B. L. (Len) Phillips Jr. applied to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in March 1960 for a new AM radio station on 1560 kHz, to be located in Lancaster, South Carolina.
A construction permit and subsequent license was issued by the FCC for a 1,000 watt, non-directional, single tower antenna system, and work began on the new station that same year.
The ceremonies took place on the grounds of the local courthouse and the Mayor of Lancaster was given the honor of pushing the button to fire up the Gates BC-1 transmitter to begin broadcasting.
Realizing the need to serve the broader Lancaster County area, Phillips applied to the FCC in May 1965 for a license to increase power to 10,000 watts daytime.
A license was granted and a new transmitter site was constructed on 15 acres (6 hectares) of land between Lancaster and Rock Hill, South Carolina, near the Catawba River.