WTOB-TV
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Broadcasting |
| Founded | 1953 |
| Fate | Ceased operations |
| Headquarters | Winston-Salem , United States |
| Products | Television broadcasting |
WTOB-TV (channel 26) was a television outlet based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, operated by the Winston-Salem Broadcasting Company. As the first TV station in the city, it broadcast ABC network content from September 26, 1953, until May 11, 1957. The station encountered financial difficulties typical of early UHF broadcasters. Following its closure, the company collaborated with Raleigh’s Sir Walter Television Company and investors from High Point to obtain the construction permit and launch WGHP. The transmission tower of WTOB-TV remained a notable local landmark for ten years after the station ceased operations.
Establishment
On February 7, 1953, the Winston-Salem Broadcasting Company, which owned radio station WTOB, secured an FCC license to establish a UHF television station on channel 26. Although initially aiming to affiliate with NBC, the network instead partnered with VHF channel 12 (WSJS-TV), leading WTOB-TV to align with ABC. To facilitate television production, WTOB relocated its studios to the Smoke House on Stratford Road and built a 557-foot tower—the tallest structure in North Carolina at that time.
Test transmissions for channel 26 commenced on September 18, 1953, marking Winston-Salem’s inaugural TV station; regular broadcasts launched on September 26 featuring local programming and a sweepstakes event. WSJS-TV began NBC programming shortly after on September 30. To supplement ABC and DuMont shows, WTOB-TV developed original content including live boxing matches; Club 26, an all-Black variety show hosted by LaFayette Cooke; the children's series Junior Jamboree; filmed high school football games; and the country music program Saturday Night Hoedown with Dwight Barker, which later aired on WSJS-TV. By 1955, the area surrounding the Smoke House had transformed into the Thruway Shopping Center.
WTOB-TV faced challenges due to UHF broadcasting limitations prior to the All-Channel Receiver Act of 1964 mandating UHF tuners in television sets. Although over 38,000 households locally adapted their TVs for UHF reception, advertisers favored VHF stations. In 1956, Winston-Salem Broadcasting filed an unsuccessful appeal with the FCC to obtain VHF channel 8 to enhance financial stability and advertising opportunities.
Closure; fight for channel 8
Operations at WTOB-TV were halted on May 11, 1957. James W. Coan, president of the company, maintained that Winston-Salem had capacity for two TV stations but called on federal authorities to clarify regulations governing VHF and UHF competition. In 1964, chairman Gick Johnson attributed the station's failure more to ABC’s limited development than to UHF technology constraints. Over its three-and-a-half-year lifespan, WTOB-TV incurred losses totaling $350,000.
Similarly, Raleigh’s WNAO-TV announced plans to shut down by late 1957. Its owners, Sir Walter Television Company, joined forces with Winston-Salem Broadcasting to advocate for assigning VHF channel 8 to the Piedmont Triad region. Their proposal involved relocating WBTW-TV in Florence, South Carolina from channel 8 to channel 13 to free up channel 8 for use in Piedmont Triad. WTOB-TV intended a temporary transition to channel 8, and both entities established Southern Broadcast Company to apply for this frequency.
In November 1958, Southern Broadcast Company submitted an application for channel 8 at High Point, suggesting that programming would partially originate from former WTOB-TV studios. Over five years of pursuit ensued; despite a hearing examiner’s recommendation in favor of WKIX radio owners in Raleigh in 1961, the FCC awarded channel 8 to Southern in 1962. This ruling required relinquishing construction permits held by WNAO-TV and WTOB-TV.
WGHP commenced transmissions on October 14, 1963, with studios in Winston-Salem producing some local programming. By 1965, Winston-Salem Broadcasting had acquired full control of WGHP for $1.2 million.
Following WTOB-TV’s shutdown, retailers at Thruway Shopping Center illuminated the former channel 26 tower each Christmas season—a tradition initiated by Robert Cox inspired by New York’s Rockefeller Center Christmas tree. Known as the "Tower of Light," it became a prominent holiday symbol recognized by night-flying aircraft over North Carolina. Although taller than Indianapolis's Soldiers and Sailors Monument—another contender for tallest Christmas tree—a local columnist remarked it appeared "so slender it looks more like a darning needle than a tree." In October 1967, Southern Broadcasting announced plans to dismantle the tower citing winter ice risks and upkeep expenses.