In 1921, Meadowthorpe Field was established as the first official airport in Lexington. The field consisted of a flat pasture, surrounded by fences and telephone poles. There was no landing strip, planes took off into the wind across the pasture. The field was located on the Meadowthorpe Farm[1], owned by Samuel H. Halley. The farm was located on Leestown Pike, one and half miles west of the city limits.[i]
Lexington Aviation Company:
In 1921, the Lexington Aviation Company was established to operate a commercial passenger and express air service from Meadowthorpe Field. The company also operated a flying school, and maintenance and repair shop. Jesse O. Creech[2], Kentucky’s only World War One flying ace, became the chief pilot/manager of the company. The company purchased a British Avro, a three passenger airplane, which was named the Daniel Boone. The plane cost $5,000. This was the first privately owned airplane by a Lexington resident. The plane cruised at 80 miles per hour.[ii]
Officers of the company were Harry S. Brewer (President), Steve B. Featherson (Vice President), Samuel B. Walton (Treasurer), James Maret (Secretary and Advertising Manager) Jess O. Creech (General Manager and Chief Pilot). Creech was a local insurance agent, with offices in the Fayette National Bank Building, where he scheduled flights. Maret, of Mt. Vernon, was one of the organizer and secretary of the company.[iii]
On June 17, 1921, Creech picked up his new airplane at the factory in Chicago. He left Chicago at 11:02 am for Meadowthorpe Field, the first commercial flight operating into the field. He landed on the Indianapolis Speedway, at 1:08 pm for a refueling stop. He had flown at a speed of 75 miles per hour, at an altitude of 3,000 feet. He resumed his flight at 3:20 pm, crossing the Ohio River, near Madison, Indiana. He arrived in Lexington at 6:00 pm, then circled the city a few times before landing. He total flight time was 3 hours, 58 minutes, averaging 85 to 90 miles per hour. His top speed was 100 miles per hour.[iv]
As a publicity stunt, he planned to carry a pig as cargo, a gift from the Morris & Company Meatpacking to Mayor Thomas C. Bradley of Lexington. Unfortunately, the pig failed to be on time for the flight and was left behind.[v]
On June 25, 1921, the first recorded air express package was delivered by the company. A. E. Lawrence, a Mt. Sterling contractor, ordered “a piece of material” from Lexington for the home of Ben T. Wright. Having missed the afternoon train, Wright called Creech and arranged to have the material shipped by air. After a twenty minute flight, Creech in the Daniel Boone dropped the package in Wright’s yard. Creech was accompanied by his mechanic and a Mr. Williams.[vi]
On July 8, 1921, the Daniel Boone was flown to Paris by Creech to search for a landing field near the town. He made several “hop-off” flights with passengers, before returning to Lexington with Raymond Wilson and Elizabeth Buchanan as passengers.[vii]
The Daniel Boone was destroyed by fire on July 20, 1921 at the Montgomery County Fair. Creech was using a temporary field at Judge H. R. Prewitt farm, for exhibition flying, when while starting the engine a fire broke out. No one was injured and the machine was partly covered by insurance.[viii]
Roscoe Turner Flying Circus:
In May 1925, the Roscoe Turner Flying Circus landed in Lexington as part of Lexington’s Sesquicentennial Celebration. The aviators were met at the field by Creech, Maret, Halley, Henry Reynolds and C. Frank Dunn. Halley was noted as “generously offered his field to the flyers.” The next day, a crowd gathered at the field to meet the flyers.[ix]
The circus performed several features during the week. The highlights were “the night-flying fireworks exhibition over the entire city” on Wednesday and Saturday nights. On Thursday afternoon, the circus preformed an airshow over Stoll Field as part of the opening pageant. This show included a mock exhibit of a plane going down in flames, wing walking and stunt flying. In addition, on Wednesday, the circus (with William VanArsdall), flew in formation over the Lexington Cemetery to drop flowers over the graves of Confederate and Union soldiers. VanArsdall was a local pilot.[x]
Municipal Airport:
In March 1925, Mayor Hogan Yancey discussed an “aviation field” with the National Aeronautics Association. The legislature had just passed an act allowing cities to operate airfields, using public funds.[xi]
On November 29, 1926, John G. Stoll, editor of the Lexington Leader, held a meeting in his office to discuss establishing a municipal airport in Lexington. The meeting included members from the Board of Commerce, Lexington Automobile Club and Kentucky Air Board. Jesse O. Creech represented the state air board.[xii]
Meadowthorpe Field, circa 1925 <UK>
On April 15, 1927, the Board of Commerce leased the old Meadowthorpe Field (50 acres) for $100 per month, for three years. The field became the Municipal Airport, at Halley Field.
