Ask Peoria Station 8-20-18
Time for more Transportation Q & A!
Feel free to post your questions in the comments section on any transportation topic. If I don't have an answer, I'll find one.
- David P. Jordan
Black Band Distillery Expands to ex-Cat Tire!
Black Band Distillery, presently operating at 1000 SW Adams Street, is planning to expand to the vacant property at 2400 SW Washington Street. That is according to WCBU News . Although the article omits it, this property has a long history with the local distilling industry. National Cooperage & Woodenware Co. constructed a plant there in 1900, though a predecessor apparently had begun barrel making operations there c. 1885. This firm survived Prohibition (1920-1933) because the barrels could also be used for packing corn syrup, condensed milk, cider, vinegar, liquid chemicals, flavoring extracts, etc. Hiram Walker & Sons, which purchased one-third to one-half of its production, gained control of National Cooperage in 1946. A new four-story expansion began in the fall of 1964 only to be destroyed by a tornado on September 14, 1965. Operations resumed at the start of 1966 and the entire plant was replaced in 1967-1968. Changing economics led to closure in 1972. Caterpillar Tra
On airliners.net Delta is ending BMI-MSP in the latest OAG release.
ReplyDeleteThanks...I wonder if Frontier Airlines' new Denver service is a factor?
ReplyDeleteI am curious to know when the control tower at Galesburg closed. Was GBG ever a Class D towered field? A pilot myself but can not find much history on what took place there. It would seem that Britt and Ozard used to serve that market. It would be interesting to know a little more about KGBG ops over the years. I believe at one time the field was located off of Henderson St on the north side. Thanks in advance.
ReplyDeleteGalesburg Municipal Airport lacks a control tower.
DeleteThe present Galesburg Municipal Airport was built in the late 1950s and dedicated on May 30, 1960. Ozark Air Lines began two daily flights in each direction between Chicago, Galesburg and St. Louis with DC-3s on August 1 that year. One of the Chicago (Midway) flights stopped at Peoria in each direction until the end of October. Galesburg's Chicago flights switched to O'Hare in 1961 or 1962.
ReplyDeleteOzark replaced DC-3 service with Martin 404s between July 15 and September 1, 1965 and converted to FH-227s there by August 1, 1967.
It seems that Britt Airways replaced Ozark Air Lines at Galesburg on September 1, 1976. I remember seeing Britt props (Beech C-99s and Fairchild Metros) there during Stearman Fly-Ins in the early 1980s. The commuter carrier dropped Galesburg around January 22, 1989 and was replaced by American Eagle Shorts 360s.
American Eagle dropped GBG-ORD flights May 10, 1990 due to lack of business (average three passengers per flight) and the end of Essential Air Service subsidies.
DirectAir began flying 13-seat Beech 1300s on 17 weekly roundtrips between Galesburg and Chicago-Midway on November 1, 1991. Presumably, the carrier offered interline service with Midway Airlines but then that carrier ceased operations just 12 days later. A subsidy was available to the airline for two years, however, and service continued through the end of November 1993, by which time Direct Air had become "Midway Connection."
Great Lakes Aviation began offering Galesburg two weekday nonstop roundtrips (and one each on weekends) to Chicago-O'Hare on April 2, 1995 using 19-seat Beech 1900s. Service lasted until January 7, 1997.
Galesburg Municipal Airport has lacked scheduled airline service since that time.
Thanks Dave. There is a tower on the field, but its definitely been abandoned for some time.
ReplyDeleteI remembered a small tower on the east side when I was there in the early 1980s, but can't recall if it was in use. I know that a 1993 collision between two small planes at intersecting runways brought attention to the lack of a tower.
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