WSTJ

WSTJ (1340 AM, "The Trail 104.1") is a radio station broadcasting an adult album alternative format. Licensed to St. Johnsbury, Vermont, United States, the station is currently owned by Vermont Broadcast Associates, Inc. WSTJ is an affiliate of the Boston Red Sox Radio Network.

WSTJ
Broadcast areaCaledonia County, Vermont
Frequency1340 kHz
BrandingThe Trail 104.1
Programming
FormatAdult album alternative
AffiliationsBoston Red Sox Radio Network
Ownership
OwnerVermont Broadcast Associates, Inc.
WKXH, WMTK, WGMT
History
First air date
July 10, 1949 (1949-07-10)[1]
Former call signs
WTWN (1949–1979)
Call sign meaning
St. Johnsbury
Technical information
Facility ID49403
ClassC
Power1,000 watts unlimited
Transmitter coordinates
44°25′6.00″N 71°59′45.00″W
Translator(s)104.1 MHz W281CC (St. Johnsbury)
Links
WebcastWSTJ 1340AM Web Stream
WebsiteWSTJ 1340AM

History
Fuller Hall at St. Johnsbury Academy was the location of WTWN's first broadcast[2]

Twin State Broadcasters, Inc., obtained a construction permit for a new 250-watt radio station to serve St. Johnsbury on 1340 kHz on May 25, 1949.[3] WTWN had its formal opening on July 10, 1949;[2] the original studios were built atop what had been a manure pit on a farm.[4] Two years later, it lived up to its Twin States moniker when it established a satellite studio in Littleton, New Hampshire.[5] Three years after the station began broadcasting, Don Mullally joined and eventually took over the morning shift: he would remain at the station for most of the next 64 years (with the exception of a short stint in Glens Falls, New York and a brief retirement to serve as the director of the Caledonia County fair[4]), leaving the air for good only two weeks before his death in 2016;[6] he was the last station employee still playing music off of vinyl records.[4] In 1960, WTWN was approved to upgrade from 250 to 1,000 watts.[3]

E. Dean Finney, who had been a manager and owner of the station since the outset, sold WTWN in 1979 to Northeast Kingdom Broadcasting, Inc.;[3] the sale was part of a two-station transaction that also included Finney's only other broadcast holding, WIKE in Newport, as Finney said it was "time for a change" in his life.[7] The new ownership was jointly held by Brent Lambert and Eric H. Johnson, two Boston optometrists who owned stations in California and Wyoming.[8] The new owners changed the call letters to WSTJ on October 1.[3] After Johnson bought out Lambert's stake in the company—which had been transferred to a bank—in 1993,[9] Vermont Broadcast Associates bought WSTJ and the FM station it had started in 1985—WNKV (105.5 FM)—in 1998 for $630,000.[10]

In December 2020, WSTJ launched an FM translator, W281CC (104.1 FM); while the station was still featuring an oldies/adult standards format at the time, it announced its intention to review the format after the Christmas holiday.[11] The new format launched in February 2021 as adult album alternative "The Trail", so named for the region's ski and bike trails.[12]

References
  1. Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook 1999 (PDF). 1999. p. D-458. Retrieved April 24, 2017.
  2. "New Station To Open". Rutland Daily Herald. July 9, 1949. p. 6. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  3. FCC History Cards for WSTJ
  4. Ash Nixon, Amy (November 18, 2016). "Don Mullally: A Northeast Kingdom Radio Legend". Northland Journal. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  5. "WTWN Branch Studio" (PDF). Broadcasting. October 22, 1951. p. 86. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  6. Craven, Jay (December 26, 2016). "Craven: Remembering Don Mullally". Vermont Public Radio. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  7. "Boston Firm Seeks WIKE, WTWN". Burlington Free Press. July 3, 1979. p. 12A. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  8. "Changing Hands" (PDF). Broadcasting. September 17, 1979. p. 69. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  9. "Transactions" (PDF). Radio & Records. December 3, 1993. p. 6. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  10. "Transactions" (PDF). Radio & Records. February 27, 1998. p. 8. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  11. Hatch, Barbara (December 26, 2020). "Business Watch". The Caledonian-Record. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  12. "WSTJ/St. Johnsbury, VT, Launches As Triple A 'The Trail 104.1'". All Access. February 2, 2021. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
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