HISTORY CORNER

BLACKWOOD FIELD

By Ridley Wills II

In 1921 the State of Tennessee leased 100 acres of pasture land on Shute’s Lane adjacent to the Hermitage for use by the 105th Squadron of the Tennessee National Guard. The State brought two hangers it owned in Memphis to Nashville and erected them on the field on Shute’s Lane, which was named for H. O. Blackwood, a Nashville businessman who donated $1,000 of the $4,000 needed to build the airfield.

Aircraft flying in and out of Blackwood Field initially included Jennies and DH-4’s, but soon these planes were replaced by 0-11s, 0-25s, and several types of private airplanes. In 1924, the first north-south air mail flight landed and took off from Blackwood Field. The pilots were Lt. Vincent Meloy and Capt. Herbert Fox, a Nashvillian, who flew a DH-4 from Nashville to Chicago and back. Later, airmail service was expanded from Chicago to New Orleans. During all this airplane activity across the road, the ladies of the Ladies Hermitage Association, custodians of the Hermitage, became increasingly concerned that one of these “flying machines” would crash into President Andrew Jackson’s home with dire consequences. Due to the pressure from these influential ladies as well as the need for a more centrally located airport, Blackwood Field was closed in 1928 and all activity moved to the city’s new McConnell Field that opened in 1927.