KSTC (1230 AM) in Sterling is the descendant of KGEK, one of the oldest radio stations on Colorado’s Eastern Plains. It carried the KGEK call letters until the late 1970s and today runs Fox Sports Radio.
History
KGEK started in Yuma as the work of self-taught engineer and inventor Elmer G. Beehler. The Broadcast Pioneers of Colorado date his Yuma broadcasting to 1921–1925 and describe KGEK as Colorado’s third-oldest station. Beehler later ran the station from Sterling from 1934 to 1966, with his son-in-law Al Ross taking over the business side in the 1940s. Other accounts, including Wikipedia, date KGEK’s founding in Yuma to 1938 and its move to Sterling to the 1950s, so the early dates are still being sorted out.
The station changed its calls to KSTC in the late 1970s, moved into a new building on West Main Street in 1983, and switched to sports on March 13, 2017.
Technical information
- Frequency: 1230 kHz
- Power: 1,000 watts
- City of license: Sterling, Colorado
- FCC facility ID: 35639
- Owner: Media Logic LLC (Wayne Johnson)
Sources
STATION FILE
FROM THE TIMELINE
Moments in KGEK / KSTC-AM 1230 History
1921: E.G. Beehler starts broadcasting in Yuma
1921 — According to the Broadcast Pioneers of Colorado, self-taught engineer Elmer G. Beehler began broadcasting from Yuma on equipment he built himself, the start of KGEK. He sold radios from his electrical store to build an audience. Other accounts date KGEK’s founding in Yuma to 1938.
1934: KGEK is operating from Sterling
1934 — The Broadcast Pioneers of Colorado place E.G. Beehler’s KGEK in Sterling from 1934, with Beehler owning and running it until 1966. Other accounts date the move to Sterling to the 1950s.
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