Photographs, news clippings, and other documents spanning 10 decades of IND history preserved with Indiana Historical Society
Approximately 10,000 items from 1928 through 2012 featured in new collection
INDIANAPOLIS – The airport known today as the Indianapolis International Airport (IND) has been making history since 1928, when its current site was selected by city leaders. Now, thanks to an arrangement with the Indiana Historical Society, fascinating details of that long history, including historical photos, news clippings, and correspondence, are preserved in an Indianapolis Airport Authority (IAA) collection at the Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana History Center.
Officially opening in 1931 as Indianapolis Municipal Airport, the facility has grown from a 21,000-square-foot terminal on 400 acres to today’s campus, which sits on nearly 8,000 acres and includes a new, world-class, 1.2-million-square-foot terminal that has helped IND earn the honor of Best Airport in North America three times since its opening in 2008.
“We’re proud of our history of service to Central Indiana,” said IAA Executive Director Mario Rodriguez. “Chronicling our many achievements over the past 80 years, which have produced an airport that generates an annual economic impact of more than $4.5 billion for our community today, reminds us of the continual potential to grow the value the airport will create for its stakeholders tomorrow.”
“Some of the many milestones that have propelled us from our beginnings as a municipal airport to our standing today as North America’s best airport for passenger service quality and one of the world’s largest cargo hubs are captured in the iconic photos and documents contained in this collection,” said Robert Duncan, deputy executive director for the IAA. “Thanks to this arrangement with the Indiana Historical Society, these compelling pieces of our airport’s history will be preserved for generations to come.”
‘‘Indiana has a long and rich history in air transportation,’’ said Suzanne Hahn, vice president of library and archives for the IHS. ‘‘We are thrilled to work with the Indianapolis Airport Authority and make this collection available to researchers.’’
Items in the collection include administrative correspondence, historical flight schedules and financial reports, news clippings, brochures, and many vintage photos. The collection can be viewed in IHS’s William Henry Smith Memorial Library, which is free to use and open to the public. Selections from the collection can also be viewed online at http://images.indianahistory.org/cdm/search/collection/p16797coll5.
More information is available at http://www.indianahistory.org/our-collections/collection-guides/indianapolis-airport-authority-materials.pdf.
About the Indiana Historical Society
Since 1830, the Indiana Historical Society has been Indiana’s Storyteller, connecting people to the past by collecting, preserving, interpreting and sharing the state’s history. A private, nonprofit membership organization, IHS maintains the nation’s premier research library and archives on the history of Indiana and the Old Northwest and presents a unique set of visitor exhibitions called the Indiana Experience. IHS also provides support and assistance to local museums and historical groups, publishes books and periodicals; sponsors teacher workshops; produces and hosts art exhibitions, museum theater and outside performance groups; and provides youth, adult and family programming. The Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana History Center, home of IHS, is located at 450 W. Ohio St. in downtown Indianapolis. Normal operating hours for the History Center, including the William Henry Smith Memorial Library and the Indiana Experience, are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
About the Indianapolis Airport Authority
The Indianapolis Airport Authority owns and operates Indiana’s largest airport system. In addition to the Indianapolis International Airport, its facilities include the Downtown Heliport, Eagle Creek Airpark, Hendricks County Airport, Indianapolis Regional Airport, and Metropolitan Airport. IND has received numerous prestigious awards recognizing it as a leader within its class, including best airport in North America in 2010, 2012, and 2013 in Airports Council International’s annual Airport Service Quality awards. IND is the first airport in the U.S. to win LEED® certification for an entire terminal campus, and the airport has won additional recognition for excellent customer service, concessions programs, and art and architecture.
IND generates an annual economic impact in Central Indiana of more than $4.5 billion, without relying on state or local taxes to fund its operations. About 10,000 people work at the airport each day. IND serves more than 7 million business and leisure travelers each year, and averages 133 daily flights to 35 nonstop destinations. Home of the world's second-largest FedEx Express operation and the nation’s eighth-largest cargo facility, IND is committed to becoming the airport system of choice for both passenger and cargo service. For more information, visit IND’s Facebook page at Indianapolis International Airport and Twitter page at @INDairport.