The Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport’s story exemplifies how city leaders, including not-yet-Mayor William Hartsfield, made a long shot bid for crucial airmail contracts in the 1920s to establish their fledgling airport.
It chronicles how former Mayor Maynard Jackson and others managed to convince federal authorities to literally move I-85 to accommodate a new terminal.
Furthermore, it highlights how his minority contracting program transformed not only Atlanta but also affirmative action policies nationally.
This iconic landmark will be celebrated this week as the airport marks its 100th anniversary since signing the lease on April 16, 1925, for that abandoned racetrack site.
The Atlanta History Center, in partnership with Gary Lee Super Design, will unveil an exhibit dedicated to the airport’s history in the pedestrian tunnel between Concourses D and E this summer.
All living former mayors are expected to gather on Tuesday to commemorate the occasion, alongside the families of the former mayors most credited with driving its growth: William Hartsfield and Maynard Jackson.
The journey begins with what was once a failed racetrack.
The Atlanta Speedway, a two-mile track built by Coca-Cola founder Asa Candler, went bankrupt after just one season.
The site in Hapeville later became a venue for air stunts and shows, attended by prospective civic leaders, including soon-to-be City Alderman William Hartsfield.
At the same time, a budding airport system was emerging across the United States, and Hartsfield, among others, sought to position Atlanta in this growing industry.
As the city of Atlanta and Fulton County debated locations for a new airport, the Candler property frequently surfaced in discussions.
In 1925, then-Mayor Walter Sims signed the initial lease with Candler for the property.
The airport commenced operations just in time for the first airmail flight from Miami in the fall of 1926, following a lobbying campaign to secure the route from the federal government.
At that time, the aviation sector was primarily focused on airmail services.
“This is characteristic of Atlanta—time and again, swinging for the fences,” McQuigg noted.
A 1926 article in the Constitution urged business owners to send as many letters as possible on the first airmail flight.
In 1934, President Franklin D. Roosevelt canceled and rebid all airmail contracts due to a corruption scandal, which inadvertently marked a pivotal moment in the airport’s development.
One of the rebid routes was awarded to a Louisiana crop duster aiming to break into the industry: Delta Air Lines.
As the passenger air travel industry expanded throughout the 20th century, so too did Atlanta’s airport.
William Hartsfield, known as Atlanta’s “father of aviation,” managed much of this growth during his six terms as mayor.
Atlanta benefited from its geographic advantages, noted McQuigg, with its mostly ice-free weather and strategic location facilitating access to a significant portion of the Eastern and Midwestern U.S. population.
State and city leaders successfully resisted federal attempts to shift Atlanta and Columbus into the Central Time Zone in 1941.
To support this growth, Atlanta utilized surplus military materials from World War II to construct a larger terminal and new runways, as explained by Spalding.
By the 1950s, Atlanta found itself in competition with Chicago for the title of the busiest airport.
In 1957, Atlanta first claimed the title of the busiest airport in the world—but only between noon and 2 p.m. each day.
The airport would eventually claim and retain the “world’s busiest” title in 1998.
The new “jet age” terminal opened in Atlanta in 1961, touted as the “largest single terminal in the country” at that time.
However, within a year, it was already operating beyond capacity.
Hartsfield passed away in 1971, and a week later, the City Council renamed the airport in his honor—William B. Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport.
The landscape changed significantly with the 1972 election of Atlanta’s first Black mayor, Maynard Jackson.
Like his predecessors, Jackson recognized the airport’s importance to Atlanta’s future, as revealed through reflections from his widow, Valerie Jackson.
He envisioned Atlanta not merely as a regional hub but as a “gateway to the world.”
“He aimed for the airport to be the best in the world, even back then, when it seemed highly improbable,” she stated.
As discussions progressed regarding how to achieve a new, larger terminal, Jackson also sought to rectify the injustices he perceived within city contracting practices.
At the time, just 0.5% of municipal contracts were awarded to Black individuals, despite a population that was 51% Black, she recalled.
In response, Jackson implemented the Minority Business Enterprise program, stipulating that 20-25% of contracts be awarded to minority- and women-owned businesses, notably for the ambitious airport project, the largest in state and city history.
In a later documentary, Maynard Jackson shared that city staff initially told him a new terminal couldn’t be built because I-85 was in the way.
He quipped, “I said, ‘Fine, we’ll move the interstate.’ And they laughed at me.”
“Well, I didn’t know much, but I knew never to say never,” he remarked.
Opposition arose over Jackson’s requirement for minority-owned contracting, leading to a legal battle that temporarily halted the project for nearly two years, but he stood firm.
“He used to say that grass would grow on the tarmac before he would start new construction without minority participation,” she reminisced.
One memorable episode involved Jackson responding to repeated protests from incumbent, white-owned firms claiming there were no qualified minority-owned firms available.
He countered, “Gentlemen, I have observed that 75% of this airport consists of runways.
And what is a runway but a long driveway?
And let me tell you, gentlemen, we can do driveways!”
Ultimately, the new airport terminal was completed on budget with 25% minority participation.
As Jackson recounted in the documentary, the FAA acknowledged that Atlanta represented 89% of all affirmative action within American airports at that time, motivating Congress to pass a federal minority contracting requirement for transportation funding in 1982.
The impacts in Atlanta were extensive.
Valerie Jackson recalled an event where a man approached her, recounting, “I just want to tell you that I was one of those people who had a small paving company and did driveways.
Through the MBE program, I went on to work on three of the airport’s runways.”
Stories like this are prevalent, she noted.
By the conclusion of Jackson’s second term, metro Atlanta ranked among the top 10 areas in the country for Black-owned businesses, with more than double the number registered prior to his tenure.
In 2003, the airport was officially renamed Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport following Jackson’s passing.
When the new terminal complex was inaugurated in 1980, it gained the distinction of being the world’s largest air passenger terminal complex.
According to McQuigg, the design has been a key factor in its sustained success.
By placing the terminal centrally with parallel runways, the airport has been able to expand with additional runways and concourses, constructed similarly to building blocks, all linked by the Plane Train.
Concourse E was added in 1994 ahead of the Olympics, followed by a new international terminal and Concourse F in 2012.
“It’s a miracle and a testament to the ingenious design of the midfield terminal that opened in 1980 that it continues to serve in that capacity,” McQuigg remarked.
As of 2024, that terminal accommodated 108 million passengers and is preparing to handle 125 million by 2029.
In keeping with its history, Atlanta continues to invest in its economic development magnet.
Hartsfield-Jackson has unveiled plans for $1 billion in annual upgrades and construction over the next decade, according to Frank Rucker, the airport’s senior deputy general manager of infrastructure.
A primary objective is to execute these improvements without disrupting traffic—or jeopardizing its status as the “world’s busiest” airport.
At the same time, true to Atlanta’s spirit of community pride, the airport plans to celebrate its centennial.
Hartsfield-Jackson will observe its 100th anniversary for 18 months, extending from now until September 2026, marking the anniversary of that inaugural airmail flight.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has initiated a series of articles to commemorate the 100th anniversaries of both Delta Air Lines and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.
This article is the latest installment in that series.
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