Hoover Field facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Hoover Field
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Hoover Field (bottom and left) and Washington Airport (right) at the foot of Highway Bridge in 1932
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| Summary | |
| Owner | Philadelphia Rapid Transit Company (1925-June 1927) Henry Berliner (June 1927-July 1928) Mt. Vernon Airways (July 1928-November 1928) International Airways (November 1928-January 1929) Atlantic Seaboard Airways (January 1929-December 29, 1929) New Standard Aircraft Company (December 30, 1929-July 31, 1933) National Aviation Corporation (July 31, 1933-merger on August 2, 1933) |
| Serves | Washington Metropolitan Area |
| Location | Arlington County, Virginia |
Hoover Field was an early airport that served Washington, D.C.. It started as a private airfield in 1925. It opened for public use on July 16, 1926. The airport was located in Arlington, Virginia. This was near the Highway Bridge and the Mount Vernon Memorial Parkway. Today, The Pentagon and its parking lots stand where the airport once was.
Hoover Field was known as one of the most dangerous airfields in the United States. Its runways were short and not paved. There were many dangerous things around the field, like tall radio towers. Smoke from a burning garbage dump nearby often made it hard to see. The field also had poor drainage, meaning it often got muddy.
In 1929, the owner of a nearby airport, Washington Airport, bought Hoover Field. The two airports briefly worked together. But Hoover Field was sold to a new owner just a year later. In 1933, it almost ran out of money. It was then sold and merged with Washington Airport. The new airport was called Washington-Hoover Airport and opened on August 2, 1933.
Washington-Hoover Airport closed in June 1941. A new airport, Washington National Airport (now called Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport), was built to replace it.
Contents
Building a New Airport
Hoover Field was built in 1925 by Thomas E. Mitten. He was the president of the Philadelphia Rapid Transit Company. This company had a contract to fly mail between Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia. Mitten chose a 37.5-acre site called Hell's Bottom. It was in Arlington County, Virginia, right across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C. This area used to be a horse racing track.
A brave aviator named Alys McKey Bryant helped get the land ready. She cleared trees and brush and used a tractor to level the ground. The airport had one sod runway that was about 2,400 feet long. A single hangar, 60 feet by 100 feet, was also built. When it first opened in 1925, the field was only used for sightseeing flights over the capital.
Naming the Airport
At first, the airfield didn't have a name. City leaders wanted Washington, D.C., to have its own public airport. The government even thought about building an airport on Kingman Lake. But this plan didn't happen. Mitten wanted to fly people between D.C. and Philadelphia for a big celebration. This was for the 150th anniversary of the United States Declaration of Independence.
So, Mitten made his airfield bigger. It was officially opened on July 16, 1926. It was named after Herbert Hoover, who was the United States Secretary of Commerce at the time. He was a big supporter of flying for regular people. The airport was shaped like a trapezoid, about 2,500 feet long and 600 feet wide. It covered about 37 acres. The only thing to help pilots navigate was a windsock.
Dangers at Hoover Field
Flying conditions at Hoover Field were known to be very bad. An amusement park called Arlington Beach was right next to the airport. There was also a landfill (a place where trash was dumped) nearby. The trash in the landfill was often on fire. The smoke from these fires sometimes blocked the view of the landing field. The bad smell was also famous throughout Washington.
The United States Department of Agriculture owned a large farm next to the airport. A public swimming pool was also at the airport. Children often walked across the runway to get to the pool! Because of these dangers, local businesses and city officials asked for a safer city-owned airport. This happened just three months after Hoover Field was officially opened.
In 1926, the National Aeronautic Association tried to rent Hoover Field. They wanted to make it better and use it as Washington's main airport. Their plan was to use Hoover Field temporarily. While they waited, they would create new land near Gravelly Point for a much bigger airport. But these plans didn't work out. In 1927, a group of pilots and aviation companies, led by Henry Berliner, suggested building a new airport nearby. This led to the creation of Washington Airport in 1928.
Airport Operations and Changes
In June 1927, the company that flew airmail for the government stopped using Hoover Field. They said it was too unsafe. Airmail service then moved to Bolling Field, a military airport. Hoover Field was also surrounded by highways, rivers, and government land. This meant it couldn't be made bigger for newer, larger planes that needed longer runways.
Around this time, Henry Berliner started to lease and then own most of Hoover Field. Some government officials and business people suggested that the Department of Agriculture sell its farm land to Hoover Field. This would allow the airport to expand. But this idea was not put into action.
On July 3, 1928, a fire at the airport destroyed eight planes and the main hangar. This caused $100,000 in damages, which would be about $1.275 million today. Flights from Hoover Field stopped for 18 days. The fire badly hurt Berliner's finances. He sold his share of Hoover Field to Mount Vernon Airways on July 20, 1928. A few months later, on September 11, 1928, the first daily flights from Washington, D.C., to New York City began from Hoover Field.
