Category: Airway Beacons

Cassoday Airway Beacon Site, #41, Kansas
An aeronautical bulletin was published about the Cassoday airfield which identified it as Site #41 along the airway.  The bulletin further detailed the field as being operated by the Department of Commerce & having 2 grass runways in an ‘L’ formation, 2,600 feet long (see airport diagram).

In the northwest corner of the airfield was a 2-million candlepower 24 inch rotating beacon, which rotated at 6 RPM.  The newly-built field had few amenities (no fuel, repairs, or telegraph) but did have nighttime lights around the boundary of the airfield.

By 1931, the starting point of the airway had been changed from Dallas to Amarillo, and this resulted in a renumbering of the airfields & beacons. Cassoday was changed from Site #41 to Site #34 and, according to the 1931 Bulletin #2 this beacon site was upgraded to a Flight Service Station (FSS), commissioned February 1931, and included course lights and a weather teletype.

Blinker Light 259, Rodeo, New Mexico

No other information available on this photo.

Submitted by Steve Wolff

Plate XXXVI.  General Electric Company Cluster Beacon, about 1927

Caption above reads:  In addition to the 24-in. beacons, it was found advisable in certain sections to place cluster beacons having less candlepower.  They consist of four automobile head-lamps surmounted by a top lamp as shown, and to turn at approximately 10 r.p.m.  Tests of such a beacon using 21-cp. automobile-type lamps, show that it is visible at a distance of 40 miles in good weather.

Submitted by Edward Rajki

Fernley, Nevada, Beacon Site 22, 1928
Beacon 22 with generator and equipment sheds located at Fernley Intermediate Field.

Prewitt, New Mexico Rotating Beacon, 1929

This 1929 photo, from a DoC (Dept of Commerce) journal article by Thomas Chapman, shows the airway beacon light tower under construction at Prewitt (Thoreau), NM. The stoic burro in the foreground was referred to as the “Superintendent of Airways Construction.” This framed photo was a memento given by staff to Fred Hingsburg, the Chief Engineer for the Airways Division.”

“Prewitt (Thoreau) was DoC Site 69 on the original 1929 Winslow-Gallup-Albuquerque segment of the mid-continent airway, first served by Transcontinental Air Transport in July, 1929. It was one of several beacon lights to be shut down in early 1930, as the beacon route was being realigned to match with the new four-course radio range signals. It is not clear where this Prewitt beacon tower was relocated along the new direct airway line.

The above Air Commerce Bulletin describes the shutdown of these beacons, soon to be relocated along the radio beam from new radio range sites at Albuquerque and Winslow for this section of the airway.

The above sketch is the layout of the Prewitt beacon arrow using the identifier TAT.  Arrow location: 35°21’45.27″N 108° 2’45.71″W

Submitted by Lane Floyd

Pershing County, Nevada Radio Beacon Site, December 2020

This site is located at 40°13’13.76″N 117°30’33.77″W, near the Buffalo Valley/Dixie Valley Road.

Photo by Bill and Jack Bell and submitted by Steve Owen

Mesa Gigante, New Mexico, Site 66, Airway Beacon Generator Hut

Above is the generator hut for the soon to be Mesa Gigante, New Mexico airway beacon. This was the former Suwanee generator hut know as site 74 in 1930 and 1931. It was in the process of being moved from the above location to about 5 miles away, where it was to be placed on the realigned LA-A airway route. From 1931 on, it was repainted as Hut 66 and called Mesa Gigante.

Suwanee site 74 was a Transcontinental Air Transport (TAT) beacon, aligned from Gallup to Clovis by this pioneering airline, as the first beacon line in this region (early 1929). The airway beacon and concrete arrows were located uphill atop the mesa rim. After a major aircraft accident at Mt. Taylor, TAT went broke after financial struggles that lasted about 1 year after the accident. TAT merged with Transcontinental and Western Airlines in 1930. The CAA took the airway segment over in 1930 and had the beacons in this segment shifted to the 1930’s-40’s LA-A alignment.

Photo by Bill and Jack Bell and submitted by Steve Owen

1931
The new home for the former Suwanee generator hut, site 74, now relocated, renamed, and repainted to Mesa Gigante, site 66 on the LA-A. The actual airway beacon was located up on the top of the mesa rim with a lengthy run of power cable.

Submitted by Steve Owen

Compare the above 2012 photo with the 1931 black and white photo above. It was taken from the same angle and height.

