Tallahassee in Leon County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)

Dale Mabry Field

Photographed by Mark Hilton, December 7, 2014

1. Dale Mabry Field Marker

Inscription. In October 1940, hundreds of laborers began clearing swampland for temporary quarters for Dale Mabry Army Air Base, named in honor of a young Tallahassee dirigible pilot who died in 1922 after serving in World War I. In 1941, America entered World War II. The need for a place to train pilots prompted the federal government to set a 90-day completion deadline. Eventually, the base became a nearly self-sufficient city, with several runways, barracks, officers’ quarters, mess hall, hangers, a hospital, a church and a bowling alley. Some sections of the base’s asphalt runway are still visible, as are several concrete tie-down pads. Over 8,000 pilots from Europe, China and the United States trained here in P-39s, P-40s, P-47s and P-51s. This marker is at the edge of the NW/SE runway near the point where planes took off or landed. Over a dozen pilots died in accidents while learning how to fire at targets such as a giant, plywood “bull’s eye” at Alligator Point to the south. During 1943, 79,000 family members came to Tallahassee, then a town of 16,000, to visit pilots-in-training. The base was deactivated in 1945

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and served as a commercial airport until 1961, when Tallahassee Regional Airport opened.
A Florida Heritage Site

Erected 2001 by the Tallahassee Community College and the Florida Department of State. (Marker Number F-444.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Air & Space • War, World II. A significant historical month for this entry is October 1940.

Location. 30° 26.498′ N, 84° 20.313′ W. Marker is in Tallahassee, Florida, in Leon County. It can be reached from West Pensacola Street (State Road 366) near Appleyard Drive, on the right when traveling west. Located on Tallahassee Community College under the trees. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: West Pensacola Street, Tallahassee FL 32310, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in North Florida.

It is also in the American South

and specifically in the Deep South.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain,

the territory of the

View to the east from marker. image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Hilton, December 7, 2014

2. View to the east from marker.

Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: West Campus of the Florida State University-Tallahassee Branch the University of Florida (approx. 0.9 miles away); Mission San Luis (approx. 1.2 miles away); Welcome to Mission San Luis de Apalachee (approx. 1.2 miles away); A Daring and Dangerous Game (approx. 1.2 miles away); The Community Gathers at the Plaza (approx. 1.2 miles away); The Land of the Apalachee (approx. 1.2 miles away); New Ways, New Faces (approx. 1.2 miles away); Trade Bolsters San Luis’ Economy (approx. 1.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Tallahassee.

Also see . . . Wikipedia article on Dale Mabry Army Airfield. (Submitted on December 10, 2014, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.)

Dale Mabry Field (1942) image. Click for full size.

USGOV-PD (Public Domain)

3. Dale Mabry Field (1942)

Previous location of Dale Mabry Field & Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Hilton, December 7, 2014

4. Previous location of Dale Mabry Field & Marker

Tallahassee Community College sign nearby. image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Hilton, December 7, 2014

5. Tallahassee Community College sign nearby.

View towards intersection of Appleyard Drive & Pensacola Street image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Hilton, December 7, 2014

6. View towards intersection of Appleyard Drive & Pensacola Street

Credits. This page was last revised on January 9, 2025. It was originally submitted on December 10, 2014, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. This page has been viewed 1,461 times since then and 85 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on December 10, 2014, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.