The Fair Oaks ... Airport?

This was Phoenix Field, home of the Phoenix Flying Club, named after the family who owned the property from about 1900 until probably the 1950s.

J.M. Phoenix was an original Fair Oaks investor in the late 1890s, and his sons Edward and Alexander were orchardists on the family plot which extended from about Phoenix Avenue to south of Sunset and east of Hazel. The brothers also ran an olive plant as the Phoenix Bros. Cannery, absolute location uncertain.

While the earliest reference to the Fair Oaks - Phoenix Airport didn't appear on the charts until 1948, an article in an early Fair Oaks newspaper suggests that the field was being used by private aircraft as early as 1937. It was still a dirt field until about 1967 when the runway was extended and paved. The additional photos show the location of the runway in the 1950 topo map and the field in full operation in about 1980. The airport was closed in May, 1986 and the last flight left on May 16th.

Fair Oaks actually had two airports. The official "Fair Oaks Airport", built about 1946, was located on the northwest corner of Folsom Blvd. and what is now Sunrise Blvd., about where the America's Tire Company, the old Home Base store and the self storage facility are now, extending over what is now Hwy. 50 and into Rancho Cordova. This airport was probably removed during the 1950's when Aerojet moved in and Rancho Cordova developed.

For some more pictures and stories, including some by Dan Shively, check out this website.

Original story:

Did you know Fair Oaks had its own airport? Where was it, and for bonus points, where did the airport's name come from?

For more on the history of Fair Oaks, . For even more, check out the Fair Oaks: Then & Now topic page.