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WPRR (AM)

Radio station in Ada–Grand Rapids, Michigan

Architectural plans, a scale model, maps and brass measuring instruments
Places and architectureInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionAug 24, 2026
Entity authorityQ18157016
Source-derived summary

WPRR (1680 kHz, "102.5 The Ride") is a radio staion in the Grand Rapids Metropolitan area. The station is currently owned by Goodrich Radio, and airs an urban adult contemporary format.

History

WPRR originated as the expanded band "twin" of an existing station on the standard AM band.

On March 17, 1997, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced that eighty-eight stations had been given permission to move to newly available "Expanded Band" transmitting frequencies, ranging from 1610 to 1700 kHz, with WMHG in Muskegon, Michigan authorized to move from 1600 kHz to 1680 kHz.

A construction permit for the expanded band station was assigned the call sign WBHD on September 4, 1998. The FCC's initial policy was that both the original station and its expanded band counterpart could operate simultaneously for up to five years, after which owners would have to turn in one of the two licenses, depending on whether they preferred the new assignment or elected to remain on the original frequency. However, this deadline was extended multiple times, and both stations remained authorized after the initial five year period. (WMHG was deleted on March 3, 2008, after it was determined that its license had been improperly transferred to a new owner).

On October 15, 1998, the station changed its call sign to WJNZ, flipping to an urban contemporary format as "1680 Jamz", giving Grand Rapids its first 24-hour urban station at the time, and the station began broadcasting in C-QUAM AM stereo. By 2003, the station moved to 1140 AM, but that station eventually changed its format to Catholic-centered talk and preaching.

Editorial summary

“WPRR (AM)” enters the record as radio station in Ada–Grand Rapids, Michigan. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what WPRR, Radio and station can confirm, complicate or overturn.

Editorial reviewA strong orientation record where physical form, institutional use and historical geography need to be read together. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1680, 1997, 1610, 1700—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1998. Its strongest next move is a source search built around WPRR, Radio and station.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

“WPRR (AM)” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, WPRR, Radio and station provides the most credible route into that argument.

Evidence profile

Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 24, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q18157016. 2 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1680, 1997, 1610 and 1700.

Critical limits

A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.

Best used for
  • Historic place names
  • Jurisdictional context
  • Routes into maps and plans
Verify next

Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “WPRR (AM)”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow WPRR (AM) primary sources, WPRR (AM) archive and WPRR research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “WPRR (AM)”?
  2. What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
  3. Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from WPRR (AM)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.