Evening star., 1938-12-31
Private Land
For Airport
Purchase of 49 Acres
Completes Area
At GroveIIy

Ownership of the last remaining
property in the Washington Ma
tional Airport area at Gravelly Point
was transferred to the Federal Gov
ernment today with the purchase Of
a total Of 40 acres from the smoot
Sand & Gravel Co. and the Hopfen-
maier estate. The total sales price
was given as $119,480.
The purchase clears the way for
extensive grading and leveling
operations along the Virginia shore
line and for early construction Of
buildings for the airport and the
Civil Aeronautics Authority. Test
borings for these buildings now are
being made along the dirt road from
the Mount Vernon highway to the
Hunters Point nurseries.
40 Acres Acquired.
The land purchases, negotiated by
the Office of the Army engineer for
the local district, brought into Fed
eral ownership 80 acres owned by
the Smoot company, for which
$68 $3.50 were paid, and II acres of
the Hopfenmaier property, at cost
of $51 $50. Part of the Smoot hold
ings now is under water as result
of dredging of sand and gravel from
the shoreline area.
Construction of the buildings, to
be erected under supervision of the
Treasury Department., grading of
the shore area of the airport, and
filling of the river portion of the
landing field will proceed simultan-
eously, it is planned.
officials of the Civil Aeronautics
Authority, in connection with the
land purchases, highly commended
the foresight of the Bureau of Public
Roads of the Agriculture Depart
ment in acquiring land between the
Mount Vernon Highway and the Po-
tomac River some years ago in prep
aration for construction of the high
way and the new Highway Research
Laboratory, now nearing completion.
Foresight Saves Money.
Virtually all of the privately
owned land in the airport area was
ecquired at that time, it was pointed
out. The acquisition was undertaken
by the bureau with the ultimate
view of establishing an airport at
Gravelly Point and the C. A. A.
now has in its files a copy of Bu-
reau of Public Roads plan, antedat-
ing the Mount Vernon Highway
project, showing an airport on the
Gravelly Point site. The foresight
of the bureau undoubtedly has saved
time and money to the Government
in connection with the airport de-
velopment, it was pointed out.
Inspected by Board.
To comply with the law under
which the Public Works Admins
tratlon has allotted more than So
100000 for construction of the air.
port, the work now under way there
was formally inspected yesterday by
officials of the c. A. A., Air Safety
Board and P. W. A.
The trip was made in the Army
Engineer Corps diesel-powered steel
boat Gunston, which has been as
signed tc the local airport job, from
the new wharf of the engineer con-
struction office near the mouth of
Roachs Run.
The party went ashore on the new
levee now being pumped up by the
big Army 18-inch pipeline dredge
Talcott at the northern end of the
airport to inspect the nature Of the
material coming up from the river
bottom. 1t was found to range from
sand to quartz and granite gravels
and water-worn boulders up to Is
pounds or more in weight. At one
point the levee is composed entirely
OF these boulders, forming a solid
rampant of stone.
All members of the inspection
party expressed themselves as favor
ably impressed with the high quality
of the material being brought up.
Engineers have expressed the opin,
ion that use of this same hard ma s
terial for runways will result in an
airport which can be used at once.
There's no reason why flying
should not be possible 60 days after
ft,o II