Wednesday marks 70 years of WCHL broadcasting its AM radio signal and programming to the Chapel Hill community. Over that time, the radio station has had many homes — which are all still around today in different forms.

Here is a history of WCHL 1360 AM through the buildings it used to occupy:

1720 East Franklin Street — 1953 – 1958

1720 East Franklin Street was the initial home for WCHL in 1953. Today, it’s home to Mill House Properties management at the corner of the Eastgate Crossing shopping center.

Sandy McClamroch, a businessman in the community and Chapel Hill Town Council member, decided to create a radio station to help improve local news coverage in the town. WCHL, an acronym for “Where Chapel Hill Listens,” first began broadcasting on January 25, 1953, as a 1,000-watt AM station. McClamroch owned it for several years and was later elected as mayor of the town in 1961 — although his involvement at WCHL continued. It was the first business is what would eventually become the Village Companies (Vilcom), a group of locally-owned radio stations and broadcast properties.

As construction plans for the Eastgate Crossing shopping center began to take shape, the radio station decided to look for a new home. Today, the building houses the headquarters for Mill House Properties, a locally-owned property management business.

1721 East Franklin Street — 1958 – 1997

WCHL didn’t have to look far for a new base of operations — moving just across the street in 1958, the year that Eastgate Crossing opened. A house was fashioned into recording spaces and radio station offices and quickly became the spot many Chapel Hill community members associated with their hometown radio station.

Staying in the building for nearly 40 years, WCHL did some of its most critical work. After moving to 24-hour broadcasting in 1968, the station was able to broaden its coverage of local history, like the local response to the Civil Rights movement and the election of Howard Lee as Chapel Hill mayor in 1969. The move to 24-hour broadcasting also meant WCHL could start carrying broadcasts and further coverage of UNC athletics events — chiefly, Carolina men’s basketball — which helped build its reputation as the flagship station for Tar Heel sports. While at 1721 East Franklin Street, the station provided coverage for dozens of Carolina basketball seasons, including two national championships won under head coach Dean Smith.

The Chapel Hill Dental Group still occupies the building today. WCHL’s AM radio tower is also still close by, in the field behind the property and along the Lower Booker Creek Trail.

The AM radio tower for WCHL is still active, with its reach consistently covering 25 miles around its position along East Franklin Street.

409 Blackwell Street (Durham) — 1997 – 2002

In 1997, Vilcom sold WCHL to the Curtis Media Group, signaling a big (albeit, brief) shift in the radio station’s existence. WCHL’s office was consolidated and moved into the facilities used by WDNC, a Durham sports-talk AM station, at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park. The studio looked out at Blackwell Street along the third base lines, underneath the concourse and seats for Durham Bulls minor league baseball games. During this period, WCHL’s local news coverage in Chapel Hill was largely shelved in favor of music or simulcast programming with WDNC.

Today, the space for the radio stations’ offices are not easily visible or accessible — and are soon to become even less so. The Durham Bulls are renovating the stadium’s side along Blackwell Street, preparing to build a Hall of Fame and history wing for the team.

88 Vilcom Center Drive — 2002 – 2016

As time went on, Vilcom aimed to return WCHL to the town limits of Chapel Hill. In 2002, the conglomerate purchased the radio station back and moved it to the Vilcom facility off Weaver Dairy Road. The building is named McClamroch Hall, after the station’s and The Village Companies’ founder.

As part of the change from Curtis Media Group, WCHL began its local news coverage once again — just in time to provide critical information to Chapel Hill listeners during an intense ice storm in 2002 and in time to celebrate the station’s 50th anniversary in 2003.

It was at McClamroch Hall where the radio station added two significant elements to its modern identity: an FM signal and a news website, Chapelboro.com.

In August 2015, the future of WCHL was becoming unclear — until investor Leslie Rudd, and the trio of local businessmen Chris Ehrenfeld, Jim Kitchen and Mark Vitali, teamed up to purchase the station. Together, they formed the Chapel Hill Media Group, which currently operates WCHL and Chapelboro.

201 South Estes Drive — 2016 – present

WCHL moved to University Place mall in 2016, largely rebranding to 97.9 The Hill to reflect its FM channel.

As part of the acquisition, the Chapel Hill Media Group sought a new home for WCHL. Before long, the radio station landed on a space within University Place mall off South Estes Drive. WCHL’s studios moved in during 2016 and rebranded to 97.9 The Hill, drawing more attention to its 97.9 FM channel. While there are presently many changes planned for University Place, the mall is still WCHL’s home, welcoming guests, community leaders and listeners onto its airwaves each day.

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To find all of the radio station’s current programming, and more photos of WCHL’s history, visit the 97.9 The Hill Radio Page.


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