Although aviation is a modern invention, there are still a handful of historic airports in America. These airports were built not long after planes were first invented and, since there were so few of them at the time, they were crucial to air travel in America.
Here is a list of the oldest airports in the United States:
College Park Airport (1909)
Located in College Park, Maryland, this is a public airport that opened in 1909 and is cited as the world’s oldest continuously operating airport.
The airport was originally established by the United States Army Signal Corps to serve as a training location for Wilbur Wright to teach two military officers how to fly. On September 23, 1977, the airport was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
Pearson Field (1911)
Built in 1911, Pearson Field is a city-owned municipal airport in Vancouver, Washington. It is the oldest continuously operating airfield in the Pacific Northwest and one of the two oldest continuously operating airfields in the United States.
The first ever landing at Pearson Field took place in 1905 when an airship called the Gelatine landed at the airfield. The first airplane landed at Pearson Field in 1911. In 1925, the airfield was named after Lt. Alexander Pearson, a renowned local pilot in the Air Service.
The western portion of the Pearson Field runway sits on property owned by the National Park Service and is part of the Pearson Airfield – Fort Vancouver National Historic Site. The airfield is home to the Pearson Air Museum which is dedicated to the history of the airfield.
Stinson Municipal Airport (1915)
Built in 1915, Stinson Municipal Airport is a public airport in San Antonio, Texas. The airport was established in 1915 when the Stinson family leased land from the city of San Antonio and used it to train military pilots. After civilian flights were banned during WWI, the airfield became the city’s airport in 1918.
Minneapolis Saint Paul International Airport (1920)
Built in 1920, the Minneapolis Saint Paul International Airport is a joint civil-military public international airport in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
The airport was established in 1920 when the first landing strip and the first wooden hanger were constructed and the 160-acre property became known as Speedway Field. In 1929, the first passenger flights took place at the airport.
In the 1940s, international service was offered at the airport which led to the name change and the iconic Terminal 1-Lindbergh building was constructed in 1962.
Long Beach Airport (1923)
Built in 1923, the Long Beach Airport is a public airport in Long Beach, California. Prior to the airport’s construction in 1923, planes often used Long Beach’s seven-mile-long sandy beach as a landing strip.
In 1923, the Long Beach City Council purchased 150 acres of land and began construction on the new airport on November 26, 1923. It was officially dedicated on December 20, 1924.
A new terminal was constructed in 1941 and was designed by architects William Horace Austin and Kenneth Smith Wing in the Streamline Moderne-style. The terminal was later designated a Historical Landmark in 1990.
Midway International Airport (1923)
Built in 1923, Midway International Airport is a public airport in Chicago, Illinois. The airport was originally known as Chicago Air Park. It was first constructed in 1923 on a 320-acre plot of land with one runway that mostly serviced airmail flights.
In 1926, the city of Chicago leased the airport and renamed it Chicago Municipal Airport. By 1928, the airport had four runways and twelve hangers.
In 1949, the airport was renamed Midway International Airport in honor of the Battle of Midway in the Pacific during WWII. The airport continued to serve as Chicago’s primary airport until O’Hare International Airport opened in 1955.
Logan International Airport (1923)
Built in 1923, Logan International Airport is a public airport in Boston, Massachusetts. The airport was originally an airfield built by the U.S. Army on a 189-acres of tidal flats in Boston Harbor. It was used primarily by the Massachusetts Air Guard and the Army Air Corp.
Initially named Boston Airport, the airport’s first commercial hanger was built in 1925 and its first commercial flights began in 1927.
In 1928, ownership of the airport was transferred from the U.S. Army to the Massachusetts Legislature. In 1929, the city of Boston took control of the airport with a 20-year lease from the state.
In 1943, the airport was renamed after Major General Edward Lawrence Logan, a Spanish-American War officer from South Boston.
Not only is Logan Airport one of the oldest airports in America, it is also located in one of oldest towns in America and in one of the oldest states in America.
Cleveland Hopkins International Airport (1925)
Built in 1925, the Cleveland Hopkins International Airport is a public airport in Cleveland, Ohio.
The airport is known for being the first airport to have an air traffic control tower and the first airport to be directly connected to a rail transit system.
In 1951, the airport was renamed after its founder, former city manager William R. Hopkins on his 82nd birthday.
Spartanburg Downtown Memorial Airport (1927)
Built in 1927, Spartanburg Downtown Memorial Airport is a public airport in Spartanburg, South Carolina.
The airport was first constructed as part of an air mail route between Washington D.C. and Atlanta, Georgia. The first mail plane landed at the airport on May 1, 1928, making it the first commercial airport in South Carolina.
The airport serves as a memorial to pilots who died in WWI. A memorial marker for the pilots was erected at the entrance of the airport in 1937.
If you are interested in more articles about the history of transportation in America, check out this article on the oldest train stations in America.
Sources:
“Spartanburg Downtown Memorial Airport – History and community.” Aviation Magazine, 5 July. 2018, aviationviewmagazine.com/spartanburg-downtown-memorial-airport-history-community/
“Facts & Figures.” Cleveland Hopkins Airport, clevelandairport.com/about-us/facts-figures
“Midway Airport.” Encyclopedia of Chicago, encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/828.html
“Long Beach Aviation History.” LongBeach.gov, longbeach.gov/lgb/about-us/airport-history/
“History.” MSP Airport, mspairport.com/about-msp/history
“About.” Stinson Municipal Airport, flysanantonio.com/stinson/about/
Clayton, Jerry. “City of San Antonio seeks input for improvements at Stinson Municipal Airport.” Texas Public Radio, 21 Jan. 2023, tpr.org/news/2023-01-21/city-of-san-antonio-seeks-input-for-improvements-at-stinson-municipal-airport
“Pearson Field.” Clark County: A History, history.columbian.com/pearson-field/
“Pearson Field.” National Park Service, nps.gov/fova/learn/historyculture/pearson.htm
“About.” College Park Airport, collegeparkairport.aero/?page_id=107