A New Years' Tale: The Baby Party

Hank Sampson edits an episode of "Heritage" for Stillwater radio station WAVN.

Hank Sampson, longtime manager of Stillwater radio station WAVN, was well known for his weekly series of "Heritage" broadcasts on the history of the St. Croix Valley. One of his favorite broadcasts, he recently said, first aired on December 18, 1966, and tells the story of an early New Year's party that ended with a huge surprise.

Listen to "Heritage: The Big Baby Party of 1844" (RealAudio)

More about the series

"The St. Croix Valley is as rich in history as it is in natural beauty. Listen now as we recall incidents and individuals of bygone years right here in the Valley. This is your heritage." That was the introduction to the Stillwater radio station, then WAVN, of the historical series titled "Heritage."

The series was created by station manager Hank Sampson. He recalls: "There was deep interest in local area history and, frankly, we looked at the programs as a way of attracting listeners. We knew the broadcasts had to be both interesting and entertaining. To me it was storytelling, not lecturing laden with names, dates, and figures. The stories were enhanced with music and special effects. Started in 1966, Heritage became on of the most popular programs in the station's history and ran into the '80s."

Assembling each episode was an extra-curricular project for Sampson. Starting with research and script writing, through narration and production, Sampson recalls that he "was like a one-man band." Above, he is pictured in the production studio with tapes, turntable and typewriter - tools of the trade at that time. Programs were recorded on reel-to-reel tapes, which Sampson saved when he left the station in 1982. The episode "The Big Baby Party of 1844" was chosen to accompany this article as a New Year's audio feature.

More on the Web:
Minnesota Broadcasting Hall of Fame: Hank Sampson