Morristown Municipal Airport receives grading work in the early 1930s
Photo Courtesy of Morristown Municipal Airport
Written by Cara Townsend
HANOVER — This year marks the 70th anniversary of the Morristown Municipal Airport, a present-day hub of aviation that once served as a military base and was considered as a home for the Hindenburg because of its proximity to New York City and favorable weather conditions.
The airport property was purchased by Morristown Mayor Clyde Potts three years into the Great Depression. According to articles published in the Daily Record in 1932, the town obtained the property from Normandy Waterworks in July of that year — 245 contiguous acres for $210,000.
“At that time in history, aviation was huge,” said Darren Large, who manages facilities and operations of the site off Columbia Turnpike. “Lindbergh had crossed the ocean, and aircraft made during that time would soon be used” by the military.
Large, a history buff who has worked at the airport since 2001, has scoured the National Archives, state archives, New Jersey Aviation Hall of fame archives, Morris County Library and Morristown library looking for photos and articles about significant events at the airport.
His findings coalesced into “Images of Aviation: Morristown Municipal Airport,” which he wrote with Henry M. Holden and was published by Arcadia Publishing in 2010.
Large said his research found that when the Hindenburg began service in the U.S., Gill Robb Wilson, director of aviation for New Jersey, tried to get the Graf Zeppelin Co. to relocate from Lakehurst Naval Air Station to Morristown because of weather concerns.
Hugo Eckner, a German Zeppelin builder and pilot, visited the site in 1936 to conduct testing and was quoted in the Newark News as saying the Morristown was “the most desirable site” he had seen.
“The railroad offered the opportunity to ship freight,” Large said. “It was also driving distance to Newark Airport, which at the time was one of the largest in the world. The idea was that passengers could get off the dirigible and could connect to anywhere in the world.”
Though the aircraft never docked at Morristown, the Hindenberg’s first flight over the airport occurred on Oct. 9, 1936. Less than a year later, it caught fire and was destroyed at Lakehurst Naval Air Station.
HANOVER — This year marks the 70th anniversary of the Morristown Municipal Airport, a present-day hub of aviation that once served as a military base and was considered as a home for the Hindenburg because of its proximity to New York City and favorable weather conditions.
The airport property was purchased by Morristown Mayor Clyde Potts three years into the Great Depression. According to articles published in the Daily Record in 1932, the town obtained the property from Normandy Waterworks in July of that year — 245 contiguous acres for $210,000.
“At that time in history, aviation was huge,” said Darren Large, who manages facilities and operations of the site off Columbia Turnpike. “Lindbergh had crossed the ocean, and aircraft made during that time would soon be used” by the military.
Large, a history buff who has worked at the airport since 2001, has scoured the National Archives, state archives, New Jersey Aviation Hall of fame archives, Morris County Library and Morristown library looking for photos and articles about significant events at the airport.
His findings coalesced into “Images of Aviation: Morristown Municipal Airport,” which he wrote with Henry M. Holden and was published by Arcadia Publishing in 2010.
Large said his research found that when the Hindenburg began service in the U.S., Gill Robb Wilson, director of aviation for New Jersey, tried to get the Graf Zeppelin Co. to relocate from Lakehurst Naval Air Station to Morristown because of weather concerns.
Hugo Eckner, a German Zeppelin builder and pilot, visited the site in 1936 to conduct testing and was quoted in the Newark News as saying the Morristown was “the most desirable site” he had seen.
“The railroad offered the opportunity to ship freight,” Large said. “It was also driving distance to Newark Airport, which at the time was one of the largest in the world. The idea was that passengers could get off the dirigible and could connect to anywhere in the world.”
Though the aircraft never docked at Morristown, the Hindenberg’s first flight over the airport occurred on Oct. 9, 1936. Less than a year later, it caught fire and was destroyed at Lakehurst Naval Air Station.
“After the accident, people were scared of dirigibles,” Large said.
“But World War II laid the groundwork for developing the airport.”
In
1940 Morristown received a federal grant for $850,000 to develop a
military base. The airport was used for Army Air Corps training between
1942 and 1945, and Bell Laboratories tested computers that would be used
in military planes.
At the end of the war, commercial traffic replaced military operations at the airport.
One
of the first corporate flights in the country departed from the airport
in the early 1950s, Large said. The Continental Can Co. converted
aircraft from the war into corporate aircraft, which eventually found
their way to the Commemorative Air Force, which preserves and displays
military aircraft throughout history.
Original
runways at the airport were 4,000 feet long by 150 feet wide. In 1969,
the main runway, known as “the 523,” was extended to nearly 6,000 feet.
The airport also received instrument system upgrades and new lighting to
accommodate corporate jets at that time.
Use
of the airport has declined during the recent economic downturn, Large
said. Whereas 2004 and 2005 saw more than 200,000 flights, Large reports
the average operations in 2011 are down to about 120,000.
But
the airport remains one of the most respected across the country and in
aviation circles, he said. “The timing of its development allowed it to
participate in many of the big changes in aviation from propeller
driven aircraft to the rise of the corporate jet.”
Today
the airport accommodates not only corporate planes, but private pilots,
celebrities and sports professionals. When Tim Tebow signed with the
Jets in March, he flew into Morristown. After the Giants won the Super
Bowl, airplanes arrived with commemorative cups, shirts and towels,
Large said.
Large
said that after Hurricane Katrina, private pilots donated their planes
so that volunteers could rescue abandoned dogs. Dog rescue volunteers
use the airport to rescue dogs from across the country year-round.
Just as the airport celebrates its 70th year, DM Airports Ltd., marks 30 years as its custodian.
“The
airport is still owned by Morristown, but in the late 70s, the town was
losing money during the fuel crisis and it was really costing the
taxpayers. Our company came in to take care of operations.”
There
were a lot of factors behind the initial purchase that ring true today,
Large says: “a down economy, the need to get people working and a push
to bring business to New Jersey.”
http://www.dailyrecord.com
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