Kentucky Airways, Inc.:
In 1926, the Kentucky Airways, Inc. was founded by Thomas J. (Jap) Lee and Ted Kincannon[3]. In 1927, the company became the first tenant of Halley Field, with a fleet of five airplanes (the underside lettered LEXINGTON). The company was managed by both Lee and Kincannon. The company established two roundtrips, daily flights between Lexington and Louisville. The company later established routes around Kentucky, with scheduled and chartered flights. The company also opened an aviation school, which trained local pilots. A number of University of Kentucky students used the airline for flights home for the holidays. [xiii]
.In December 1927, Mayor Hogan Yancey reported that Lexington was to be included on the airport map, prepared by the Aeronautic Branch of the Department of Commerce.
In January 1928, the field became a stop on the Dixie & Northern Airline’s flight from Detroit to Miami. The airline used Ford Trimotor Airplanes. Kincannon was the local manager for the airline.[xiv]
Charles A. Lindbergh:
On March 28, 1928, at 2:33 pm, Charles A. Lindbergh[4] landed unannounced in the Spirit of St. Louis at Halley Field. Lindbergh flew from Washington, departing at 9:50 am. With Lindbergh were Colonel Henry Breckinridge, Major Thomas Lanphier, Captain E. S. Land and Orin Root, Jr. Breckinridge was Lindbergh’s attorney, Lanphier was commander of the Army’s 1st Pursuit Squadron (Selfridge Field Michigan), Land was with the Navy’s Aeronautics Bureau and Root was Breckinridge’s step son. After landing, Lindbergh “stepped out of the plane, locked it and left the field.” The party spent the night with Dr. Scott D. Breckinridge, at his home on Russell Cave Pike.[xv]
Charles Lindbergh with Jap Lee, at Halley Field, 1928 <UK>
Overnight, Melvin Rhorer, a 17 year old boy, was hired to guard the plane in the airport’s hanger. The next morning, a crowd of over 2,000 people turned out to watch his takeoff. The city police escorted him to the airport and cleared the crowd. He barely missed some trees at the end of the runway.[xvi]
In 1929, William Swope Loughridge was manager of the field.
In April 1930, the lease on Halley Field by the Board of Commerce expired. The Board had just completed the leasing of the Glengarry Farm, from James Blythe Anderson, on Newtown Pike. Dr. Halley agreed to continue the lease until the new airport was completed.[xvii]
On May 1, 1930, Loughridge, Monroe Bradley and Bruce King leased the field for one year. They intended to operate “regular passenger service to all points, conducts sight-seeing trips, student-training work, servicing of visiting planes and other business of a require airport.” [xviii]
Halley Field, 1930 <UK>
In March 1931, the Board agreed to pay one-half of the rent ($750) on Halley Field and contribute $1,000 for maintenance of the field.[xix]
Lexington Aerial Taxi, Inc.:
In 1931, Lexington Aerial Taxi Inc. was formed as part of the Lexington Cab Company. The company operated charter flights. The company was owned by Leroy M. Smith (President) and Norman P. Smith (Vice President). The company’s office was located with the taxicab company at 211-13 East Second Street. The office telephone was Ashland 33. The company operated from Halley Field, with telephone Clay 33.[xx]
The field was closed in 1934, after the Kentucky Airways discontinued operations. The depression had limited the airport’s operations.
[1] The hanger was located at 200 to 204 Boiling Springs Drive.
[2] Lieutenant Jesse Orin Creech was born in 1895, in Harlan County. He was educated at the University of Kentucky and Cornell University. In 1917, he joined the Canada Royal Flying Corp. In 1918, he transferred to the US Army Flying Corp,
assigned to the 148th Aero Squadron. During September and October, 1918 Creech shot down seven German airplanes and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. The medal was personally awarded to him by the Prince of Wales in 1919, in Washington DC. He was a member of the Kentucky Aeronautics Commission and later an administrator with the Works Progress Administration during the Depression. He died in 1948.
