Indiana Broadcast History Archive

Kneal Ross, also known as K.D. Ross, played an instrumental role in the 1925 launch of radio station WOWO in Fort Wayne. Ross opened his own business, Ross Radio & TV, which he operated for several years. 

WOWO first signed on air on March 31, 1925, after Ross convinced Fred Zieg, owner of Main Auto Supply, a jobber of radio sets, to build a station in the store. Zieg was on the hunt to find a way to promote Dayfan radio sales, a product sold at Main Auto Supply. For $150, Ross bet Zieg that he could construct a radio station above his store on 213 Main Street. 

When the 500watt station started broadcasting, they were astounded to hear from 40 states and 9 Canadian provinces. Two years later, in 1927, WOWO became a pioneer station of the CBS network. It became one of Indiana’s best-known stations, referred to as “The Voice of a Thousand Main Streets.”  

The name, WOWO, originated from a 1941 contest that Ross held, where he invited listeners of the station to generate a slogan based on the station’s call letters. The winning phrase was “Wayne Offers Wonderful Opportunities,” or WOWO, for short. 

In the 1960’s, Ross wrote a booklet detailing his early day experience of working at the station. In the booklet, “Birth of a Station: WOWO!” Ross incorporated early photographs of WOWO’s first studio, WOWO’s transmitter and Zieg, along with captions providing explanations of each photograph. 

Ross also opened up his own business named Ross Radio & TV, which he operated for many years. He was also inducted into the Indiana Broadcast Hall of Fame.  

In 1987, Ross passed away in Fort Wayne at the age of 89. Ross said that watching WOWO grow from its humble beginning was one of the greatest thrills of his lifetime.  

February 2025

By Lily Saylor