This Day in Georgia History: March 8, 1949

Today, in a world with hundreds of television channels to choose from, it’s hard to imagine a time when there was only one television station to watch in Georgia. This was the case from September 19, 1948, when WSB-TV debuted, until March 8, 1949. On March 8, 1949, WAGA-TV went on the air, thus giving Georgians their first chance to change the channel. WAGA-TV started in a house, then moved to a larger studio at 1018 West Peachtree. Initially, broadcasts included three hours of evening programming from CBS, the Dumont Network, and ABC.

See photos from WAGA-TV newscasts in the Lane Brothers Commercial Photographers Photographic Collection, 1920-1976 in addition to raw footage from WSB-TV in the WSB-TV Newsfilm Collection. Both located in the Digital Library of Georgia.