A TOUR OF CALIFORNIA'S FIRST AIRPORT

By Debbie Bulloch



Last Sunday I went with a friend to her first century (100 miles) bike ride. The ride was sponsored by the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition. My friend lives in Los Angeles, so I left home promptly at 4:30 a.m., arrived at her house by 5:30 a.m. - by 6:00 a.m. she was at the registration tent getting her wrist band identification and a course map.









Registration time!



The ride began and ended at the Gene Autry Museum. Riders rode all the way down to Long Beach and then headed back to Museum. It was a mostly flat course with a minimal net elevation gain-loss. The Gene Autry Museum is located inside Griffith Park Long Beach is at sea-level, so the riders were going “downhill” on the way to Long Beach and “uphill” on the way back.

The start is always a little hard with so many riders.





I had previously decided that I was not going to do the century ride but would instead “hang around” and ride around Griffith Park, and surrounding areas, to do a little bit of “exploring.” This way, if my friend got in trouble during her ride, I could just hop on the car and go to her “rescue.” She did not get into trouble and I did not have to go rescue her – she finished her first century in about seven hours which is really a good time for a first-time century rider.

Even little kids got into the action!



By the time that she finished the century she was very happy, very tired and very hungry! So we went out for pasta and beer and had a good time recounting the details of her “epic” ride. Next day (Monday) she was back at work at her desk, sore but totally elated by her accomplishment.

We are already making plans for next year’s ride – we are even talking about doing the AIDS Life Cycle: San Francisco to Los Angeles Ride

So, while my friend was pounding the pavement on her bike, I was riding around doing a bit of exploring.

The first place that I visited was the site of the old Grand Central Air Terminal (GCAT). Located in Glendale, California GCAT was the first regular passenger airport located West of the Rocky Mountains.

The former airport terminal is not far from Griffith Park. (Click on the Google map below for the exact location.)

Google Map of GCAT location

The airfield that grew into Grand Central Air Terminal began more modestly, when local businessman and developer Leslie Coombs Brand started a private airport there in 1919, which was "a highlight of the Los Angeles social calendar." As air travel and the aviation industry grew in profit and popularity, so did the need for a larger, public, and well-planned airport. This parcel of land in Glendale (located where now stands several industrial businesses between the 134 Freeway, the LA River, the 5 Freeway, Sonora Avenue, and San Fernando Road) proved the ideal spot for such a place.

GCAT opened on Washington's Birthday, February 22, 1929 with the participation of local officials and dignitaries, as well as many celebrities, and a crowd of hundreds. This was the golden age of flight, and likewise this was the golden age of the beautiful new air terminal. GCAT had all the amenities a traveler or pilot needed, from hangars, repair centers, a garage for storing your car, and a central terminal building that was an architectural marvel as well as a popular hangout. In fact, the on-site restaurant became the center of night-long parties when the movie stars of the mid-30s gathered to see friends off before lengthy flights.

Within just months of its opening, the Los Angeles Times touted the city's prominent role in the aviation industry: "There is 50 per cent more aviation activity in Los Angeles county than in any other part of the United States." One of the chief tenants flying in and out of GCAT was Maddux Airlines, who operated airships of many varieties- soonMaddux Airlines merged with Transcontinental Air Transport to become TAT-Maddux. The airline enjoyed an affiliation with celebrity pilots such as Charles Lindbergh and Amelia Earhart.

GCAT has a very important role in aviation history because it was the first airport to offer air service between southern California and New York. On July 28, 1929, the first regularly scheduled transcontinental flight from Glendale took place and the first leg of the 48-hour flight was piloted by Lindbergh and its passengers included Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks, Sr.

One of the most prominent features of the airport was its main terminal, located at what is now 1310 Air Way. It is now the only building left from the original airport; it has been under the ownership of the Walt Disney Company since 1997.

Built in 1928 and designed by Henry L. Gogerty, the two-story, eight-bay wide building combines Spanish Colonial Revival styling with Zig-zag (Art Deco) Moderne influences. It was designed with simplicity in mind, and to echo conventions in transit buildings seen in rail stations of the day.

