File:87k074 Looking NW from Newport, Kentucky, toward Cincinnati, Ohio (8509580701) (Riverfront Stadium).jpg

Crockett's River Cafe at left. Riverfront Stadium (demolished 2002) and Riverfront Coliseum (now U.S. Bank Arena) can be seen across Ohio River in Cincinnati, Ohio Docked at Cincinnati Public Landing is "Showboat Majestic". Newport and Cincinnati Highway Bridge, aka Central Highway Bridge (US Highway 27; completed 1891; demolished 1992; replacement bridge completed 1995), at right. . Just below center is the floating studio of WNOP radio 740 AM.

"[About 1972,] the Jazz Ark, the new studio's nickname, was constructed out of three oil tanks welded together, each 12 feet in diameter and 20 feet long. Together, they held five rooms on two floors with interconnecting doors and stairs. The ark was built at Tucker Marine. Each tank was equipped with 20,000 pounds of ballast, and the facility was placed in the Ohio River to become a floating studio. It was anchored at the Stadium Marina, just east of the mouth of the Licking River. Windows made to look like large portholes gave the studio a view of the Cincinnati skyline. Above the studio were the large red neon letters WNOP; they produced an amazing sight at night, glimmering on the river. From there, Carolyn Rose, wife of Cincinnati Reds player Pete Rose, broadcast her show on WNOP. The Jazz Ark, also known as 'Radio Free Newport,' continued until 1989, when the station decided to move from its tiny offices to a larger space in Cincinnati." [excerpted from the 2008 article "WNOP has seen it all"]

Ohio River mile 470. Newport, Kentucky. Nov. 1987. File # 87k074. . 35 mm Kodachrome. Plustek OpticFilm 7600i and Silverfast 8. Picture Window 6.