Bradford on Airline Map After Years of Work
Bradford Era September 8, 1948
Commercial Airport Idea First Conceived
In Minds of City Officials 12 Years Ago
Today Bradford is on the map of one of the country’s great airlines.
But behind this milestone of progress in the history of the city, lies a
stirring saga of men with grim determination, indomitable spirit and foresight
to see this public service through to the finish.
It was not a simple task. It was a thankless job that covered a span of
12 years of dogged work, headaches, setbacks, criticism and opposition from
various quarters.
But the spirit of the men who achieved this goal is commensurate with the
spirit of the early oil pioneers who sparked Bradford to its great position
in the petroleum world of today. With men of their caliber, the future of
this city will always be assured.
But let’s leave the present and go back 12 years when the commercial
airport idea first was conceived in the minds of city officials.
It is a cold February day in February of 1936, when a crew of men, headed
by City Engineer J. Henry Quirk, undertake a survey of a possible airport
site on a snow-covered hilltop four miles northwest of Bradford near the
head of Bennett Brook on city-owned property.
The project was to be financed by the Work Progress Administration and the
WPA had requested a survey of the site so an estimate of cost could be determined.
However, the WPA funds were not furnished to carry out the work and the
site was temporarily abandoned.
In the next three years, an Airport Committee representing McKean County,
had turned up with several probable sites. On the evening of June 28, 1939,
the Airport Committee presented the airport problem in McKean County to
J. J. Quinn, aviation inspector of the Pennsylvania Division of Aeronautics
and Albert H. Wessel, district airport engineer for the CAA. The various
sites were suggested.
Later Mr. Quinn and Mr. Wessel personally inspected the proposed sites located
at Lafayette, Mt. Jewett, Lantz Corners, Kane, Zella Hills and Marshburg.
An original copy of their report was sent to Raphael Kessler, chairman of
the county airport committee. The county committee had, in addition to a
Bradford committee, been scouting for an airport location.
The local committee consisting of Ralph Zook, Frank Brewster and Barney
Kirsch was informed of the county’s efforts in June 1940, in a letter
from Mr. Wessel. Mr. Wessel outlined the inspection trip of suggested sites
the previous summer. Mr. Wessel’s letter followed a trip by Mr. Quirk
to Harrisburg to discuss with Mr. Wessel the possible construction of an
airport for Bradford and the finding of a suitable site. Mr. Wessel said
he would be glad to inspect any other sites offered by the committee and
reassured the local group that his office would cooperate in the development
of an airport in this vicinity.
The original Bennett Brook site was proposed to the CAA. But the CAA rejected
the location because it was not centrally located in the county.
By a stroke of luck, Mr. Quirk discovered the Mt. Alton site a short time
later. Flying over the county in a plane piloted by Joseph Fields, manager
of the Harri Emery Airport, Mr. Quirk spotted the Mt. Alton site, and quickly
appraised its excellent possibilities as an airport location.
The local committee submitted a possible layout of development at the Mt.
Alton location to Mr. Wessel who concurred that the site offered good opportunities
for the establishment of an airport.
By August 1940, the city committee had joined forces with the county committee
to determine the most suitable site and to determine if the property could
be secured at a reasonable price.
Early in 1941, Mr. Quirk had contacted Col. Robert Olds, of the Air Corps
as to the position of the northwestern Pennsylvania and the Grade Crude
oil region in the national air defense picture. The War Department later
informed Mr. Quirk that his brochure of the area would be studied and considered.
The support of business and industrial leaders of the county came on June
16, 1941, at a meeting in the Bradford Club. The group unanimously resolved
that McKean County should avail itself of the opportunity to obtain the
airport tentatively approved by the CAA, The group requested the County
Commissioners to furnish $25,000 for the purchase of the necessary site.
The next day, City Council, by resolution, agreed to furnish a suitable
airport site and sponsor the project if federal funds were made available
for the airport. The resolution was contingent on McKean County’s
purchase of the land, later approved by the commissioners.
Two months later, City Council named the city engineer, Mr. Zook, Otto Koch,
Mr. Brewster and Mr. Kessler as a committee to acquire a site for the McKean
County Airport “under terms and conditions to be approved by Council
and the McKean County Commissioners and proceed to acquire same by condemnations
proceeding it necessary.”