Submitted by Steve Owen

2012
The above and below photos are all that remains of Site 66, Airway Beacon Generator Hut, Mesa Gigante, New Mexico, The number 59 on the left side of the roof is not a beacon number but a partial coordinate. This generator hut is one of several LA-A beacon huts located on private land and moved from it’s original site which was known as Suwanee, site 74.

Submitted by Steve Owen

Submitted by Steve Owen

Submitted by Steve Owen

Thanks to the dedicated below people for their research and perseverance in locating these sites.

Ed Rajki
Steve Owen
Steve Wolfe
Tom Johnson

By Mel Duncan

Wyoming’s portion of the Salt Lake to Omaha Airway had 40 beacons spaced about 10 miles apart. The Wyoming portion of the airway closely followed the railroad tracks except between Salt Lake City and Knight and between Laramie and Cheyenne. The beacons were numbered from the west (Salt Lake) to the east (Omaha). Some had names while some were only numbered.

The Summit or Beacon Hill light, number 38, was located one and one-half miles north of the Lincoln Monument at T15N, R72W, Section 14, at 8777 feet. A permit was granted on July 26, 1930 to U.S. Department of Commerce, Lighthouse Service, Airways Division, to use a plot of land, 200 feet square, for beacon site and suitable buildings for caretaker of the light. The 1933 Corps of Engineer’s map indicates a power or telephone line going to the beacon. (photo 1 photo 2 photo 3 photo 4) (41° 16′ 5″ N, 105° 26′ 2″ W) In May of 2004 the site was visited and coordinates confirmed with GPS. Several newer towers now occupy the area but the concrete arrow remains. There also remains some remnants of the old generator system and building foundation.

Beacon number 39 was in Section 33, T15N, R70W about ¾ mile north of McIntyre’s. The elevation is shown as 7528 feet. (photo 1 photo 2 photo 3)

From Happy Jack Road 210 take County road 1 ½ miles to a more or less double turnoff to the east. Take the left branch about 1 ½ mile to the center of Section 33. (Land ownership??)

(41° 13″ 34″ N, 105° 14′ 36″ W) In May of 2004 the site was visited and coordinates checked by GPS. The concrete arrow remains but no buildings.

The Silver Crown Beacon number 40 was located almost dead center of Section 7, T14N, R68W at 41° 11′ 49″ N, 105° 02′ 53″ W. The elevation is about 6729 feet. (Of note: On the Round Top Lake Quadrangle 7.5 minute of 1961, “Airline Camp” is shown located in Section 3, T14N, R68W. This is close to the site of the 1935 airline crash.)

On the Archer Quadrangle of 1963, a beacon is shown located in Section 21 of T14N, R 65W, about one half-mile northwest of U.S. 30 overpass. This was probably beacon number 42. There is no remaining portion of the beacon tower or base.

(41° 09′ 53″ N, 104° 40′ 28″ W)

In 1932 the standard airway beacon was a 24-inch rotating unit of approximately 1 million candlepower. In 1933 a new standard was adapted to utilize a 36-inch rotating unit which showed two beacons of light 180 degrees apart. Each beam was about 1,250,000 candlepower. The beacons were designed to show six flashes per minute. The older 24-inch unit rotated six times per minute and the newer 36-inch unit rotated 3 times per minute. The 24-inch beacons were spaced at 10 mile intervals. The newer 36-inch units allowed spacing up to 15 miles between units. Except for the number 8, LeRoy Beacon, the Wyoming beacons were all 24 inch units and retained their original spacing of about 10 miles. The LeRoy Beacon had a 36-inch light. Two blinking colored course lights were mounted with each beacon, green indicating the presence of a landing facility and red indicating the absence of a landing field. In addition, each beacon course light blinked a code indicating which beacon was being observed. Every ten beacons the code was repeated.

The Silver Crown Beacon for example flashed two dashes for identification. The same signal was used by Sidney, approximately 100 miles away.

Electricity for remote sites required a gasoline-powered generator. In isolated regions permanent quarters were provided for the caretaker of the power plant generator.

Some of these beacon sites were also utilized for the newer radio beacons that were being installed in the early 1930s. The light beacons were retained at these sites. In 1933, radio range beacons were installed at Knight, Rock Springs and Cheyenne. By 1936, additional radio range beacons were installed at Laramie and Medicine Bow.

The building roof at each beacon site along the airway was marked with its number and SL-O indicating that you were on the Salt Lake to Omaha Airway. For example, Cherokee Beacon had on its roof “24 SL-O”.

The beacons at the airports were normally located on the highest point of land or atop a building near the site rather than being centered at the landing field.

