Planes under construction at Ashburn Field in 1917. (8217 S. Cicero Ave)
If you look at this map.....we lived at 80th/Kolin which looks like it was right in the middle of a runway at one time....
Overhead view of the Aero Club from the early 20's....Cicero Ave on the far left....79th Street on the top.....83rd Street just above the bottom of the photo.
Other early airports in the Chicago area......Cicero Flying Field was a huge one at the time.
It will take you a bit to get used to the tools at the top of the map screen...
and you should also turn "on" the road markings to the left of the map.
You can view an area of land through the decades to view the changes in topography.
This led me to the old neighborhood and unanswered questions about......
You can view an area of land through the decades to view the changes in topography.
This led me to the old neighborhood and unanswered questions about......
--Why there was an airport at 83rd and Cicero...??
--Why there was a large housing subdivision built on the land where Rainey/Hancock Park is now...with no other houses around at all in the early 50's except for these??
Check out 79th/Kostner in the 1951 map version.
Read below....now I am wondering what was REALLY under that sled hill?
Rainey Park
History
The establishment of Ashburn Flying Field at 83rd and Cicero Avenue, a World War I pilot training facility and Chicago's first airport, spurred development in Chicago's Ashburn community. By the late 1920s, area residents needed a park to serve their fledgling community. On October 19, 1929, the South Park Commission agreed to purchase a substantial property in Ashburn. Unfortunately, the stock market crashed just ten days later, and the resulting financial hardships prevented the South Park Commission from improving the site.
In 1934, the city's 22 independent park boards were consolidated into the Chicago Park District, and the newly-formed agency took control of the Ashburn property. Park district designers soon developed a preliminary plan for the site, already called Rainey Park for Edward J. Rainey (1905-1911), an influential South Park Commissioner who advocated neighborhood park creation. Though the initial Rainey Park plans were not executed, the property did serve as a temporary nursery.
In 1942, when the U.S. Defense Department condemned the northern half of the park for a Chrysler Corporation airplane factory, the park district purchased property to the south.
In late 1945, the Chicago Housing Authority leased Rainey Park to provide temporary housing for returning World War II veterans. The lease ended in December, 1956, at which time the park district sold a portion of its land to the Chicago Board of Education for the new Hancock Elementary School.
Improvements finally began at Rainey Park in 1959. Park facilities soon included a baseball diamond, tennis and horseshoe courts, and playground equipment. From the beginning, the park and the adjacent school have been jointly operated by the park district and the Board of Education. Though Hancock School closed for several years in the 1980s, the park district continued to use the building for programs, and the school has since reopened.
The school gymnasium doubles as a fieldhouse for Rainey Park.
Chicago's first airport, Ashburn Flying Field, opened in 1916, spurring Chicago's drive to be an aviation center. During World War I it became a training camp for the Signal Corps, and Ashburn's population rose to 1,363. Afterward it had U.S. Post Office airmail contracts but, being situated on marshy prairie land, quickly lost them due to the field's remoteness and the prohibitive drainage costs.
Rainey Park
History
The establishment of Ashburn Flying Field at 83rd and Cicero Avenue, a World War I pilot training facility and Chicago's first airport, spurred development in Chicago's Ashburn community. By the late 1920s, area residents needed a park to serve their fledgling community. On October 19, 1929, the South Park Commission agreed to purchase a substantial property in Ashburn. Unfortunately, the stock market crashed just ten days later, and the resulting financial hardships prevented the South Park Commission from improving the site.
In 1934, the city's 22 independent park boards were consolidated into the Chicago Park District, and the newly-formed agency took control of the Ashburn property. Park district designers soon developed a preliminary plan for the site, already called Rainey Park for Edward J. Rainey (1905-1911), an influential South Park Commissioner who advocated neighborhood park creation. Though the initial Rainey Park plans were not executed, the property did serve as a temporary nursery.
In 1942, when the U.S. Defense Department condemned the northern half of the park for a Chrysler Corporation airplane factory, the park district purchased property to the south.
In late 1945, the Chicago Housing Authority leased Rainey Park to provide temporary housing for returning World War II veterans. The lease ended in December, 1956, at which time the park district sold a portion of its land to the Chicago Board of Education for the new Hancock Elementary School.
Improvements finally began at Rainey Park in 1959. Park facilities soon included a baseball diamond, tennis and horseshoe courts, and playground equipment. From the beginning, the park and the adjacent school have been jointly operated by the park district and the Board of Education. Though Hancock School closed for several years in the 1980s, the park district continued to use the building for programs, and the school has since reopened.
The school gymnasium doubles as a fieldhouse for Rainey Park.
Chicago's first airport, Ashburn Flying Field, opened in 1916, spurring Chicago's drive to be an aviation center. During World War I it became a training camp for the Signal Corps, and Ashburn's population rose to 1,363. Afterward it had U.S. Post Office airmail contracts but, being situated on marshy prairie land, quickly lost them due to the field's remoteness and the prohibitive drainage costs.
In 1927 Municipal Airport (now Midway) opened, and further interest in Ashburn diminished. Ashburn Field remained open until 1939.
We've come a long ways in the last 100 years...since the Wright Bros....
We've come a long ways in the last 100 years...since the Wright Bros....
Below is some highlights from the 2009 AirVenture Flyin at Oshgosh, WI a few weeks ago...
(Thanks Dan)
Marty
Hartford City, IN
Marty
Hartford City, IN
1 comment:
learn how to read a map, 83rd st is at the top, 85th on bottom
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