Jay Gould

Photo Courtesy of Indiana Broadcast Pioneers

Jay Gould was a radio broadcaster, author, essayist, songwriter, and humanitarian who spent 45 years on-air at WOWO, a 50,000-watt station in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He was the Farm Service Director from 1941 to 1982 and gained prominence with the popular “Little Red Barn” morning show and the mid-day “Dinner on the Farm” program. He also founded WOWO’s Christmas Penny Pitch, a long-running charity drive, and later wrote a weekly newspaper column, Hello World.

Born in Climax, Michigan, in 1901, Gould began his career as a teacher and school superintendent before transitioning to radio in 1938. He initially served as Director of Children’s Programming at WOWO, where he created shows like “Little Doc Hickory” and “The Old Songsmith.” After a brief stint at WLS in Chicago, he returned to WOWO in 1941 as Farm Service Director.

In 1945, Gould and his colleague Bob Sievers began incorporating farmyard sound effects into their programming, leading to the creation of “Little Red Barn.” Three years later, he established the Penny Pitch fundraiser to help families in need, a tradition that continues today.

Beyond broadcasting, Gould was an accomplished writer. In 1966, he published Hello World, a collection of his most-requested poems and speeches, selling approximately 23,000 copies. Even after retiring from WOWO in 1983, he remained active in radio, briefly working at WAFX and continuing to share his wisdom through his newspaper column.

Jay Gould received over 40 awards within his lifetime, some of which include three gold medals from the Freedom Foundation, induction into the Hall of Fame of the Society of Professional Journalists, Sagamore of the Wabash from the Indiana’s governor’s office the Kentucky Colonel award, and several awards from Purdue Alumnae and from the National Soil Conservation Service.

Gould’s contributions to radio, charity, and rural life earned him a place in the Indiana Broadcast Hall of Fame. He passed away in Fort Wayne on January 20, 1984, at the age of 82.

February 2025

Katherine Maners

Indiana Broadcast Pioneers