It behooved a pilot to know his International Morse Code quite well. Cheyenne’s auxiliary code beacon flashed the letter “C” (dash dot dash dot), its radio range station broadcast “CX” (dash dot dash dot, dash dot dot dash) and the course light blinked a modified code for the numeral 1, (dot dot dash).

Intermediate landing fields were provided about every 50 miles affording a theoretical maximum distance of 25 miles to a field in the event of a problem. These intermediate fields were indeed just fields. None of them were paved or oiled and most had a landing space of about 2500 feet.

In 1936, only Cheyenne and Laramie were listed as “Airports” and only Cheyenne had paved or oiled runways. Laramie Airport has a restored beacon and tower. The beacon appears to be a 36 inch double unit.

The above historical article was written and submitted by Mel Duncan of Wyoming, May 2004.

Radio Beacon Light

CY Martin adjusts wiring in a 24-inch airway beacon light. Date and location
unknown.

Photos and historical data submitted by Steve Wolff

Laramie FSS Radio Beacon (LAR), Wyoming

Laramie FSS was commissioned 1927 and decommissioned on September 29, 1991. This building is the former FSS station at Laramie — now  a terminal.

The rectangle white sign is a 90 year old airway beacon (as of 2007).  These were manufactured by American Gas Accumulator Co., Elizabeth, NJ, USA, and were powered by acetylene gas allowing beacons to operate for up to 6 months unattended.  This beacon is missing the six foot pylon that attaches to the top of the unit in the photo.  On top of the pylon would be the prismatic lens that flashed 150 times per minute and could be seen about 10 miles distant. Usually these were placed every three miles between the 50 foot towers. This short one was used in the plains where there were no obstructions.  Bigger ones on 21′ – 51′ & 84′ towers were also used.  This particular beacon is owned by a private party.

There were a string of these beacons from New York City to San Francisco in the early ’20’s before any navigational aids appeared on the scene.  They also had a sun switch that turned the beacon on/off with darkness/sunlight.  Hi tech!!  Very rare find.  It appears the globe is missing.

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Photos of Medicine Bow #32 Radio Beacon, Wyoming, 2006
Photos submitted by Steve Wolff, Wyoming

Mr. Wolff is looking for assistance in restoring this site to it’s original condition.

Medicine Bow building looking northeast.  Typical of government built beacon sites, this building is 14×22 feet with a 51 foot airway tower.  About 2/3 the way up the tower you can see the catwalk that leads out to the windsock.  Between the building and the tower extends the sidewalk terminating in an arrow pointing towards the next beacon site, in this case, pointing to Rock River beacon.  The whole affair was lighted from overhead so it could be seen at night.

Construction started in 1929 and was completed in 1930.  According to the Aircraft Year Book, this site was the last station constructed to complete the entire NYC-SFO Low Frequency Range system.  The building in this photo is very solid. It’s two rooms, one for living quarters and the other, a much smaller room, contained the radio gear and later in history, teletype.  It was heated with a coal stove and electric power was supplied locally to operate the electrical equipment.  In case of power failure a 550 gallon fuel tank (missing) supplied fuel to run a generator. The fuel tank was normally located between the caretakers quarters (above building) and the beacon tower.

Historical note:  The Union Pacific Railroad is very close and Highway 30, the first to connect the Midwest with the West is 1 1/2 miles away.  The Overland Trail from the 1800’s is very close and of course this Low Frequency Airway.  They all converge at this point! Mr. Wolff is looking for assistance in restoring this site to it’s original condition.

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The Department of Commerce demanded these sites be kept in pristine condition including mowing lawns. Flight check pilots were always complaining about weeds up against buildings.

Interesting Side Note: The 1935 mystery novel, Obelists Fly High by C. Daly King, features a detailed description of a transcontinental flight in a Boeing 247, with much of the plot action occurring during an emergency bad weather stop at Medicine Bow field.

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Interior photo. Open cabinet door leads to the junction box located on the north wall. Cabinets would hold fuses, signal flares, and other items.

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Interior photo. North wall cabinet contains a Westinghouse switch box and circuits.

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Interior photo

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This bullet-riddled boundary cone is located on the west end of the beacon site, inside the fenced boundary

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This boundary cone is located on the north end of the beacon site. The red and white tank in the background is the water supply for the city of Medicine Bow.

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Boundary cone looking south east. The cone and stanchions are in place with wood markers albeit warped and faded.

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This boundary cone is located in the south east corner of the site and still houses its original 34 watt light bulb

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Obstruction pole on the approach end of the runway. Photo is looking north east.

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This boundary cone is located in the south east corner of the site. A U.S. concrete property marker can be seen laying on the ground along with the triangular stanchion for supporting 1×16 red and white wood runway markers.

