R.I.P.: Pioneering MN Broadcaster Herb Hoppe

Herb Hoppe

Longtime central Minnesota radio station owner Herbert Hoppe, known for constructing the only directional AM quadplex radio tower field in the U.S., has died.

Hoppe died Wednesday at the age of 83.

Herb’s pursuits of wireless communication began with his education at DeVry Technical School in Chicago and then his career as a TV repair man.  Herb founded Tri-County Broadcasting in Sauk Rapids, MN. The first of the five radio stations which comprise Tri-County today, AM 800 WVAL, was launched in August of 1963. Herb named the station after his wife Val. WVAL would be the first “Country and Western” station in Central Minnesota, bringing upstarts like Dolly Parton to the stage of Sauk Rapids High School.

Herb Hoppe continued to guide Tri-County Broadcasting for the next 55 years, adding FM 101.7 WHMH in 1979 and eventually adding 3 additional radio stations into the first in the US, AM directional quadplex radio tower field.

In 2004 Tri-County Broadcasting also launched the nation’s first satellite-networked NCAA D3 Sports Network, supporting and promoting St. John’s University athletics.

As other local broadcast owners sold out during the consolidation of radio, Herb remained independent. He relied on his farm-raised work ethic, the unwavering support of his wife and the next Hoppe generation, and his belief in the craft of local radio.