Imeson Field
Encyclopedia
Imeson Field, also known as Jacksonville Imeson Airport, was the original airport
serving Jacksonville, Florida
from 1927 until its closing in 1967. Over the years it was known as Jacksonville Municipal Airport prior to World War II
, and Jacksonville Army Airfield when the United States Army Air Forces
controlled the facility during World War II
, and at its closing the airport was officially was known as Jacksonville - Thomas Cole Imeson Municipal Airport.
) and Busch Drive, the site of a 175 acres (70.8 ha) prison farm located north of downtown Jacksonville. Originally, it had a 2,100-foot cinder and shell runway, a 2,500-foot grass runway, an administration building and a hangar. By 1934, the Department of Commerce Airport Directory described Jacksonville Airport as having four "sandy, sodded, surfaced" runways, all 2,500 feet long, with a row of hangars on the side of the airfield. The manager was listed as Major Herbert A. Maloney.
Jacksonville Municipal Airport Number One officially opened on October 11, 1927, A dedication ceremony was held prior to its official opening that included Charles Lindbergh
, who flew to Jacksonville in the "Spirit of St. Louis
" to promote the new municipal airport still under construction and to help promote Jacksonville's fledgling aviation industry. At a time when aviation was still considered by many to be a novelty, he assured city leaders that air passenger service would span the nation. Eastern Air Service (later known as Eastern Air Lines
) was the first carrier to provide commercial passenger service to Jacksonville beginning in 1931.
By 1941 the airport had expanded to 600 acres (242.8 ha) adding five hangars, a terminal building and five asphalt runways, the longest of which was 7000 feet (2,133.6 m). Airline service was provided by Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines
(1924-present), Miami-based Eastern Airlines (1926–1991), United Airlines
, National Airlines
(1934–1980, which at one time made Jacksonville its headquarters), Boston-based Northeast Airlines
and Atlanta-based Southern Airways
(1949–1979).
Originally named Jacksonville Municipal Airport Number One, in the 1950s, the facility was renamed after Thomas Cole Imeson (1880–1948), city councilman and later longtime commissioner in charge of airports and highways. Imeson’s visionary work led to the creation of Jacksonville Municipal Airport, as well as improvements to its runways, hangars and terminal buildings. This facility served as the city's main airport for 42 years. Thomas Imeson died at the age of 68 in march 1948.
The largest commercial aircraft to operate scheduled service to and from Imeson was the McDonnell Douglas DC-8-61 flown by Delta Air Lines
. Other jet service was provided by Delta Air Lines
, Eastern Airlines, National Airlines
, Northeast Airlines
and United Airlines
operating Boeing
707s, 720s, 727s, Convair 880
s and McDonnell Douglas
DC-8s and DC-9s. Eastern Airlines and National Airlines
also provided turboprop service using the Lockheed L-188 Electra
.
Flight kitchen and catering services was provided to the airlines by Dobbs House Inc. founded by James K. Dobbs, Sr. based out of Memphis Tennessee. Dodds House eventually sold the company to Beech-Nut Life Savers in 1966 but the company continued to operate under the Dobbs House Inc. name.
, the USAAF began to use Jacksonville for antisubmarine missions in 1941. Later the airfield was turned over to the United States Navy, and by 1945, Naval Auxiliary Air Station Jacksonville began to use the improved PB4Y-2 Privateer (B-24). The base's maximum complement of 67 aircraft was reached in 1945.
With the establishment of an independent U.S. Air Force in 1947, the U.S. Army Air Forces aviation organization of the Florida National Guard
became the Florida Air National Guard
. The Jacksonville Air National Guard Station was established at Imeson, eventually supporting the 125th Fighter Interceptor Group
(125 FIG), gained by the Air Defense Command (ADC). During this time the Air National Guard
operated a variety of aircraft, including the F-51 Mustang, F-80 Shooting Star, F-86 Sabre
and F-102 Delta Dagger
.
Imeson flourished during the 1950s. With the introduction of jet airliners in the early 1960s, however, the geographic limitations which precluded lengthening the runways became a fatal liability.
The new Jacksonville International Airport
was opened five miles to the north in 1967, and civilian and Air National Guard operations at Imeson Airport ended in 1968 as they relocated to the new airport.
