WGY Special Event Station W7Y Makes Over 1,500 Contacts

Special Event Station W7Y --which commemorated the 100th anniversary of broadcast pioneer WGY -- logged 1,532 contacts during the weekend of February 19-20, 2022. The farthest contact made from the station's location in New York's Capital District (Albany-Schenectady-Troy) was South Korea. The farthest contact to a U.S. state was Hawaii. Overseas signals traveled an estimated total of 620,572 miles (not counting USA contacts). W7Y was selected for the Special Event call, with the "7" representing the 7th letter of the alphabet "G" -- representing "WGY".

WGY first signed on February 20, 1922 and was New York State's first broadcast station, licensed to Schenectady. It became a leader in both broadcast technologies and programming, including an original station of the NBC radio network. The station was also used to broadcast the first public demonstration of television.

The East Greenbush Amateur Radio Association decided to honor WGY's Centennial milestone and was joined by the Schenectady Museum Amateur Radio Association. Together,members of the two clubs operated Special Event Station W7Y using both club stations and member's home stations.

Amateur Radio operators with verified contacts to W7Y may request a Special Event QSL card by sending a self-addressed, stamped #10 envelope to: W7Y, 983 Sterling Ridge Drive, Rensselaer, New York 12144.