I never intended to get into campus stations research. I planned to save the effort because it seems theres already a lot written about college campus history. My intention was to remain focused on the part 15 AM history that no one has ever written about, and incorporate a superficial history of campus stations into it.
But about 6 or 7 months ago I began to realize it was going to be neccessary to give the topic just as much priority as I was giving the free-radiating method.. (same goes for TIS actually). Theres no separating them because they all had direct impacts on each other.
One particularly interesting thing is that carrier-current stations are the only Part 15 AM stations that I know of which the FCC actually reserved call letters for. All of them. Beginning in 1942 (or thereabouts, maybe it was 44, I forget off the top of my head) and on through at least the early 1950s. The only problem is I have not found a shred of FCC documentation to support this fact. But it's all over decades of college station documents.
The reason I bring it up now is because I just received from Jenifer (who's been personally digging into on location college archives for years and is presently adding and coordinating documents for the DLARC section of the Internet Archive) a 1950 thesis which I hadn't previously seen. I particularly like these early thesis from the 40s and 50s. She also knows I have a particular interest in finding confirmable facts about FCC actually issuing call letters, so she sent me this which should be showing up on the Archive in the coming weeks.
What's particular about this one is that it gives actual dates of the correspondence with the FCC, and thus vastly increases my chance of finding it in the FCC archives, something confirmable. Because I've been half suspecting for some time that perhaps the colleges just thought the call letters were official, but in reality all the FCC was doing was telling them if the call letters were unused (like us checking a database today.
Anyway, here's an excerpt from
University of the Pacific Theses and
Dissertations Graduate School
1951
The development of radio station KRJC at Modesto Junior
College
Edward L. McClarty
University of the Pacific
[Page 15]
"In a letter of August 28, 1950, to the secretary of the Federal Communications Commission, KRJC requested an official assignment of call letters by the Commission.
KRJC was informed in previous communications from the Commission that the call letters KMJC were unavailable for its use, and therefore the station sent a list of ten sets of call letters to the Commission for its consideration.
KRJC was fifth on the list of suggested call letters, and in the Commission's answer of September 8, 1950, the station was advised that the call KRJC is being reserved for the Modesto Junior College campus system."
@RichardPowers In the 1950s St. Louis University had a carrier current station called KBIL, named for their Billikens Basketball Team at AM 590, serving about 3 dorm buildings. I knew the student engineer who kept it going. After it ceased operation 590 was taken over by a licensed 1 kW station called WRTH.
I'll keep an eye at for KBIL, dont know anything about it, it doesnt ring a bell (Though KSLU does) I'll ask Jenifer if she's familiar with it or has any documentation. Currently my focus has been on the first decade (1940s), so I'm surprised it doesnt ring a bell. Thanks for the tip, I'll look into it.
Wiki has some very very sparse info about it: KBIL: "Identification used from 1949 to 1983 by a carrier current radio station operated at Saint Louis University (nowKSLU)"
I've never heard of FCC issuing call letters to Part 15 stations...Always have been they don't need and won't issue them for part 15...I'll do a little searching around to see if they ever did...
@wefr yeah, I've been digging around for awhile trying to find FCC documents to confirm it but so far havent. (I posted about it several month ago at https://www.hfunderground.com/board/index.php/topic,130568.0.html). But have lots of IBS (intercollegiate broadcasting system) documents that confirm it.
When I found out my first thought was that it explains the rule that says part 15 stations could call themselves whatever they want, which is oddly found in the part 73 rules, but it has no relation because that rule did not show up until the early 1970s and probably arose due to the park and highway transmitters.
I would if they did, you'd think there would be some documentation somewhere on the internet about it...If I come across anything I'll post it...
You know FCC documentation gets pretty spotty prior to the 1950s, this is commonly known to researchers. One of the most outrageous things is the missing Docket 5335 - Its an actual transcription, over 100 pages long, of the meering between the FCC and electronic manufactures in 1938 which took place almost immediately before Part 15 was created. It is where the actuall original rules were laid out - Well, it remained in the national archives until the FCC borrowed it in 1974 but never returned it. The national archives didn't officially reported it as missing until around 1990.
New information! Courtesy of Jenifer who clued me into it today.. The FCC discontinued reserving call letters for part 15 stations in October of 1958, then after protest resumed the practice, but discontinued it again in 1964
archive.org/details/journalofcollege233unse/page/8/mode/2up?q=%22Call+letters%22
".. In October, 1958, the FCC decided to discontinue the practice of reserving call letters for campus stations. The decision was reached without notice to IBS or to the stations whose call letters had been previously reserved. IBS immediately filed a protest with the Commission and distributed questionnaires to most of the 240 campus stations. Strengthened by the response to the questionnaire, IBS carried its argument to Commissioner Hyde and Bureau Chief Plummer. In October, 1959, the Commission staff reversed itself and resumed issuing calls to IBS members.
