Clark Airport (1927 to 1958)

Click on the images for larger and sometimes more expanded views.

    South Hanover in Massachusetts has a vast history and a part of it is an airport. South Hanover was settled in the 1600's and early lumber mills were built there probably as early as the late 1600's. Around this time the Indian Head River was damned and Factory Pond was created for the lumber to float on. The military history of the area is the most fascinating to me. I was told that as early as the Revolutionary War there was a munitions foundry there and if you are lucky you can find old cannonballs on the west side of Factory Pond. Around the turn of the century (1900's) George J. J. Clark took over the fireworks factory around the Factory Pond area. In World War One the National Fireworks Company made illuminating rounds for the war effort. These are commonly called tracer rounds and they were revolutionary for the time.  George's son William Melvin Clark was interested in flight and across Winter street he "started" Clark Airport. Apparently he got into his plane and just took off from the area. He then expanded and paved the runway (s).

By the late 1930's it was a bustling municipal airport. The Hanover Postmaster even used the airport to deliver and pick up mail.

    The airport even had an air show in 1940. Here is an article about it.

    After the bombing of Pearl Harbor Dec. 7, 1941 George J.J. Clark, who owned the National Fireworks Company, bought the airport land from his son William Melvin Clark. He needed the space to store supplies for making munitions and the airport was a great space for it. At the Plymouth County Registry of Deeds I found that George J.J. Clark as owner of the National Fireworks Company bought a good amount of land on December 30, 1941. I am not sure if the some of these lands were taken by Eminent Domain or if the Federal Government gave a large contract to The National Fireworks Company to acquire them. In any case the airport was not in use for a time.

After the war was over George sold the land back to hi son and the airport was once again back in a action. In 1958 William Melvin Clark sold the land to the Indian Head Land Trust, who began to develop it as a residential area. Below is an image from the 1997 Hanover Historical Society Calendar. The image was probably from 1958 since the house on the end of one of the runways (mine) was built in 1955.

    Here is the area today as seen from a Google Earth Satellite image.

    In it's day, Clark airport seemed to be very important to the area. East Coast Airways was a flight training facility for the government and civilians alike. I'm sure that some very important military individuals flew to this airport in order to oversee munitions development ate the National Fireworks Company. You could also charter flights to and from the area as did my grandfather after World War Two.

    There were three runways and four hangers including a repair shop. The runways were 3,000 , 2,500 , and 1650 feet.