On Oct. 20, 1941, City Council passed a resolution authorizing the purchase
of 600 acres of land near Mt. Alton for transformation into the airport
at a total cost of $25,013.06. The property was acquired from the following
interests: Bingham Petroleum Co., Anna Gates, Mt. Jewett Catholic Church,
South Penn Oil Co., Sylvania Corp. (gas lease) Erie Railroad, F. W. Paul
Estate and Byron W. Pierce.
First inspection was made by Col. Herbert D. Vogel, executive officer, and
Col. Hooper, district engineer, then from the office of U. S. Engineers,
Pittsburgh. Later Col. Vogel succeeded Col. Hooper as district engineer.
The plans called for clearing and grading and were prepared by the U. S.
Engineers at Pittsburgh. The work commenced on April 17, 1942 and was carried
on under adverse weather conditions through summer and fall of that year.
The completed work included the clearing and grubbing of 305 acres and the
excavation of 400,000 cubic yards.
In June 1943 the city of Bradford was notified by the CAA that the completion
of the grading, additional clearing, drainage installations and the paving
of two runways was to be completed under the design and direction of the
U. S. Army engineers with offices at Baltimore, Md. The Mt. Alton airport
was to be a standby defense field.
The work was got underway on July 4, continued under favorable weather conditions
and was completed by Oct. 13, 1943. The project included two one hundred
foot wide runways 4,500 feet long, one taxiway and a warm-up apron. Also,
5.12 miles of drainage pipe was laid, shoulders were prepared and dressed
extending 200 feet on each side of the edge of the runways. The entire area
between the runways was also graded adjacent to the proposed administration
building area.
Col. William C. Sale, area engineer from the Baltimore office was in charge
during this phase of the work.
By this time the total cost of the entire work had approximated $900,000.
While Mr. Quirk was in the service during World War Two, Acting City Engineer
Sam Heffner was in charge of the airport expansion.
The first news that Bradford would get regularly scheduled passenger-mail-express
service by air came late in 1943.
Bradford was named as an air line stop on one of five applications which
United Airlines had filed with the Civil Aeronautics Board in Washington
for added service to areas adjacent to its present transcontinental airways
in the East, Eastern Canada and Midwest. United’s officials, in a
conference with Mayor Hugh J. Ryan, commented on the fine layout of the
Mt. Alton site.
The Bradford Aviation Commission was appointed in August 1944, by act of
City Council to control, maintain, and operate the airport following its
transfer to the city by the United States Army. Members of the commission
are Mayor Hugh J. Ryan, chairman, ex-officio, Mr. Zook, vice chairman, H.
W. Loveland, treasurer; Guy L. Hughey, director of public property; Orville
Scott, county commissioner and Hector P. Boncher, director of construction.
At present there is one vacancy on the commission caused by the resignation
of B. M. Kirsch. He resigned due to the small portion of his time now spent
in Bradford.
Since its establishment, the commission has accomplished the following:
1. An area survey completed in 1945 to justify the airport expansion program.
2. Solicitation of funds totaling $178,000 of which $128,000 was donated
by private citizens and industry, $25,000 by the city of Bradford, and a
like amount by McKean County.
3. Erection of three hangars: one in 1946, the second in 1947 and the large
executive-type hangar in 1948. These two smaller hangars are the t-type.
4. Completion of an overall or master plan to be realized in four stages,
the first stage of which is now underway.
5. Completion of detailed plans for an administration building.
6. Securing of north-south and east-west air line service by All American
Aviation Inc., and the United Airlines, respectively.
7. Establishment of a GI school of instruction.
8. Securing of the necessary funds to provide the adequate facilities for
the launching of main line air service today.
Funds for the present construction at the airport have been supplied from
the following sources:
The CAA, $200,000; Pennsylvania Aeronautics Commission, $100,000; and the
City of Bradford, McKean County and Aviation Commission, $100,000, each
paying one-third, over a period of three years starting in 1949.
Work underway now includes entrance road paving, construction of a service
road, taxiways, aprons, sewage, public utilities, a modern administration
building.
A small, but handsome temporary terminal has been erected to handle passenger
service until the administration building is completed. The terminal houses
the waiting room, ticket office, two-way radio system, United’s teletype
system, and offices.
Completion of the first stage of the administration building is expected
within one year. The building will be expanded over a period of 10 years.
On July 20 of this year, the Bradford Aviation Commission was notified by
United that passenger operations would be inaugurated here in September.
About a month later the starting date was pegged for Sept. 8. |