Meanwhile, IBS's Washington Office stepped up negotiations with the Commission staff for an increase in the permissable radiation allowed campus stations. Docket 9288 was finally closed out on April 27, 1964 with no change in the radiation allowed campus station.."
No... correction.. I read it wrong, it doesn't say they quit reserving call letters it in 1964 . It just says they closed docket 9288 in 1964, which had been the docket proposing to licensed carrier current stations after going around in circles on the matter since 1947.. I think it was in 47 anyway..
Here in Canada ISED won't issue call letters for BETS stations, but they will for RSS-123 (a licensed form, designed to operate within specific geographic boundaries, and having a field strength of 100uv at those boundaries).
There was a station in Vankleek Hill, Ontario, that had been issued call letters, at least when I researched it years ago. They still operate today, but are mainly an Internet station. They still transmit over-the-air, but only non-music, given that RSS-123 stations are supposed to provide information-only (i.e., they're not broadcasters in the sense defined by ISED and the CRTC).
@artisan-radio Well, just to clarify, the FCC do not, and never have issue call letters to part 15 stations here either - with exception to college part 15 stations, and the question still remains on if they still do it today, shouldn't be hard to find out, thus far I've always researched it from an historic perspective, maybe they still do it. All that is presently clear is that they did reserve them from the mid 1940s untill at least the mid 1960s.
For quite some time now Jennifer has been traveling and visiting colleges on-site for the primary purpose of rummaging through individual college stations closets, desk drawers and stored away boxes of documentations of each stations records, because that's the only place (for the most part) the history of college radio exist. She is also the primary curator of the Internet Archives repository of such documentation, she's also served on official FCC interference workshop task force meetings, and top it off the founder and often host of the Radio Survivor radio program that airs on over 50 LPFM and Part15 stations in the U.S. as well as at least on in Canada, and even one in Ireland!..
Although her focus is on college radio history as a whole, she knows my interest in college is limited only to it's part 15 operations, and is also aware of my keen interest in the revelation of the FCCs apparent issuance of call letters to those part 15 stations in the past and often alerts me when she happens to come across something pertaining to it. Without her, none of these documents would ever have seen the light of day, they would still be stuffed away in crumpled heaps crammed in some far corner for years and probably eventually tossed in the trash (a lot of it may already have been trashed). It is only because of her diligent work that these documents are even available. The dont exist in the National Archives
She often sends me documents that has not yet been made public and ask me not to share it until after she's had a chance to curate and get them added to the Archive, and I've always honored her request.
Anyway, a few minutes ago she sent me the link to another document that she just added to the Internet Archive that addresses past FCC issued part 15 call letters which is absolute gold (they're all gold, but this one tops the cake). This one, like the previous document she acquired from her recent visit to Yale University: https://archive.org/details/wybc-radio
What I find most significant is that it talks about a 2 hour conversation IBS had in 1958 with the Cheif of the FCCs "Safety and Special Radio Services Bureau", concerning the FCCs decision to discontinue their reservation of call letters. The cheif explained to them that the FCCs issuing of call letters to part 15 stations "were causing his Bureau acute embarassment when requested by licensees.." because the call letters they wanted were already registered to a existing part 15 station! It also contains copy of an official letter the FCC sent them December 16, 1958 (portions of it anyway) which I quote below:
"For a number of years the Commission has reserved call letters for "campus broadcast" stations although these stations are not licensed by the Commission. Consequently the call letters are not available for licensed stations, such as Marine, Broadcast, etc, ...Recentiy there have been requests from licensed stations for the calls so reserved,
"The Commission has recently changed the policy to operate as follows:
(a) Requests for reserving call letters for ‘campus broadcast! stations are no longer honored.
(b) ‘Campus broadcast’ stations may use any call letters they wish even though they may be assigned to a licensed radio satation, since the Commission does not licenses ‘campus broadcast! stations.
(c) As soon as a licensed station requests a call already reserved for a ‘campus broadcast’ station, the call letter will be assigned to the licensed station and the ‘campus broadcast' station will be notified of the assignment, the ‘'campus broadcast’ station may continue to use the call letters or any other-in accordance, with (b} above,"
Besides the relevancy of the document itself, it's also rather curious that the FCC said they could still continue using the call letters even if a licenced station adopted it! Very wow!
...and as revealed previously, the IBS petitioned the FCC and the FCC agreed to resume their practice of Reservation of Call Letters for college part 15 stations. At this point I dont know when or if they ever quit doing it.
@richpowers For those who may not know, who is Jennifer?