In the 1930s, with air travel at the height of glamour, many films used GCAT as a location central to the storylines. According to Wikipedia: "The airport was the setting of several films, including Howard Hughes' Hell's Angels (1930), Shirley Temple's Bright Eyes (1934), Lady Killer (1933) starring James Cagney, Sky Giant (1938) with Joan Fontaine, Hats Off (1936) with John Payne, and the musical Hollywood Hotel (1937) with Dick Powell. The airport was also known for stunt flying, and supplying planes for use in the movie industry by people like Paul Mantz."

Following the Pearl Harbor attacks on December 7, 1941, the airport had a renewed purpose as a strategic wing of military operations. The airport was effectively camouflaged from enemy attack and from the air it appeared to be a housing tract complete with faux streets. (The film studios, because of their experience creating movie sets, were contracted to create the camouflage.) In 1942 Sonora Avenue was closed to traffic so that the runway could be lengthened to provide an additional 1,200 feet of runway.

There was little activity at the airport in the mid- to late- 1950s. Major Mosely did some early rocket development and testing amongst the old concrete revetments left over from WW II. By the late 1950s] plans were already afoot to convert the property into a large industrial complex.

By 1958 the end of the airport seemed evident to residents, particularly taxpayers who did not enjoy supporting an obviously failing enterprise. The property was in dire straits; the runway had not been maintained and was riddled with ground squirrel burrows. The tower, too, had been abandoned, and the airport was operating as an uncontrolled facility. NOTE: An "uncontrolled facility" is a general aviation airport without a staffed air control tower (ACT). Pilots flying in and out of an uncontrolled facility must fly using visual flight rules (VFR).

On July 15, 1959, the last aircraft cleared the runway, completing the exodus. The next stage of life for the airport was a focus on industry.

The air Terminal is now fenced off (although the exterior is easily accessed on foot, as I did). The Terminal belongs to the Disney Company and there are rumors that Disney plans to restore the terminal and tower as they were during the 1930s and use the location as a training facility and visitors center. The Terminal building is listed on the Glendale Register of Historic Resources; many believe, however, that it should be brought to the National Register.

As I aproached the Terminal’s location I was struck by the beautiful exteriors of the Art Deco tower. The detailed exteriors were a reminder of a time, not so long ago, when air travel was still a romantic adventure. It was a time when men wore suits and women wore gloves and hats to travel by plane (or train, or even bus). Compare that to the current trend in air travel: sweaty men and women wearing t-shirts, shorts and flip fops - YUCK!

If you are in the Los Angeles you too can visit the area that was once the center of aviation in Southern California. Although the Terminal is fenced off it can be viewed from the street (Air Way) and from the surrounding parking lot.

On the Sunday when I took these pictures, the whole area surrounding the Terminal tower was empty. It was easy for me to close my eyes and for a moment imagine myself hobnobbing with the likes of Clark Gable, Charles Lindbergh, Howard Hughes, Shirley Temple and Amelia Earhart as they went about their business in this world-famous airport.

If you go into the parking lot (where the runway used to be and where passengers boarded planes) be ready to deal with the friendly Disney security guards. That is where I met Johnny, who was wearing his Disney “tag.” He was indeed friendly and he let me take as many pictures as I wanted - he even went as far as relating a little bit of the building’s history.

For this story I have included some the close-up pictures that I took of the artwork on the Terminal tower. I have also included some historical photographs of the GCAT at its heyday. Finally, I have included three YouTube clips discussing the history of this amazing place.

Enjoy!

The Terminal tower as it looks today.









Unless otherwise stated, photographs by DB. © Copyright 2009, DB. All rights reserved.

Here are photographs of GCAT as it looked at various points throughout its history. (Click on image for larger view.)





The Terminal as it has looked in recent years.





Photographs by Lindsay William-Ross/LAist. All rights reserved.



Photograph by Mike Dillon, October 16, 2005.

And, finally, from Youtube, a history of GCAT:










UPDATE! someone just provided me with a link to a website dedicated to forgotten or little known airports in Southern California. Check them out at:

Forgotten or Little Known Airports – Grand Central Air Station

In the next installment I will post pictures from the Train Museum at Griffth Park. Something very fascinating about planes, trains and cars. Stay tuned!

Here is a preview of "coming attractions." (Yes, that is my trusty metal steed against a fence in front of a Shay-style steam locomotive.)