WBFB

WBFB (97.1 FM; "97-1 The Bear") is a radio station licensed to and operating from studios in Bangor, Maine. The station is owned by Blueberry Broadcasting and is a country formatted radio station simulcasting on co-owned WMCM and WBFE.

History

97.1 license

The 97.1 frequency has a long history in Bangor, signing on March 15, 1961 as WABI-FM, owned by the Community Broadcasting Service along with WABI (now WAEI) and WABI-TV. Initially a simulcast of WABI, on March 1, 1973 the station became WBGW, a country music station.

Community Broadcasting Service merged with Journal Publications in 1971 to form Diversified Communications; the company's broadcasting division retained the Community Broadcasting Service name until 1982, when WBGW was transferred to Diversified directly. The call letters were changed to WYOU-FM in 1986.

Diversified announced in 1993 that it would put most of its broadcasting properties, including WYOU and WABI, up for sale; while it would retain WABI-TV following the collapse of a deal to sell it to Vision Communications, the radio stations were sold to Bangor Radio Corporation. Two years later, the station adopted a modern rock format under the WWBX calls. The station eventually changed to a hot adult contemporary format. WWBX and WABI were sold to Gopher Hill Broadcasting in 1997.