
Technical information | |
Facility ID | 39386 |
Class | D |
Power | 1,000 watts day[2] 23 watts night[3][2] |
WCGO (1600 AM) was a radio station licensed to Chicago Heights, Illinois, United States. The station ran 1,000 watts during the day and 23 watts at night.[2][3]
WCGO served southern Cook County, Illinois, most of central and eastern Will County, Illinois, and northern Lake County, Indiana during daytime hours, while its nighttime coverage was more limited.[4] The station had a two tower directional array in northern Ford Heights, Illinois, and had a directional pattern to the northeast and southwest to protect WMCW in Harvard, Illinois and WARU in Peru, Indiana, which were on the same frequency.[3][4]
WCGO began broadcasting August 27, 1959 and was owned by South Cook Broadcasting, Inc.; Anthony Santucci, president; Anthony DiCarlo, vice president; Gustav Hahn, secretary; Tony D'Amico, treasurer.[5][6][7] The station originally broadcast 1,000 watts during daytime hours only.[5]
WCGO had long aired a full service format, airing a variety of local programming and playing Middle of the road (MOR) music, which in early years included pop standards and later on adult contemporary.[8][9][10][11] Much of the station's local news, talk and community programming was simulcast on its sister station 102.3 WTAS in Crete, Illinois, until 1992.[9][10][12][13] In 1985, the station began airing the Warren Freiberg - Libby Collins Show, which had been heard on 106.3 WLNR in Lansing, Illinois since 1973.[12] In 1992, the station shifted to an all talk format.[13][14]
In the summer of 1994, Anthony Santucci sold WCGO to M&M Broadcasting, a firm led by former Hammond, Indiana mayor Thomas McDermott, Sr. for $230,000.[15][16][17] In August 1994, WCGO began nighttime operations, with light adult contemporary music airing from 7 pm to 5:59 am, while talk programming continued to air during the day.[18] In 1997, M&M Broadcasting sold the station to Q Broadcasting for $400,000.[19][20]
In 1997, the station adopted an adult standards format, featuring programming from Stardust, and later its successors; Timeless Favorites, Timeless Classics and Timeless.[21][22][23][17][24] During this period the station was known as "Unforgettable 1600".[7][24][25] WCGO continued to air this format until the station was taken off the air in 2009.[17][24]
In 2002, the station was purchased by Kovas Communications for $750,000, who intended to take it, along with 1580 WKKD and 1600 WMCW, off the air in order to enable co-owned station 1590 WONX in Evanston, Illinois to increase its daytime power.[26][27][25] WCGO went silent on April 10, 2009,[28] and its license was surrendered to the FCC, enabling 1590 WONX to increase its daytime power from 3,500 watts to 7,000 watts.[29][25] On April 13, 2009, 1590 WONX took on the WCGO call sign.[30] Kovas Communications had held a construction permit, which would have moved the station to Jenison, Michigan (near Grand Rapids), broadcasting on 1020 kHz at 10,000 watts during daytime hours only, though this move never occurred.[25]