125th Fighter Wing|125th Fighter Interceptor Group
In the 1960s the 125 FIG also saw their operating location change: in the early 1960s local government officials decided there was a need to replace Imeson Airport. With the scaling back and closure of Imeson Airport during 1967 and 1968 the 125 FIG and 159 FIS relocated to a newly built installation at Jacksonville International Airport and were in place and operational by 1968. That same year the active USAF gaining command's name was changed to Aerospace Defense Command (ADC).
In 1974 the 125th Fighter Interceptor Group converted from the F-102 Delta Dagger
to the F-106 Delta Dart
. By the end of the year, with the conversion complete, alert status resumed at Jacksonville International Airport. Pilots and ground crew members received extensive training in the operations and maintenance of the new aircraft and they soon gained the expertise needed to handle the sophisticated all-weather supersonic fighter-interceptor.
The remaining southeastern portion of Runway 30 has been reused as Imeson Park Boulevard.
Airport
An airport is a location where aircraft such as fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and blimps take off and land. Aircraft may be stored or maintained at an airport...
serving Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968...
from 1927 until its closing in 1967. Over the years it was known as Jacksonville Municipal Airport prior to World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and Jacksonville Army Airfield when the United States Army Air Forces
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force....
controlled the facility during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and at its closing the airport was officially was known as Jacksonville - Thomas Cole Imeson Municipal Airport.
Origins
Imeson Field was built southeast of the intersection of North Main Street (U.S. 17U.S. Route 17 in Florida
U.S. Route 17 in Florida is a north–south United States Highway. It runs from the Punta Gorda, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area northeast to the Greater Jacksonville Metropolitan Area....
) and Busch Drive, the site of a 175 acres (70.8 ha) prison farm located north of downtown Jacksonville. Originally, it had a 2,100-foot cinder and shell runway, a 2,500-foot grass runway, an administration building and a hangar. By 1934, the Department of Commerce Airport Directory described Jacksonville Airport as having four "sandy, sodded, surfaced" runways, all 2,500 feet long, with a row of hangars on the side of the airfield. The manager was listed as Major Herbert A. Maloney.
Jacksonville Municipal Airport Number One officially opened on October 11, 1927, A dedication ceremony was held prior to its official opening that included Charles Lindbergh
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...
, who flew to Jacksonville in the "Spirit of St. Louis
Spirit of St. Louis
The Spirit of St. Louis is the custom-built, single engine, single-seat monoplane that was flown solo by Charles Lindbergh on May 20–21, 1927, on the first non-stop flight from New York to Paris for which Lindbergh won the $25,000 Orteig Prize.Lindbergh took off in the Spirit from Roosevelt...
" to promote the new municipal airport still under construction and to help promote Jacksonville's fledgling aviation industry. At a time when aviation was still considered by many to be a novelty, he assured city leaders that air passenger service would span the nation. Eastern Air Service (later known as Eastern Air Lines
Eastern Air Lines
Eastern Air Lines was a major United States airline that existed from 1926 to 1991. Before its dissolution it was headquartered at Miami International Airport in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida.-History:...
) was the first carrier to provide commercial passenger service to Jacksonville beginning in 1931.
By 1941 the airport had expanded to 600 acres (242.8 ha) adding five hangars, a terminal building and five asphalt runways, the longest of which was 7000 feet (2,133.6 m). Airline service was provided by Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a major airline based in the United States and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline operates an extensive domestic and international network serving all continents except Antarctica. Delta and its subsidiaries operate over 4,000 flights every day...
(1924-present), Miami-based Eastern Airlines (1926–1991), United Airlines
United Airlines
United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees (which includes the entire holding company United Continental...
, National Airlines
National Airlines (NA)
National Airlines was an airline founded in 1934 and was headquartered on the grounds of Miami International Airport in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States near Miami.- History :...
(1934–1980, which at one time made Jacksonville its headquarters), Boston-based Northeast Airlines
Northeast Airlines
Northeast Airlines was an American airline based in Boston, Massachusetts. They began as Boston-Maine Airways, which was founded as a Pan Am contract carrier on July 20, 1931, by the Boston and Maine Railroad and Maine Central Railroad offering service from Boston to Bangor via Portland...
and Atlanta-based Southern Airways
Southern Airways
Southern Airways was a regional airline operating in the United States from its founding by Frank Hulse in 1949 until 1979 when it merged with North Central Airlines to become Republic Airlines, which on October 1, 1986, became part of Northwest Airlines, which in 2008 became a part of Delta Air...
