WSMN signed on March 9, 1958. The first voice heard was that of Manchester, New Hampshire native Frank G. Teas who spent the next 44 years with the organization until he retired in December 2002. Original owner Merrimack Valley Broadcasting System sold the station only one year later, to 1590 Broadcasting Corporation. By 1971, WSMN had a middle-of-the-road format, mixed in with talk; this format remained in place through the decade. The organization also published an advertiser-supported, free tabloid called the 1590 Broadcaster. During the mid-1990s, WSMN attempted a country music format; however, this format became less viable for the station after Boston country station WKLB-FM moved from 96.9 FM to 99.5 FM, and it reverted to adult standards in December 1997. This was short lived; in March 1998, the station changed to news/talk, though some timeslots were temporarily filled with adult contemporary music for a time. Initially locally oriented, in June WSMN began adding nationally-produced programming, including Talk America shows and business news from Bloomberg Radio. Two years later, Tom O'Brien signed a local marketing agreement to take over the station's operations. WSMN was forced off the air February 1, 2005 after losing the lease to its transmitter and studio site on West Hollis Street. The license was sold to Absolute Broadcasting, owner of WSNH that July, and the station returned to the air in October from the WSNH tower, running a low-power special temporary authority signal. Initially simulcasting WSNH's ESPN Radio programming, the station began shifting back to a news/talk format in early 2006, featuring programing from Talk Radio Network and Westwood One.
Sale to current owners
Absolute Broadcasting sold WSMN to Bartis Broadcasting LLC for $200,000. The sale took effect on March 16, 2017. The proprietors are George Russell and Bob Bartis, two men who had done shows on WSMN. They promised "more local programming and a refocus on the community." WSMN holds a from the U.S. Federal Communications Commission to build a new three-tower antenna array west of their old location. Instead of using the same directional pattern full-time, there will be different directional patterns for day and night. The station has an FM translator at 95.3 MHz which signed on in July 2020.
Programming
WSMN airs Nashua This Morning with George Russell during morning drive, and various local programming at other times. Bartis continues to host shows on several topics. In timeslots where a talk show is not scheduled, the station airs blocks of music. WSMN is an affiliate of USA Radio News.
