WPGW (AM)
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WPGW "PG-14" (for "Portland- Glenn West" ) is a commercial AM broadcasting station at 1440 kHz in Portland, Indiana serving East Central Indiana and West Central Ohio.
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[edit] Early history 1951-1974
Glenn West, a local electronics engineer founded the AM station in 1950 with its initial sign-on that took place January 14,1951. From that point until the summer of 1974.
West (owner/operator/original licensee) and his wife ran the station with a potporri of big band nostalgia,middle of the road and adult standards. ABC Radio news aired at the top and bottom of the hour and again at five minutes before the top of the hour. At the time WPGW was only a daytime station. An FM grant from the FCC was given to West as a construction permit in 1973 but due to West's advancing age and health concerns,the station was put up for sale.
[edit] PG-14 Radio 1974-present
In the summer of 1974. West and his wife retired and sold the daytime station to Bob Brandon(previously with WOWO in Fort Wayne) who replaced the musical potpourri with a mix of adult contemporary and oldies under the new corporate name and licensee WPGW Inc. incorporating a "new look" for the station using the nickname "PG-14"
WPGW-FM signed on under Brandon's ownership on May 19,1975. At first as a simulcast and continuation of PG-14's programming in the evening hours before WPGW-FM switched to "Jay Country 101" a country music format in 1980. Both AM and FM formats remain in place.
Contrary to popular belief, the MPAA "PG-13" rating (which was not incorporated until 1984) was not the inspiration for the "PG-14" branding. Instead it is an acronym for the call letters and frequency without having to use the "W" portions of the call sign at the beginning and end...examplified by Buffalo,New York's WKBW nickname "KB"...hence it was one of the first brandings of its kind used in Indiana radio ..possibly a later inspration for WFBQ "Q-95" in 1975 and WZWZ "Z-93" in 1978.
WPGW-AM now operates in the evening hours with reduced power. It's normal daytime power is 500 watts.
WPGW's studios and transmitter remains located west of Portland on Indiana State Road 67 where West founded the station.
WPGW's sister station is WZBD (the former WQTZ) founded in August of 1993 located to the north in Berne operating under the licensee name Adams County Radio Inc.