(1949–1979).
Originally named Jacksonville Municipal Airport Number One, in the 1950s, the facility was renamed after Thomas Cole Imeson (1880–1948), city councilman and later longtime commissioner in charge of airports and highways. Imeson’s visionary work led to the creation of Jacksonville Municipal Airport, as well as improvements to its runways, hangars and terminal buildings. This facility served as the city's main airport for 42 years. Thomas Imeson died at the age of 68 in march 1948.
The largest commercial aircraft to operate scheduled service to and from Imeson was the McDonnell Douglas DC-8-61 flown by Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a major airline based in the United States and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline operates an extensive domestic and international network serving all continents except Antarctica. Delta and its subsidiaries operate over 4,000 flights every day...
. Other jet service was provided by Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a major airline based in the United States and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline operates an extensive domestic and international network serving all continents except Antarctica. Delta and its subsidiaries operate over 4,000 flights every day...
, Eastern Airlines, National Airlines
National Airlines (NA)
National Airlines was an airline founded in 1934 and was headquartered on the grounds of Miami International Airport in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States near Miami.- History :...
, Northeast Airlines
Northeast Airlines
Northeast Airlines was an American airline based in Boston, Massachusetts. They began as Boston-Maine Airways, which was founded as a Pan Am contract carrier on July 20, 1931, by the Boston and Maine Railroad and Maine Central Railroad offering service from Boston to Bangor via Portland...
and United Airlines
United Airlines
United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees (which includes the entire holding company United Continental...
operating Boeing
Boeing
The Boeing Company is an American multinational aerospace and defense corporation, founded in 1916 by William E. Boeing in Seattle, Washington. Boeing has expanded over the years, merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Boeing Corporate headquarters has been in Chicago, Illinois since 2001...
707s, 720s, 727s, Convair 880
Convair 880
The Convair 880 was a narrow-body jet airliner produced by the Convair division of General Dynamics. It was designed to compete with the Boeing 707 and Douglas DC-8 by being smaller and faster, a niche that failed to create demand...
s and McDonnell Douglas
McDonnell Douglas
McDonnell Douglas was a major American aerospace manufacturer and defense contractor, producing a number of famous commercial and military aircraft. It formed from a merger of McDonnell Aircraft and Douglas Aircraft in 1967. McDonnell Douglas was based at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport...
DC-8s and DC-9s. Eastern Airlines and National Airlines
National Airlines (NA)
National Airlines was an airline founded in 1934 and was headquartered on the grounds of Miami International Airport in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States near Miami.- History :...
also provided turboprop service using the Lockheed L-188 Electra
Lockheed L-188 Electra
The Lockheed Model 188 Electra is an American turboprop airliner built by Lockheed. First flying in 1957, it was the first large turboprop airliner produced in the United States. Initial sales were good, but after two fatal crashes which prompted an expensive modification program to fix a design...
.
Flight kitchen and catering services was provided to the airlines by Dobbs House Inc. founded by James K. Dobbs, Sr. based out of Memphis Tennessee. Dodds House eventually sold the company to Beech-Nut Life Savers in 1966 but the company continued to operate under the Dobbs House Inc. name.
Historic notes
Local pilot Laurie Yonge offered airplane rides from the beaches. Rates were $5 for short hops, $10 for long rides, and $25 for aerobatics. His transport pilot license was the first issued in Florida, and his National Aeronautics Association card was signed by Orville Wright. It was Yonge, flying in the Spirit of Jacksonville, who dropped an invitation from the air to the deck of a ship returning Charles Lindbergh and his Spirit of St. Louis. On May 20, 1929, Yonge set the world's light plane endurance record in a 90 hp. Curtiss Robin. He flew continuously for 25 hours and 10 minutes, a record that stood until 1939. No other aviator has brought such fame and success to Jacksonville both as a visionary pioneer and instructor pilot. A hangar located at the northwest end of Imeson near North Main Street displayed Laurie Yonge’s name until its demolition in the 1970s.World War II
With the start of World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the USAAF began to use Jacksonville for antisubmarine missions in 1941. Later the airfield was turned over to the United States Navy, and by 1945, Naval Auxiliary Air Station Jacksonville began to use the improved PB4Y-2 Privateer (B-24). The base's maximum complement of 67 aircraft was reached in 1945.
