Did You Know Dallas Had America's Second Licensed Radio Station?

DALLAS, TX – As part of the centennial celebration as the first licensed radio station in Texas — and only the second in the country — WRR is celebrating a century of service to North Texas listeners with a special exhibition.

The collection is being billed as "Texas’ First Radio Station: WRR Radio Centennial Celebration."

Curated in partnership with Dallas Municipal Archives, the display highlights the position of WRR as a media nucleus in the Dallas and North Texas community. The celebration tracks WRR from its origins in public safety as fire and police dispatch to its decades of music programming as an AM station, to its stature today as the premier classical FM station within a 100-mile radius.

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In addition, the display features a collection of historical images from the past ten decades, plus rare photos of the many local and international luminaries who have served as advocates for the station.

“This isn't just a celebration of one radio station,” says WRR General Manager and Program Director Mike Oakes. “This is a commemoration of the launch of an entire industry, which not only survives, but thrives, a century on. That said, there is so much history that exists with this one very special radio station, from its very beginnings. WRR was launched as a public service entity, and that commitment carries through to this day.”

The exhibition is intended for fans of history, radio, the arts, and Dallas. "Texas’ First Radio Station: WRR Radio Centennial Celebration" will be open to the public from July 31st through August 28th at the Bath House Cultural Center, 521 E. Lawther Dr. Dallas, TX 75218.

The Bath House Cultural Center is the fourth installation of the traveling exhibition, following runs at NorthPark Center, the Hall of State, and Dallas Love Field airport.

WRR’S STORY:

WRR was the first licensed broadcast station in Texas and one of the nation’s five inaugural stations. Operated by the City of Dallas Office of Arts and Culture, WRR remains an integral component of the City of Dallas’ commitment to providing access to arts opportunities to its residents, as well as to the nearly eight million residents of North Texas.

WRR was the brainchild of inventor Henry Garrett, a Dallas Police and Fire Signal Superintendent who envisioned radio as the modern way for firefighters in the field to communicate. Licensed on August 5, 1921, the station was originally housed in the Dallas Fire Department and touted as the latest in firefighter communications.

When firemen had no blazing fires to battle, however, they blazed the broadcast trail by playing music or telling jokes. A few years after the station began operation, the Fire Department needed a substantial investment in new equipment to serve the rapidly growing city. They solicited donations from local businesses and urged listeners to patronize those establishments.

A year later, in 1926, the station started marketing advertising commercials, and on-air antics during emergency downtimes sold local residents on a new genre of entertainment. Citizens began to purchase crystal radio sets in order to listen. By 1926, WRR had moved to the Adolphus Hotel in downtown Dallas. WRR made subsequent moves to the Jefferson Hotel and Hilton Hotel before settling at its present home on the State Fairgrounds in the late 1930s.

The station debuted on the FM spectrum in 1948 and continued to broadcast at AM and FM frequencies until selling its AM station 30 years later. By 1964, WRR had become an all-classical station.

Today, WRR is the only commercial classical music format radio station in Texas and is the oldest same-owner station in the U.S. With a tower in Cedar Hill, the 100,000-watt station’s listening area spans 100 miles in any direction.

WRR continues to build on its legacy of innovation and firsts and is attracting a new breed of internet listeners via streaming at wrr101.com. In 2006, WRR was the first station in Texas to broadcast an all-digital format for improved sonic fidelity.

WRR does not operate at the expense of taxpayers but as an “enterprise” of the City of Dallas Office of Arts and Culture, generating revenue through advertising and sponsorships to cover its expenses. Revenue exceeding expenses has been invested in capital needs of the station and a small portion has been transferred through the years to the OAC’s Arts Endowment to support small and mid-size arts organizations.

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