Originally, Community Broadcasting Service was controlled by Frederick B. Simpson. However, in 1949, health problems forced him to retire and sell WABI to a partnership between former Maine governor Horace A. Hildreth and Murray Carpenter. By then, the station had joined ABC. It swapped affiliations with WGUY (1450 AM, now off the air). Hildreth became the sole owner in 1953, when Carpenter sold his stake in WABI and bought WGUY. That year, WABI-TV was launched.
