“Here is what the Imeson Airport Administration Building looked like in 1949. Now this place is where Sears and many other industrial places are. Note Air Control Tower at the tip of the palm tree. The good old days?” LS
Jacksonville Municipal Airport kicked off its dedication ceremony with a visit from Charles Lindbergh and his Spirit of St. Louis airplane in 1927. The airport started passenger service in 1931 with Eastern Air Service (Eastern Air Lines). The airport served as a military facility during WWII as Jacksonville Army Airfield with bombers and observation aircraft patrolling the coast for German U-Boats. The airport returned to civilian use after Japan surrendered in 1945 but a Florida Air National Guard squadron continued to use the facility flying P-51 Mustangs. The name changed to Jacksonville Imeson Airport in the 1950′s and was being served by Delta Air Lines, Eastern Airlines, United Airlines and National Airlines and others. With the development of jet powered aircraft the runway lengths at Imeson Airport became a liability and the new Jacksonville International Airport was opened in 1967. Imeson continued to be used as a general aviation airport until 1971 when it was closed and the area was turned into an industrial park. Portions of the old runways still remain in the complex.
Tags: Air National Guard, Art Deco, building, Delta Airlines, Eastern Airlines, historic photography, Imeson Airport, Jacksonville Airport, vintage photograph
