Davis Field
National Register of Historic Places

Davis Field

Bayport, Suffolk County, New York
Listed
January 22, 2008
Type
District
Period
Listed
Ref No.
07001456

About this property

Bayport Aerodrome (FAA LID: 23N), formerly known as Davis Field and Edwards Airport, is a historic rural airport and living history museum located 1 mile (1.6 km) northwest of Bayport, Long Island, New York, United States. The airport was established in October 1945 on a portion of local farmer Curtis Davis's cornfield by his son, a World War II Civil Air Patrol pilot. Davis sold the airport in 1953 to George Edwards – the owner of a flight school at the former Flushing Airport in Queens; the field's name subsequently changed to Edwards Airport. In 1972, the Bayport Aerodrome Society – a historical society focused on antique aircraft – was founded. The Town of Islip purchased the property in 1978, after Edwards sold the property to a developers who had proposed erecting 138 homes and a waste disposal facility on the site, much to the chagrin of local residents & aircraft owners, who protested the sale. Many of the aircraft owners took legal action to stop the sale, as they held leases in perpetuity at the airport for storing their aircraft. The Town of Islip secured Federal Aviation Administration grants and ultimately preserved the airport, in partnership with the Bayport Aerodrome Society. The airport's name changed to Bayport Aerodrome in 1980. In 1985, after the Bayport Aerodrome Society leased property from the town, it erected a complex of 24 hangars at the airport for antique aircraft. On January 22, 2008, the airport was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a national historic district. Bayport Aerodrome one grass runway – Runway 18/36; it measures 2,740 by 150 feet (835 m × 46 m) in length. It does not have a control tower or a beacon – nor are any instrument approach procedures (IAPs) available. The airport is home to the Bayport Aerodrome Society – a non-profit historical society that specializes in antique airplanes, which was established in 1972. Several antique airplanes are also based at the airport, including in hangars. Unlike the town's other airport – Long Island MacArthur Airport in nearby Ronkonkoma, the Bayport Aerodrome is not used for commercial aviation. FlightAware airport information and live flight tracker

Location

2nd St. & 3rd Ave.
Bayport, Suffolk County, New York
40.76075, -73.07684

Categories

TRANSPORTATIONCOMMUNITY PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENTARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Overview
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The Land
The historic sites and place names around the location, and how this land was settled and used.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back millions of years.
LiDAR Terrain
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Conflict & War
The battles, raids and skirmishes fought near here, across every era of American conflict.
The Civil War
The Civil War on this ground, 1861 to 1865: who held it, and the battles, camps and regiments nearby.
The Soldiers
The men who marched from here in the Civil War, named and traced where the record allows.
Native Heritage
The Native nations who held this land, mapped across time from before European contact to today.
Settlement
Who claimed and held this ground, from Indigenous homelands through the colonial powers to the United States.
The Community
How the town grew, who came, and what kind of place it became, traced through the census record.
Rivers & Rail
The rivers, canals and railroads that connected this place between 1830 and 1911.
Notable People
The people born, buried or genuinely tied to this exact place, with their stories.
Historical Maps
Historic maps of the location layered over how it looks today.
Finds & Access
Museum objects tied to the area, and the laws on searching, collecting and access here.
Literature
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Spotlight
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Nearby Historic Sites

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Cerny's Bakery
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Nearby Battles

Battle of Fort St. George (1780)
1780Revolutionary War
7 mi
Battle of Fort Salonga
1781Revolutionary War
10.6 mi
Tallmadge's Raid on Fort St. George
1780Revolutionary War
11.3 mi

Questions about this property

When was Davis Field listed on the National Register?

Davis Field was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on January 22, 2008.

What type of historic resource is Davis Field?

Davis Field is classified as a district in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Davis Field?

The period of significance for Davis Field is recorded as the listed era.

Can I research the history near Davis Field?

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