The station signed on September 22, 1998 with the calls W65DP. It aired an analog signal on UHF channel 65 and was a full-time translator of WOHL-LP (now WOHL-CD). The channel was spun off in 2002 and became a CBS affiliate with the calls WLMO-LP while moving to UHF channel 38. This aired from a transmitter west of Cridersville in Auglaize County. Before the station affiliated with CBS, Dayton affiliate WHIO-TV served as the CBS affiliate of record for the Lima market, while Columbus affiliate WBNS-TV and Toledo affiliate WTOL served the eastern and northern portions of the market; some areas of the western portion of the market were also served by Fort Wayne affiliate WANE-TV. After picking up CBS, WLMO fought an uphill battle with Time Warner Cable (now Charter Spectrum). The company initially refused to carry the station on its Lima system due to the presence of both WHIO-TV and WBNS-TV, the latter of which would replace WTOL-TV on most cable providers in the area.