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History of WHGN
Thanks to Marc
Tyll for this history of WHGN.
West Central Florida’s 50,000 watt Christian powerhouse FM started out with
very humble beginnings. It all began in 1986 when former 100,000 watt Christian
station WRYO-FM 98.5 was sold, and the new owners changed the format to
adult contemporary with new call letters - WKTK. This left West Central
Florida without a local Christian voice, so a group of concerned religious
leaders, headed by Peter Swartz, formed Christian Family Cinema, Inc. and
plans were made to find another radio home for the former WRYO religious
programming. Six years later WXJC-FM ("Exalting Jesus Christ")
went on the air with 18,500 watts on 91.9 MHz. Interestingly the WXJC
transmitter site was located at the former WRYO tower site which had been
vacated when WKTK (the former WRYO) moved to a new, taller
tower located approximately 20 miles North of Citrus County. The original studio
location was in Homosassa Springs off Grover Cleveland Boulevard, also
know as “Chicken-Farm Road” because of all the poultry farms that once lined
both sides of the highway many years ago before developers purchased most of the
property. WXJC operated from a donated double wide mobile home from the
Grover Cleveland site for almost nine years. In 2001, Swartz sold WXJC-FM
to C. W. Caldwell who had purchased the former WAVQ-FM 104.3 three
years earlier. WAVQ had become religious formatted WHGN
and was donated to the Seven Rivers Broadcast Ministries. However the
104.3 class A signal had limited reach. With the WXJC purchased, Caldwell
was able to increase the 91.9 power to 50,000 watts with a slight tower move. A
new tower was constructed approximately three miles North of the original tower
location in an area just off Old Homosassa Trail between Homosassa and Crystal
River. The original WHGN became WIFL with the WHGN call letters (We Have Good News) moving to the
91.9 frequency along with all WHGN programming under
a simulcast arrangement. The studios were moved from the mobile home in
Homosassa Springs to the Meadowcrest Office Complex in Crystal River. After
three years under Seven Rivers Broadcast Ministries, the Seven Rivers
Presbyterian Church, Seven Rivers Broadcast Ministries’ parent,
decided to sell both stations. The original WHGN,
which had become WIFL, was sold to Sabatino Cupelli becoming Jack
formatted “WOW 104.3”, while the new WHGN-FM
91.9 was sold to the Moody Bible Institute of Chicago. The
Meadowcrest studios went with Cupelli and WIFL, while WHGN
became a relay station for WKES-FM 91.1 Lakeland, another Moody
radio station serving Tampa Bay. Today WHGN programs
a variety of inspirational music, Bible teaching and Christian talk programs
catering to and serving the listeners in a 7 county area primary residing
in West Central and Central Florida.
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GN-FM
91.9
