Golden Gate - Crissy Airfield - San Francisco, CA - National Parks (U.S.) on Waymarking.com

During the 1920’s, Crissy Field’s place in aviation history was secured through a series of record-breaking long-distance flights. In 1924, the first successful Dawn-to-Dusk transcontinental flight ended at Crissy Field. Later that year, the army's Round-the-World Race stopped at Crissy Field, with Lieutenant Lowell H. Smith of Crissy Field leading the flyers upon their return. In 1925, two navy seaplanes took off from Crissy Field in the first attempt to fly from the continental United States to Hawaii. Expected to last twenty-six hours, the trip took twelve days and was only partially completed by one plane, whose crew had to be rescued at sea. Two years later, army lieutenants Lester J. Maitland and Albert F. Hegenberger readied their three-engine Fokker Bird of Paradise at Crissy Field and flew non-stop to the islands.

Though initially perceived as an ideal location for a coastal airfield, Crissy Field was not without flaws. Wind and fog often contributed to poor flying conditions and the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge in 1937 made flights around the bay even more difficult. Moreover, Crissy Field’s proximity to the water made it a potentially easy target for enemy ships. In 1936, shortly after the activation of Hamilton Field in Marin County, Crissy Field closed as a first-line air base.

When the National Park Service assumed management of the Presidio in 1994, the area known as Crissy Field was a derelict concrete wasteland. Today, the restored marsh and dunes provide habitat for wildlife that have not existed in the Presidio for over a century. The most dramatic story is that of the return of the birds to Crissy Field, a now attractive stopover point along the Pacific Flyway.

Crissy field is part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area.