KFJB

KFJB is one of the oldest radio stations in Iowa. It was founded by Earl N. Peak, who was president of Marshall Electric Company. KFJB began broadcasting in the spring of 1922 as an experimental amateur radio station. The station says it's the first radio station in the country to remotely broadcast a high school football game. The station was three blocks away from Franklin Field and Peak was able to string a cable between the studio and the football field to facilitate the broadcast.[1]

On June 2, 1923, the US Department of Commerce granted a commercial broadcast license with the randomly assigned call letters KFJB, which came from an alphabetical roster of available call signs. The first transmitter was a meager 10 watts, but the station received reception reports from Canada and the Hawaiian Islands when conditions were right.

KFJB was purchased by the Times-Republican Printing Company in 1947. Its owners, the Norris family, maintained control of KFJB AM and FM until December 29, 1986, when it was purchased by Marshalltown Broadcasting, Inc. KFJB FM, which became KMTG in September 1986, was changed to KXIA in June 1987. KFJB FM began broadcast operations in 1968, with a power of 27,000 watts. It is now classified as a C1 station, which allows a maximum power of 100,000 watts and a maximum antenna height of 1,000 feet.[1]

KFJB is one of the few radio stations in the U.S. to have the same call letters for its entire history, dating back to the early days of broadcasting. In 2012 KFJB celebrated its 90th anniversary on the air.[1]

• FCC History Cards for KFJB (covering 1927-1980)
• KFJB in the FCC's AM station database
• KFJB on Radio-Locator
• KFJB in Nielsen Audio's AM station database

• Company website, History of KFJB