Naval Air Station Sanford Collection

Dublin Core

Title

Naval Air Station Sanford Collection

Alternative Title

NAS Sanford Collection

Subject

Sanford (Fla.)
Naval air stations
United States. Navy
Navy

Description

This collection contains images of Naval Air Station (NAS) Sanford from its inception in 1942 to present day. The Naval Air Station (NAS) Sanford was commissioned on November 3, 1942, as a naval aviation training facility during World War II. The Navy continued to train pilots at NAS Sanford throughout the Korean and Vietnam Wars.

NAS Sanford was temporarily decommissioned after World War II in 1946, and then recommissioned as the Naval Auxiliary Air Station (NAAS) Sanford in 1950, due to the outbreak of the Korean War and the ongoing Cold War. Soon afterward, the station was renamed NAS Sanford and redesignated as a full naval air station. On February 6, 1959, NAS Sanford was dedicated as Ramey Field in honor of Lieutenant Commander Robert W. Ramey. In 1968, due to lack of funding caused by the Vietnam War, Congress directed the closure of NAS Sanford.

The City of Sanford assumed authority over the former NAS Sanford facility the year after it closed and renamed it the Sanford Airport, which was managed by Commander J. S. "Red" Cleveland. The airport underwent various name changes over the next several decades: Sanford Regional Airport, Central Florida Regional Airport, Orlando-Sanford Regional Airport, and its current name, Orlando-Sanford International Airport. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, several Naval buildings were demolished and new buildings were constructed.

Contributor

Is Part Of

Sanford Collection, Seminole County Collection, RICHES of Central Florida.

Language

eng

Type

Collection

Coverage

Naval Air Station Sanford, Sanford, Florida
Naval Auxiliary Air Station Sanford, Sanford, Florida
Sanford Airport, Sanford, Florida
Sanford Regional Airport, Sanford, Florida
Central Florida Regional Airport, Sanford, Florida
Orlando-Sanford Regional Airport, Sanford, Florida
Orlando-Sanford International Airport, Sanford, Florida

Curator

Marra, Katherine

Digital Collection

External Reference

Metzger, Lewis W. From Celery City to Navy Town: The Impact of Naval Air Station Sanford during World War II. MA thesis, University of Central Florida, 2010.
"Naval Air Station Sanford Memorial." Naval Air Station Sanford Memorial. http://www.nassanfordmemorial.com/home.htm.
Shettle, Jr., M. L. United States Naval Air Stations of World War II. Bowersville, Georgia: Schaertel Publishing Company, 1995.

Collection Items

Zoning of U.S. Naval Air Station, Sanford, Florida
Drawing of the Naval Air Station in Sanford, Florida. This drawing shows a map of the zoning of the NAS Sanford. The air station was commissioned on November 3, 1942, as a naval aviation training facility during World War II. The Navy continued to…

Enlarged Photograph: Sanford, Florida
Aerial photograph of Sanford, Florida, taken on January 18, 1961. The photograph was taken by the U.S. Navy's Heavy Photographic Squadron 62 (VAP-62), with commanding officer John E. Cousins. This aerial view is at an altitude of 30,000 feet above…

Index Map: Station N.A.S. Sanford, Florida
Index map of the Naval Air Station in Sanford, Florida. The air station was commissioned on November 3, 1942, as a naval aviation training facility during World War II. The Navy continued to train pilots at NAS Sanford throughout the Korean War and…

Sanford Municipal Airport, Sanford, Florida: Showing Proposed Drainage
Proposed drainage plans proposed by Sanford's City Engineer, Fred T. Williams, for the Sanford Municipal Airport. This map was drawn on December 4, 1933. The municipal fields were selected for the site for a naval aviation training facility during…

Naval Air Station Sanford Plat of Three Aviation Fields with Map of Seminole County
Plat of three aviation fields of the Naval Air Station (NAS) Sanford in Sanford, Florida, in 1941. A map of Seminole County, originally drawn in 1936, is also drawn on the back side. The air station was commissioned on November 3, 1942, as a naval…