Its beam flashes across the sky every five seconds, 720 times an hour.  The light is visible for miles and has been guiding planes to safety  for 70 years.  The Mounds Park beacon, or as it is formally named,  the Indian Mounds Park “Airway” Beacon, has been a landmark in Dayton’s Bluff since 1929.
At one time over 600 of these beacons defined nighttime airway corridors across America. The Mounds Park beacon was part of the system that defined the route between St. Paul and Chicago. But electronic guidance equipment eventually made the beacons obsolete and, just like their lighthouse counterparts,  most of them eventually went dark.  Our beacon is the last of its kind.
It was a marvel in its time and is still impressive by today’s standards.  The tower is 110 feet tall.  The beacon itself is 24 inches in diameter.

It was designed by the City of St. Paul’s Bureau of Bridges and built by the St. Paul Structural Steel Co.  During a refurbishing in 1994-95, the tower’s  original black and chrome-yellow color scheme was restored, replacing the red and white colors that had graced the tower in modern times. The mid-90s restoration was accomplished through a coalition of groups including the Metropolitan Airports Commission,  the FAA, the State Historic Preservation Office, the Indian Affairs Council, the State Archeologist and the City of St. Paul.
The beacon  has been an attraction ever since it was built.  At least three postcards, probably issued in the 1930s,  featured the beacon, showing Indian burial mounds in the foreground with the St. Paul skyline in the background.
Besides guiding airplanes, our beacon also welcomes trains, boats and, of course, weary automobile commuters as they return to Dayton’s Bluff from the far reaches of the Twin Cities in the dark of night.

Observing the  beacon is also a very good way to determine prevailing weather conditions.   As the beacon sweeps clockwise through the atmosphere,  its beam can appear nearly invisible, extremely bright or anything in between, depending  on what is in the atmosphere that night.
The beacon’s most spectacular  display can only be seen a couple of times a year.  Watch its beam when the temperature is near zero and there is an ice fog  in the air.  As the beacon rotates a hazy glow will be seen in the sky until the beam is pointing directly towards your position. Suddenly, a  brilliant shaft of light will appear to shoot straight up into the sky and disappear just as quickly, only to appear five seconds later when the beacon swings around again.
No matter what the sky conditions, Dayton’s Bluff ‘s own Old Faithful will be there, lighting up the sky every five seconds for years to come just as it has for the past 70 years.
And just to make sure the beacon looks its best, it received a new coat of paint in June 1999.

Here are three postcards from the 1930s that featured the beacon

This page was last updated in 1999, courtesy of the University of Minnesota

Harrington Ranch Airway Radio Beacon Site 39, New Mexico
This beacon was located at Harrington Ranch Field between El Paso and Columbus, New Mexico, on the Los Angeles-El Paso Airway. A Fan marker was also installed here.

Submitted by Paul Domeier

Crouse-Hinds DCB-10 Beacon Light
Comments by Paul Domeier.
This particular unit was at KVCB Nut Tree in Vacaville, CA, and the local lore is that it was originally installed at Travis AFB (formerly Fairfield-Suisun Army Air Base) in Fairfield, CA… but as this is not a white/white/green flash unit, I’m not so sure of that.

There’s a real Buck Rogers type feature that doesn’t show up well in the photos: The unit has two bulbs, but only fires one at a time. The second bulb is spring-loaded in an auto-switchover mechanism that would slam it into the primary position if the first bulb failed… or maybe it’s supposed to be triggered by a remote switch?

Submitted by Steve Owen

San Rafael Mesa Airway Beacon Generator, Hut LA-A-62, Site 62, 2011

The US Forest Service, Passport in Time volunteers, plan to begin restoration of this generator hut in the fall of 2011, which supplied power to the San Rafael Mesa Airway Beacon, which was part of the Midcontinent Airway system.

Submitted by Steve Owen

San Rafael Mesa Airway Beacon, Generator Hut, LA-A-62, Site 62, 2011

Backside view of the same building at top of page

Submitted by Steve Owen

(Above) In 2011, Site 62 building was moved to Grants Airport and placed next to the Grants Flight Service Station for restoration.  In this photo the base structure has been repaired and is almost ready for painting.

Submitted by Steve Owen

Site 62 Restored
The above and below photos are site 62 after a restoration project by “Cibola County Historical Society.” Completed in June 2012.

Submitted by Steve Owen

Submitted by Steve Owen

Submitted by Steve Owen

Submitted by Steve Owen

View several great historical videos from Cibola County Historical Society at Grants, New Mexico