WAIT (AM)

For the radio station at 820 AM that held the call sign WAIT from 1941 to 1986 and 2005 to 2007, see WCPT (AM).
WAIT
Broadcast areaChicago metropolitan area
Frequency850 kHz
Programming
FormatDefunct
History
First air date
October 1, 1965 (1965-10-01)[1]
Last air date
August 27, 2019 (2019-08-27)[2]
Former call signs
  • WCLR (1965–1969)[3]
  • WIVS (1969–1986)[3][4]
  • WAIT (1986–2005)[4]
  • WCPT (2005–2007)[4]
Technical information[5]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID53504
ClassD
Power2,500 watts (daytime only)
Transmitter coordinates
42°15′30.1″N 88°21′48.3″W / 42.258361°N 88.363417°W / 42.258361; -88.363417
Links
Public license information

WAIT (850 kHz) was an AM radio station licensed to Crystal Lake, Illinois, and serving the Chicago metropolitan area. It was licensed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) as a Class D station and broadcast only during daytime hours, signing off at sunset to protect KOA in Denver, the clear-channel station on 850 kHz.[6]

The station had a highly directional pattern, with nulls to the northeast and southwest, to protect WGVS in Muskegon, Michigan, and KFUO in Clayton, Missouri. Because of its northwest suburban location and directional pattern, WAIT could be heard in Rockford, Illinois, and Janesville, Wisconsin, in addition to the Chicago media market.[7]

  1. ^ Ghrist, John R. (1996). Valley Voices: A Radio History. Crossroads Communications. p. 143-150.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Feder82819 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b History Cards for WAIT, fcc.gov. Retrieved December 31, 2018.
  4. ^ a b c Call Sign History, fcc.gov. Retrieved December 31, 2018.
  5. ^ "Facility Technical Data for WAIT". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  6. ^ WAIT fcc.gov. Accessed January 8, 2014
  7. ^ "Predicted Coverage Area for WAIT 850 AM, Crystal Lake, IL", Radio Locator. Retrieved December 31, 2018.