WROV-TV

WROV-TV, UHF Channel 27 in Roanoke, Virginia, was the second-oldest TV station in Roanoke (having signed on shortly after WSLS-TV). Established February 15, 1953, it left the air on July 13, 1953, becoming the first UHF television station in the United States to have ceased operations.

History

In 1950s, the Federal Communications Commission had allocated channels 7, 10, and 27 for Roanoke and 13 for nearby Lynchburg, Virginia. Shenandoah Life Insurance Company (the owners of WSLS radio) obtained the channel 10 license and launched WSLS-TV on December 11, 1952; Roanoke Radio (owners of WROV radio) signed on soon after with Channel 27. Lynchburg Broadcasting signed on Channel 13, WLVA, on February 8, 1953.

The station operated from a converted WROV radio studio at the Mountain Trust Bank building, using a transmitter atop Mill Mountain. Operating with one camera from poorly lit studios, WROV-TV relied heavily on personnel such as Lee Garrett and Coleman Austin who were shared with the established radio station.