The very first W9DXCC meeting was held on December 5, 1953, when half of the Ninth District's DXCC holders met at the Sheraton Hotel in downtown Chicago. This gathering was the brainchild of two well-known DXers, Roy McCarty (W9KA) and Bob Baird (W9NN). They had invited every W9 DXCC holder listed in the 1952 QST DXCC roster plus all of the pre-war DXCC holders they could find.

Everyone agreed that the first W9DXCC meeting was such a success that it should be repeated, and Mike Hexter (W9FKC) was elected the 1954 chairman. It was also agreed that DXCC holders from neighboring call districts would be invited.   In recent years the NIDXA (Northern Illinois DX Association) has sponsored the W9DXCC Convention.

Over the years W9DXCC has grown to include an expanding group of DXers, both "Big Guns" and "Little Pistols", all united in the common interest - a love of the art and sport of DXing. W9DXCC has received international recognition with visitors and speakers from across the country and the world.

W9DXCC is seen to many as the start of the DX season.