FM Technical Profile: WOOF

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Station Name:

WOOF-FM

Frequency:

99.7

Format:

Adult Contemporary

Transmitter Location:

[map] [street view] On AL-52 (Columbia Highway) just west of Webb.

Power (ERP):

100 kW

Antenna:

Omni

Antenna HAAT:

981 feet

Other Information:

60 dBu protected contour map, from the FCC.
:
PS-WOOF-FM
Time-[?]
Text-Contest + Request 1-800-239-9663
PTY-Soft Rock
PI-WOOF-FM

More Information:

[FCC]

[FCCdata]

[Radio-Locator]

[Wikipedia]

[History] WOOF-FM's history page is sparse, but has a nice collection of vintage station photographs.
[Studio] Street View imagery of the station's studio on Highway 52 in the Dothan area.
[Image] RDS display from an OEM Mazda radio, from February 2021.

Owner:

Michael Holderfield

History:

The WOOF Trust, owners of WOOF AM in Dothan, were granted an original construction permit for a new station in March of 1964.  From the beginning, it was on 99.7, with 100 kW ERP.  When it signed on in September 1964, it was transmitting from the AM's tower off Columbia Highway (then called Rural Route 1).  A Gates FM-20B transmitted was used to feed an unusual antenna setup: the horizontal array was a 12-section Gates Cycloid, while the horizontal array was a 12-section Electronics Research 300.  The station also transmitted an SCA (Subsidiary Communications Authority) on 67 kHz from the beginning. From the beginning, the studios were located at the AM's transmitter site.

It's unknown what the format of the station was in those early years, but by the mid-70's it was known to be a Middle of the Road (MOR) music format, programmed separately from the AM.  Later in the decade the station picked up the Top 40 mantle from the AM.  In 1979, ownership was transferred from Agnes W. (Dowling) Simpson, Trustee of the WOOF Trust (!) to WOOF, Inc.

The station flipped back to MOR in the early 80's, with the Top 40 going back to AM for some reason.  Interestingly, the station is noted to be using Quad Stereo around this time.  A few years later, this station morphed to a more Soft Adult Contemporary format, before finally settling on the same Adult Contemporary format they have now by the end of the decade.  The FM transmitter moved a few miles up the Columbia Highway to the current site near the Webb community in 1985.  This put it on a taller tower, improving the station's coverage.

In October 2020 it was announced that the station and its AM sister were being sold to Michael Holderfield, owner of classic country WVVL in Elba.  The price for both stations was listed as $1.2 million.  It marks the first time in the history of this station that it wasn't owned by a relative of Agnes W. Simpson.  Michael Holderfield is no stranger to the WOOF stations, however, as he served as chief engineer and program director through the 80's and 90's.