December 2nd marked the 70th anniversary of New York’s LaGuardia Airport and as part of the celebration the LGA Web site now has a nice slide show of historic airport images.
Here are my favorites:
I can’t decide sometimes if its ironic or just plain appropriate that the airport was built on the former site of the Gala Amusement Park, which had been turned into an airfield in 1929.
New York Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia was the one who made sure this airport got built.
“In 1934, upon landing at Newark Airport [in New Jersey!!!], LaGuardia refused to disembark from a TWA flight because his ticket said “New York”. He demanded to be taken to New York, and urged New Yorkers to support a new airport within the city.”
LaGuardia Airport opened for business on December 2, 1939 and was leased to the Port Authority in 1947. It soon boasted that it was the first airport to have a florist shop, beauty salon, bank, jewelry shop, and brokerage office.
The airport also had a Sky Bar and an outdoor Observation Deck. Admission: 5 cents!
All these photos come from the slide show currently posted on the LaGuardia Airport Web site. You can see the full set of 28 images here.
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The last photo of the little boys looking over the rail could be me sixty years ago. Living just a mile from the airport, I frequented LaGuardia just to whistle at the stewardesses and to enjoy a little boys adventure. Love those days in the 1940’s.
I visited NY last year and got lost in the change after so many years of many memories.
I did enjoy climbing to the top of the Statue of Liberty after 59 years and visiting Ellis Island where my parents arrived in 1902.
70 years? Yeah, I can see that. I flew through there a month or two ago and it was pretty run down and in desperate need of modernization. No subway to LGA! What’s up with that?
Love the quote from Mayor LaGuardia. That sounds like the New Yorkers I know and love. New Yorkers do NOT like New Jersey (and vice versa). It is a continuing bone of contention that the Jets and the Giants are actually over the river.