Souther Field

Souther Field
Souther Field in 1918 at the end of World War I.
Souther Field
Coordinates	32°06′38″N 084°11′19″W / 32.11056°N 84.18861°W / 32.11056; -84.18861Coordinates: 32°06′38″N 084°11′19″W / 32.11056°N 84.18861°W / 32.11056; -84.18861
Type	Pilot training airfield
Site information
Controlled by	Air Service, United States Army   United States Army Air Forces
Condition	Civil Airport/Urban area
Site history
Built	1918
In use	1918–1946
Battles/wars	World War I World War II
Garrison information
Garrison	Training Section, Air Service (World War I) Army Air Force Training Command (World War I)

Souther Field is a former military airfield, located 3.7 miles (6.0 km) Northeast of Americus, Georgia. It was one of thirty-two Air Service training camps established after the United States entry into World War I in April 1917.

After World War II, the property was sold to the city of Americus. Most of the airfield was developed into a civil airport. In 1948 a portion of Souther Field was chartered for the South Georgia Trade and Vocational School (later South Georgia Technical College).

The base was named Souther Field, being named after Henry Souther, of Hartford, Connecticut. Souther was head of the Aircraft Engineering Division of the Air Service when he died in August 1917 after a brief illness contracted while acting as director of Langley Field, Virginia. At Langley, he was experimenting and testing aircraft with various engines when he died.

Its history begins in 1918, when on 19 January, the War Department leased 407 acres (165 ha) 4.5 miles (7.2 km) north of the center of Americus, Georgia from Sumter County for a primary training airfield and an aviation supply depot. The Air Service named the facility Souther Field in honor of Major Henry Souther who served as consulting engineer on many of the World War I aviation projects. Major Souther had been killed earlier in the line of duty at Fort Monroe, Virginia.

The contract for construction of the airfield and base was let on 7 February 1918 to J.B. McCray Company of Atlanta, and work was begun on the 19th. The flying field and the station area had to be graded and cleared before any construction could be done. There were about 1,200 men involved in the construction work. When completed, the base consisted of warehouses, accommodations for 2,000 officers and men, 15 wooden hangars, and a hospital plus other structures.