During the Korean War, a 3,000 foot landing field was built at the Lexington Signal Depot, at Avon. The strip was named Creech Army Airfield. The strip closed during the Vietnam War. The current helipad continued the name as the Creech Helipad.
[3] Lee was born in Taylor, Texas in 1899 and learned to fly in 1921. He joined the Emerson Flying Circus and became a flight instructor. He became a contract mail pilot, between Louisville and Cleveland. In 1929, he became a pilot for American Airlines. In 1942, he founded Jap Lee Field, in Irving, Texas. He died in 1955.
During the First World War, Kincannon was a pilot in the Army Air Corp. After the war, he was a pilot for a flying circus and air mail pilot in the Southwest. In late 1928, he relocated to Bowman Field, Louisville. In 1934, he became a pilot for American Airlines. He died in 1936, when his passenger plane crashed.
[4] Lindbergh completed the first transatlantic flight, non-stop from the United States to Paris, on May 21, 1927. The original Spirit of St. Louis was donated to the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC. A second duplicate airplane replaced the original.
[i] Wright, John D., Jr., Lexington – Heart of the Bluegrass, Lexington-Fayette County Historic Commission, 1982, page 181.
[ii] Lexington Herald, June 18, 1921, section 2, page 1, column 3 and Lexington Leader, June 19, 1921, section 2, page 1, column 3.
[iii] Mt. Sterling Advocate, September 2, 1920, page 1, column 5 and May 3, 1921, page 1, column 6, Aerial Age Weekly, July 11, 1921, Volume 13, No. 18 page 414 and Wright, John D., Jr., Lexington – Heart of the Bluegrass, Lexington-Fayette County Historic Commission, 1982, page 181.
[iv] Lexington Herald, June 18, 1921, section 2, page 1, column 3, Lexington Leader, June 19, 1921, section 2, page 1, column 3 and Lancaster Central Record, June 16, 1921, page 12, column 1.
[v] Wright, John D., Jr., Lexington – Heart of the Bluegrass, Lexington-Fayette County Historic Commission, 1982, page 181, Lexington Herald, June 18, 1921, section 2, page 1, column 3 and Lexington Leader, June 19, 1921, section 2, page 1, column 1.
[vi] Mt. Sterling Advocate, June 28, 1921, page 1, column 5.
[vii] Bourbon News, July 12, 1921, page 5, column 1.
[viii] Mt. Sterling Advocate, July 26, 1921, page 4, column 6, Wright, John D., Jr., Lexington – Heart of the Bluegrass, Lexington-Fayette County Historic Commission, 1982, page 181 and Lexington Herald, December 2, 1922, page 1, column 3.
[ix] Lexington Herald, June 1, 1925, page 1, column 8 and Lexington Leader, June 5, 1925, page 11, column 5.
[x] Lexington Herald, June 1, 1925, page 1, column 8 and Lexington Leader, June 5, 1925, page 11, column 5.
[xi] Lexington Leader, March 22, 1925, page 2, column 8.
[xii] Lexington Herald, November 28, 1926, page 1, column 8.
[xiii] Wright, John D., Jr., Lexington – Heart of the Bluegrass, Lexington-Fayette County Historic Commission, 1982, page 181 and Lexington Herald, January 30, 1936, page 1, column 1 and page 10, column 5.
[xiv] Wright, John D., Jr., Lexington – Heart of the Bluegrass, Lexington-Fayette County Historic Commission, 1982, page 182.
[xv] Wright, John D., Jr., Lexington – Heart of the Bluegrass, Lexington-Fayette County Historic Commission, 1982, page 182, Lexington Leader, March 28, 1928, page 1, column 7 and March 29, 1928, page 1, column 7 and Lexington Herald, March 29, 1928, page 1, column 7.
[xvi] Wright, John D., Jr., Lexington – Heart of the Bluegrass, Lexington-Fayette County Historic Commission, 1982, page 182, Lexington Leader, March 28, 1928, page 1, column 7 and March 29, 1928, page 1, column 7 and Lexington Herald, March 29, 1928, page 1, column 7.
[xvii] Lexington Leader, April 15, 1930, page 1, column 4.
[xviii] Lexington Leader, May 1, 1930, page 9, column 4.
[xix] Lexington Leader, March 12, 1931, page 1, column 2.
[xx] Polk’s Lexington Directory, 1931-32.