Postwar use
After the end of World War II the Navy returned the field to the City of Jacksonville, which reopened it as a civil airport named Jacksonville Imeson Airport. The airport was named after Thomas Cole Imeson, a longtime city councilman whose visionary work led to the opening of the airport in the 1920s. Thomas Imeson died in 1948.With the establishment of an independent U.S. Air Force in 1947, the U.S. Army Air Forces aviation organization of the Florida National Guard
Florida National Guard
The Florida National Guard is the National Guard force of the U.S. state of Florida. It comprises the Florida Army National Guard and the Florida Air National Guard.The United States Constitution charges the National Guard with dual federal and state missions...
became the Florida Air National Guard
Florida Air National Guard
The Florida Air National Guard is the air force militia of the U.S. state of Florida. It is, along with the Florida Army National Guard, an element of the Florida National Guard...
. The Jacksonville Air National Guard Station was established at Imeson, eventually supporting the 125th Fighter Interceptor Group
125th Fighter Wing
The United States Air Force's 125th Fighter Wing is a unit of the Florida Air National Guard, operationally-gained by the Air Combat Command . Its primary installation is Jacksonville Air National Guard Base at Jacksonville International Airport, Florida...
(125 FIG), gained by the Air Defense Command (ADC). During this time the Air National Guard
Air National Guard
The Air National Guard , often referred to as the Air Guard, is the air force militia organized by each of the fifty U.S. states, the commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the territories of Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the District of Columbia of the United States. Established under Title 10 and...
operated a variety of aircraft, including the F-51 Mustang, F-80 Shooting Star, F-86 Sabre
F-86 Sabre
The North American F-86 Sabre was a transonic jet fighter aircraft. Produced by North American Aviation, the Sabre is best known as America's first swept wing fighter which could counter the similarly-winged Soviet MiG-15 in high speed dogfights over the skies of the Korean War...
and F-102 Delta Dagger
F-102 Delta Dagger
The Convair F-102 Delta Dagger was a US interceptor aircraft built as part of the backbone of the United States Air Force's air defenses in the late 1950s. Entering service in 1956, its main purpose was to intercept invading Soviet bomber fleets...
.
Imeson flourished during the 1950s. With the introduction of jet airliners in the early 1960s, however, the geographic limitations which precluded lengthening the runways became a fatal liability.
The new Jacksonville International Airport
Jacksonville International Airport
Jacksonville International Airport is a joint civil-military public airport located 13 miles north of downtown Jacksonville, a city in Duval County, Florida...
was opened five miles to the north in 1967, and civilian and Air National Guard operations at Imeson Airport ended in 1968 as they relocated to the new airport.
125th Fighter Wing|125th Fighter Interceptor Group
In the 1960s the 125 FIG also saw their operating location change: in the early 1960s local government officials decided there was a need to replace Imeson Airport. With the scaling back and closure of Imeson Airport during 1967 and 1968 the 125 FIG and 159 FIS relocated to a newly built installation at Jacksonville International Airport and were in place and operational by 1968. That same year the active USAF gaining command's name was changed to Aerospace Defense Command (ADC).
In 1974 the 125th Fighter Interceptor Group converted from the F-102 Delta Dagger
F-102 Delta Dagger
The Convair F-102 Delta Dagger was a US interceptor aircraft built as part of the backbone of the United States Air Force's air defenses in the late 1950s. Entering service in 1956, its main purpose was to intercept invading Soviet bomber fleets...
to the F-106 Delta Dart
F-106 Delta Dart
The Convair F-106 Delta Dart was the primary all-weather interceptor aircraft for the United States Air Force from the 1960s through the 1980s. Designed as the so-called "Ultimate Interceptor", it has proven to be the last dedicated interceptor in USAF service to date...
. By the end of the year, with the conversion complete, alert status resumed at Jacksonville International Airport. Pilots and ground crew members received extensive training in the operations and maintenance of the new aircraft and they soon gained the expertise needed to handle the sophisticated all-weather supersonic fighter-interceptor.
Imeson Industrial Park
In 1970, Webb International Inc. purchased the former 1500 acres (6.1 km²) airport and turned it into a new commerce center, Imeson International Industrial Park, with numerous buildings being constructed over the former runways.The remaining southeastern portion of Runway 30 has been reused as Imeson Park Boulevard.
See also
- Florida World War II Army Airfields