By November 1928, a Canadian company called International Airways took over the airport. Even though it was small, three international flights left Hoover Field every day. In 18 months, over 50,000 flights had departed from the airport. In June 1928, it set a local record by flying 4,200 passengers in one month. But these numbers hid the real dangers. In 1928, a pilot and engineer died when their plane crashed during takeoff. Later that year, a plane trying to land at night hit a car parked on the field, injuring four people.
In early 1929, a new company, Atlantic Seaboard Airways, was formed. It took over International Airways and its flying businesses. The owners of Atlantic Seaboard also owned Washington Airport. So, for a while, the same company ran both airports. But on December 30, 1929, a group of investors bought Atlantic Seaboard Airways. This group was led by R.H. Reiffen, who was in charge of the New Standard Aircraft Company. They took control of Hoover Field.
Safety at the airport got a little better in mid-1932. This happened after Arlington County stopped allowing trash to be burned at landfills. This included the one next to Hoover Field.
Merging the Airports
Washington Airport was built because a new airline needed a place to operate in Washington, D.C. This new airfield opened quietly in late 1927 for sightseeing planes. Its owners included Robert E. Funkhouser and Herbert Fahy. Funkhouser was an investor in several small airlines. Fahy was a test pilot for Lockheed Aircraft Company. The airport grew and improved its facilities. In February 1928, Funkhouser, Fahy, and others formed Seaboard Airways. Washington Airport was Seaboard's main base. But Washington Airport was only a little safer than Hoover Field. Its owners couldn't afford to pave the runway. Also, burning trash dumps nearby still made it hard to see the runways.
First Merger Attempt
In June 1928, Funkhouser and Fahy created United States Air Transport. This company was meant to control Seaboard Airways, Washington Airport, and Funkhouser's other aviation businesses. In March 1929, Funkhouser and Fahy formed Atlantic Seaboard Airways. Their goal was to take over International Airways and Hoover Field. Ira C. Eaker became the general manager of Atlantic Seaboard.
United States Air Transport was later taken over by Federal Aviation Corporation in June 1929. This was an airline based in New York City. Federal Aviation announced it was buying more land, including the Arlington Beach amusement park. They planned to expand into a huge airport with six runways. One runway would be just for planes taking off.
On December 30, 1929, Federal Aviation sold Hoover Field to the New Standard Aircraft Co. This ended the time when both airports were controlled by the same company. In July 1931, Federal Aviation (and Washington Airport) was supposed to be bought by National Aviation Corporation. This company invested in airlines. This sale didn't happen, but National Aviation Corp. still had a connection with Washington Airport.
Even with different owners, the two airports started working together around 1930. Hoover Field agreed to handle all sightseeing flights, flight schools, and small planes. Washington Airport would only be used by larger military, mail, and passenger planes. After this agreement, 50 sightseeing flights and 30 commercial flights were scheduled each day.
The Final Merger
Both Hoover Field and Washington Airport faced big money problems during the Great Depression. In 1933, the two airports finally merged after some quick financial deals.
Washington Airport was sold first. The buyers were the Ludington brothers, Nicholas S. Ludington and Charles Townsend Ludington. They owned a pilot training school and made demonstration airplanes. The Ludingtons became very rich. In 1929, Charles was on the board of directors of a big aviation investment company. The brothers also managed Camden County Airport near Philadelphia. In 1930, the Ludingtons started New York-Philadelphia-Washington Airways. This airline later became Ludington Airline. Famous aviator Amelia Earhart even joined as a Vice President!
The Ludingtons sold their airline in February 1933. This left them with a lot of money. On July 8, 1933, Federal Aviation put Washington Airport up for auction. The Ludingtons had a large loan on the property that Washington Airport couldn't pay back. On July 17, 1933, an unknown buyer bought Washington Airport for $432,000.
Hoover Field was sold just a few days later. New Standard Aircraft Co. also couldn't make payments on Hoover Field's loans by July 1933. The Ludingtons owned a large loan on Hoover Field. The Hoover Field auction was set for July 31. At the auction, the Ludingtons bought Hoover Field for $174,500.
The evening after the Hoover Field auction, the secret buyer of Washington Airport was revealed. It was National Airport Corporation, a part of National Aviation Corporation. This company had been formed in July 1928 to invest in aviation. Now, it owned one airport near the nation's capital. Just 24 hours later, National Aviation bought Hoover Field from the Ludingtons for an unknown amount of money.
The two airfields merged into a new airport called Washington-Hoover Airport. It opened on August 2, 1933. It closed to the public when Washington National Airport opened on June 16, 1941. It stayed open for small private planes, but closed completely on September 16, 1941. The United States Department of War bought Washington-Hoover Airport for $1 million to build The Pentagon.
Images for kids
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Hoover Field (bottom and left) and Washington Airport (right) at the foot of Highway Bridge in 1932
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The Arlington Radio Towers, one of the many dangerous safety hazards near the edge of Hoover Field.
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Biplanes sit on a sod apron at Hoover Field. The dome of the U.S. Capitol building can be seen over the plane in the middle. Smokestacks and other tall buildings, safety hazards for which the airport was notorious, line the horizon.
