As aviation gained popularity in the 20th century, Cecil County saw the rise of several small airfields. The oldest was established by Waldo Lovett of Newark, who in 1944 purchased a 64-acre farm along Route 279 about two miles northeast of Elkton. Lovett and his wife immediately set to work transforming the former farmland into a working airfield. This involved renovating the farmhouse, clearing the ground, filling ditches, and erecting hangars. Before long, a modest but functional airstrip emerged, announced by a hand-painted sign: “Lovett Airport – Sightseeing, Instruction, Maintenance.”
Waldo made his living in the skies, offering flight instruction, sightseeing tours, and charter trips. One such memorable charter on April 21, 1954, involved a Hollywood star. Martha Raye and her party landed at the airfield. thinking Elkton was still the place for “quickie marriages.” However, after a taxi took the couple to the courthouse, they discovered that the law mandated a 48-hour waiting period, The Evening Sun reported. A disappointed Raye returned to the airport, but since her original aircraft had departed, Lovett fired up his plane and flew the couple to Arlington, VA., where there was no waiting period.
By 1958, the airport had grown to include three runways and six hangars, becoming a hub for local aviation enthusiasts. Lovett also engaged in aerial advertising, towing commercial banners over horse races, fairs, and sports events. He also rented hangar space for aircraft storage. One tenant, Fred Kacena of Newark, operated an airplane engine repair shop on-site, adding to the airport’s reputation as a center for aviation services.
In 1969, after Lovett stepped back from the operation, the airport entered a new phase when Jane Stradley of Salisbury purchased the property. Her initial goal was personal as she wanted to learn to fly, but soon discovered she lacked both the knack and the nerve, she told the Morning News. Still, Stradley became a passionate advocate for preserving the airport, waging what a reporter called a “one-woman fight” to keep it alive. She hoped the county or the town of Elkton would acquire it, resisting lucrative offers for commercial development that could have brought in as much as $60,000 per acre.
But her vision never materialized. In 1997, W.L. Gore & Associates purchased the airfield for more than $5 million, bringing an end to the story of Cecil County’s oldest airport.
Waldo Reid Lovett, who had taken to the air in the 1930s as a barnstorming pilot, passed away on November 18, 1986, at the age of 84.
For a photo album from the Cecil County Airport, click this link.
Thank you for this post on the past at Cecil county.
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