| City of license | Berryville, Virginia |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Berryville, Virginia Winchester, Virginia |
| Branding | "105-5 The Bone" |
| Slogan | "The Valley's Rock Station" |
| Frequency | 105.5 MHz |
| First air date | August 13, 1979 |
| Format | Active Rock |
| Power | 3,000 Watts |
| HAAT | 91 Meters |
| Class | A |
| Facility ID | 60363 |
| Callsign meaning | WX BoNe |
| Former callsigns | WWOO (1979-1987) WAPP (1987-2002) WWRE (2002-2009) WXNB (2009-2011) WXBN (2011-Present)[1] |
| Affiliations | ABC FM News Baltimore Ravens Radio Free Beer and Hot Wings Show |
| Owner | Centennial Broadcasting (Centennial Licensing II, LLC) |
| Sister stations | WINC-AM, WINC-FM, WZFC |
| Website | WXBN Online |
WXBN is an Active Rock formatted radio station broadcasting from Berryville, Virginia and broadcasting to the Northern Shenandoah Valley. WXBN are owned and operated by Centennial Broadcasting.
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WXBN signed in on August 13, 1979 as WWOO. Owned by then WYII (now WICL) owner Ken Smith. "MusicRadio 105" was the first station in the Winchester, VA area to broadcast 24-hours a day. At its sign-on, WWOO was a Hot Adult Contemporary format.
Money problems silenced WWOO in the Spring of 1981, but by the Fall of 1981, WWOO returned with a country/bluegrass format.
Calls changed on June 15, 1987 to WAPP (APPle) and the first time "Apple Country" would be heard on the Winchester airwaves. Former WUSQ morning host Jenny Lynn got her start at WAPP.
In 1989, WAPP was bought by the company that owned Strasburg station WESI. The combined stations flipped to a Light Adult Contemporary format.
In 1989, the Berryville studios of the combined 104.9 FM and 105.5 FM were closed and moved to the already open WESI studios in Strasburg.
The combined "Lite 105" switched to Oldies on February 24, 1992 and the 104.9 FM calls were flipped to WBPP. Branding was also changed to "Good Time Rock and Roll...104-9, 105-5, WAPP". Most programming came from ABC Radio's "Oldies Radio" network.
In 1997, Mid-Atlantic (owners of WINC/WINC-FM, bought WAPP/WBPP and took the stations dark for 3 weeks in 1997. The stations came back as a Country format, branded as "Apple Country", the second time 105.5 broadcasted that branding.
"Apple Country" never attracted any listeners from cross-town country powerhouse WUSQ, but it had a loyal, though small, following. Former WUSQ morning show host Jenny Lynn worked mornings for the new "Apple Country" station, but it was not enough.
After only five years, WAPP and WBPP switched their calls and format on April 15, 2002. After a stint of playing Johnny Paycheck's "Take This Job and Shove It" and a DJ "holding the station hostage", the new format became a Classic rock format under the branding "Real Classic Rock".
In 2003, The Virginia Association of Broadcasters awarded then morning host Joe Sanchez, the "Best Morning Show in a Medium Market" honors.
In 2005, nationally syndicated "Bob and Tom" became the morning hosts and Joe Sanchez was moved to afternoons.
The Classic rock format placed consistently ahead of crosstown classic/new rocker WFQX in the Arbitron ratings.
Both of the 104.9 FM and 105.5 FM signals can be heard across the Winchester area, but come in the clearest in the towns nearest to their towers, due to the terrain of the area.
On April 13, 2007, media websites DCRTV in Washington DC reported that WWRE-FM and WWRT-FM, along with sisters WINC and WINC-FM in Winchester and WBQB-FM and WFVA-AM in Fredericksburg, VA, had been sold to Centennial Broadcasting based in Roanoke, VA. No further information has been released.
On May 17, 2007, it was finally reported and confirmed that Centennial Broadcasting had bought the stations for $36 Million. According to a Winchester Star article, no changes would be made at any of the stations in format or staff.
Five months later, WWRT/WWRE Program Director and Midday DJ Kym McKay, moved to WWEG (in nearby Hagerstown) to take a midday shift there. WWRT/WWRE dropped nationally syndicated "Bob & Tom". That program was replaced with former morning DJ and current afternoon DJ Joe Sanchez. Joe Sanchez was released in January 2008 and replaced by Ron Baker, who came from nearby Martinsburg stations WICL and WLTF. Ron Baker retires from Radio in July 2009 to pursue a budding voice over career. Joe Sanchez moved on to WMDM-FM in Southern Maryland where he served and Morning Show Host and Program Director, though was laid off in February 2009 from WMDM-FM due to budget cuts and resurfaced as WLTF at the Program Director and Morning Show Host.
On September 17, 2007, the station began "stunting" by playing "everything" rock with a new Active Rock format to follow. The station also dropped their branding as "Real Classic Rock". Three days later at noon on September 20, the station became "Rock 104-9 105-5" with the slogan "Everything That Rocks". The station launched a then-new website at everythingthatrocks.fm.[2]
On November 30, 2009, the station's website began showing a single promotional Flash animation indicating a new branding change starting on December 3. This change was also being announced repeatedly throughout the on-air broadcast.
Shortly after noon on December 3, 2009, WWRE and WWRT became WXNB and WXBN respectively. The station would ultimately only change branding to "The Bone" and keep their Active Rock format. The station also launched a new website rockthebone.com.[3] The station would also pick up the nationally syndicated Free Beer and Hot Wings Show during weekday mornings. The station continues to carry Baltimore Ravens football games live.
On September 12, 2011, the callsign for 104.9 was changed to WZFC, while the callsign for 105.5 was changed to WXBN (formerly at 104.9). The two stations, while still simulcasting together, are only being ID'd as "105-5 The Bone". Also on September 12, media website VARTV.com reported the 104.9 frequency might be switching to a Country format, which took place the morning of September 19.
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