740 WGSM/94.3 WCTO Stereo
This is a collection of photographs and other articles I collected while
working at WGSM/WCTO
plus a large number of pictures sent to me by Robert Cohen.
If anyone has anything they would like to see added to this site
please e-mail me at:
wa2fnq@optonline.net
WGSM
This is the front page of the WGSM sales brochure. At this time 94.3 was still WGSM-FM
(the former frequency of WGLI-FM).
The Transmitter Site June 7, 1970
This was the WGSM transmitter building which housed the 1 and 5 KW transmitters.
Left - Looking toward tower #3 from tower #1.
Right - Looking up tower #2, the reference tower.
These towers wer 285 feet in height, top loaded by the upper 50 feet of guy wire. The station had
been 1 KW directional at one time and the bases for towers 1 and 3 of the original array could be
found 50 feet furthur back in the weeds. The original tower bases were the center of the
ground system for the 2 end towers. There was a ground screen under each tower extendeing 50
feet out. At the end towers it was bonded to the ground system under the old tower bases.
The base of tower #3.
The fence gate has been removed by vandals. Many years later
the vandals suceeded in cutting this tower down. There were always problems like this at the
transmitter site.
Here's a view looking up the center of one of the towers.
This picture was taken by Don Hubers brother David.
Left - The 1 KW Gates BC1F transmitter.
Right - The Gates 5 KW/1 KW BC5P2 transmitter and
phasing cabinet.
WGSM was 5 KW directional day and 1 KW non-directional during critical hours.
The BC1F was used during critical hours even though the BC5P2 could operate at 1 KW as well.
An extention was added on to the original transmitter building to house the 5 KW transmitter.
If you sat on the toilet in the bathroom and opened the window you could watch the 5 KW
transmitter.
This BC5P2 later became the back up transmitter at WLIM.
A dead Eimac 3CX2500F3. One was used in the final RF amplifier and two in
the modulator of the BC5P. This one was removed from the final of the WGSM transmitter. Many
hours of "The lively, lovely Long Island Sound" passed through it.
The old transmitter remote control rack. Picture by Phil Harris.
On Remote
The WGSM mobile unit at Hendon Pools in Commack, L.I.
Bruce Herbert on remote at Hendon Pools.
A problem we had at this remote one weekend was some kid kept running up and pulling the truck
power while Bruce was on the air.
Jim Whelan in the remote truck.
Photo courtesy of Don Huber.
Don Huber outside the WGSM remote truck.
Some WGSM stationery.
A WGSM QSL card.
This envelope I found in a drawer contained these WGSM 20th Anniversary seals.
These are the original 20th Anniversary I.D. carts done by Jack Bell.
to listen to some WGSM jingles.
The coverage map from the back of the sales brochure.