Master Plan, Sanford Municipal Airport, Sanford, Seminole County, Florida
Master plan for the Sanford Municipal Airport, located at 1200 Red Cleveland Boulevard in Sanford, Florida. This map was drawn by R. G. Lubinski and shows the planned layout of the airport. F. T. Williams served as the chief engineer.The airport…

Hanger at Naval Air Station Sanford
Original hanger from Naval Air Station Sanford. Became the Naval Air Station Sanford Restoration Facility. This building was the location for the restoration of the RA-5C Vigilante that became part of the Naval Air Station Sanford Memorial…

Naval Air Station Sanford Barracks
Student housing at Orlando-Sanford International Airport. This building was originally barracks constructed during the Vietnam War for Navy personnel at Naval Air Station Sanford. The former barracks are now used as student housing for Aerosim…

Naval Air Station Sanford Historic Marker
Seminole County Historic Marker at Naval Air Station Sanford Memorial, located at Veterans Memorial Park in Sanford, Florida. On May 30, 2003, the monument was commemorated to the Navy servicemen who served at the Naval Air Station Sanford, and…

Naval Air Station Sanford Memorial
The Naval Air Station Sanford Memorial, located at Veterans Memorial Park in Sanford, Florida. On May 30, 2003, the monument was commemorated to the Navy servicemen who served at the Naval Air Station Sanford, and features a fully restored RA-5C…

Admin Inspecting Party Enjoys Luncheon at Lake Golden
Members of a base inspection committee at Lake Golden in Sanford, Florida. Both members of the Sanford community and air base personnel wanted Naval Air Station Sanford to remain active. In 1968, Navy officials moved the bomber squadrons stationed at…

Aerial View of Naval Air Station Sanford
Aerial view of Naval Air Station Sanford prior to its closing in 1967. Before the Navy closed the air station, modern housing and maintenance facilities for aircraft were installed. By 1968, the City of Sanford had acquired the property and…

Naval Air Station Sanford Map
Base map produced by Naval Air Station Sanford during the Vietnam War. The map shows the layout of the main buildings and runway, as they would have appeared prior to 1968 when the City of Sanford acquired the property and established its own…

Main Tower at Naval Air Station Sanford
The main tower at Naval Air Station Sanford during the Vietnam War. The flight tower at Naval Air Station Sanford was the primary tower used by flight controllers. An original structure from the original base, the main tower was refitted several…

TA3B and RA5C in Front of NAS Sanford Operations Tower
The operations tower at Naval Air Station Sanford was the primary tower used by flight controllers. An original structure from the original base, the main tower was refitted several times during the Korean and Vietnam Wars. The tower serviced both…

Welcome Home RAVH-7 Banner in Downtown Sanford
A welcome home banner hung in Downtown Sanford celebrating the return of RAVH-7 to Naval Air Station Sanford in 1968. Many locals in Sanford had a personal connection with Naval Air Station Sanford and its personnel. Some sailors had friends and…

NAS Sanford, Fla. Main Complex
Aerial photograph of Naval Air Station Sanford in 1958. The Naval Administration Building is located at the center of the photograph surrounded by the barracks, Mess Hall, hangers, and the original tarmac poured during World War II. The RA-5C…

Main Gate at Naval Auxiliary Air Station Sanford
Original main gate at Naval Auxiliary Air Station (NAAS) Sanford. Two guard posts were constructed at the main gate. The last post was removed when the City of Sanford acquired the air station from the Navy in 1968. The main gate was located at what…

Bill Martin at a Downtown Sanford Filling Station
Bill Martin, a navy sailor, at a filling station in Downtown Sanford towards the End of World War II. Many of the men who were stationed at Naval Air Station (NAS) Sanford during the Second World War came from other parts of the United States. Navy…

Henry Fazinni Next to Naval Air Station Sanford Sign
Henry Fazinni, a sailor from Downingtown, Pennsylvania, who was stationed at Naval Air Station Sanford during the Second World War. By the end of the war, the Naval Air Station became home to 385 officers, 1,385 enlisted men, and trained over half of…

Naval Air Station Sanford Runway Construction
The Naval Air Station Sanford constructed four runways starting in 1942. These 6,000 foot runways were built by local contractors and used to support the nearly 300 aircraft housed at Naval Air Station Sanford by the end of the Second World…
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