Broadcast area Myrtle Beach Slogan #1 For New Country First air date January 19, 1993 | Branding Gator 107.9 Frequency 107.9 MHz | |
City Bucksport, South Carolina | ||
WGTR is a country music radio station owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. licensed to Bucksport, South Carolina and serves the Myrtle Beach area. The station is licensed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to broadcast at 107.9 MHz with an effective radiated power (ERP) of 20,000 watts. WGTR goes by the name The Gator and its current slogan is "#1 For New Country, Gator 107.9".
History
The station went on the air as WGTR on January 19, 1993 with its country music format.
In a deal announced in February 1997, Root Communications Ltd. announced plans to buy eight radio stations owned by Florence, South Carolina-based Atlantic Broadcasting, including WGTR. Qantum Communications Inc. purchased Myrtle Beach's Root Communications Group LP stations in 2003.
In Fall 2013, two-time Country Music Association award winner Jeff Roper became morning host and program director. Adam Dellinger, the show producer, worked with Roper in Greensboro, North Carolina and San Antonio, Texas. Roper left the station for KSAT-TV in San Antonio the next summer and was replaced in the morning by Zac Davis.
On May 15, 2014, Qantum Communications announced that it would sell its 29 stations, including WGTR, to Clear Channel Communications for WALK AM-FM in Patchogue, New York as part of the sale of the WALK stations to Connoisseur Media. According to FCC records, the transaction was consummated on September 9, 2014. Gator 107.9 is home of The Gator Morning Show with James and Adam, as well as the host of the Carolina Country Music Fest. A yearly festival that normally takes place for three days in June in Myrtle Beach.