Drew Field

Drew Field. . (side 1) , The City of Tampa established a municipal airport at Drew Field in 1928 on a 160-acre tract leased from farmer, real estate developer and aviation enthusiast John Higley Drew. The City purchased Drew Field in 1934 and added new runways, hangers and lighting that were in large part financed by federal funding through the Civil Works Administration (CWA) and the Works Progress Administration (WPA)., The U.S. government leased Drew Field from the City in 1940, along with additional land from Hillsborough County and developed the property into an Army Air Corps Base. The main entrance was located at the current intersection of Tampa Bay Boulevard and Dale Mabry Highway. Dale Mabry was constructed in 1943 to connect Drew Field with MacDill Field, Tampa's other major Army Air Corps Base. Drew Field was initially a sub-base of MacDill, but it became a separate base in September 1941 and headquarters for the Third Fighter Command. The base extended from Hillsborough Avenue to beyond today's Eisenhower Boulevard and from Columbus Drive to Dale Mabry. Lt. Col. Melvin B. Asp served as Drew Field's base commander during most of World War II. (Continued on other side). (side 1) (Continued from other side). Bombers began operating at Drew Army Airfield in mid-1940 and included 500 service personnel by August 1941. Combat bombing crews trained at Drew Field during the war, and over 100,000 soldiers were stationed there between 1940-45. During that period, the base was developed with nearly 3,000 buildings, including barracks, classrooms, hospital facilities, libraries, theaters and recreation halls. The base also included a complex to house prisoners of war., Shortly after the war ended in 1945, Drew Field was deactivated as an army air corps base and some of its property was converted to a municipal airport. National Airlines and Eastern Airlines both served the airport by mid-1946. In 1947, the city of Tampa bought the Drew Field property from the federal War Assets Administration. Serving as the municipal airport, its name was changed to Tampa International Airport in 1952. Over the years it was deeded from the City of Tampa to the Hillsborough County Aviation Authority. Other property, formerly part of Drew Field, is now the site of Hillsborough Community College and Steinbrenner Field. The neighborhood of Drew Park also occupies property that had been included within Drew Field.