{"nrhp_refnum":"06001024","name":"Curtiss-Wright Hangars 1 and 2","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"2200 Vector Dr., 2300 Vector Dr.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Cahokia","county":"St. Clair County","state":"IL","lat":38.57645959800004,"lon":-90.16422086899996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2007-06-14","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Military","Industry"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Two nearly identical Art Deco barrel-roof aircraft hangars built in 1928 at what is now St. Louis Downtown Airport in Cahokia, St. Clair County, Illinois. They are the two surviving original hangars of four built.","why_significant":"The hangars are significant under Criterion A for their ties to the military and industry. In the early 1940s, Oliver Parks ran his flight school from them, training pilots for World War II, and the hangars were also used for Curtiss-Wright aircraft manufacturing and storage.","narrative":"Built in 1928 at the Curtiss-Steinberg Airport in Cahokia, Illinois, these two brick hangars are the only survivors of four originally constructed. Each is a two-story, barrel-roofed box with a stepped Art Deco parapet, wooden wing-like projections, a Curtiss-Wright emblem and sliding steel hangar doors large enough for a DC-3. The east side has a wood-framed second floor added in the 1940s to house trainees. During World War II, flight instructor Oliver Parks operated his school here, which was the first federally approved school of aeronautics. His schools trained thousands of military and transport pilots, and the hangars also served for aircraft manufacturing and storage. The airport later passed through several owners and names before becoming St. Louis Downtown Airport. The hangars retain most of their original exterior and interior features, though some deterioration is noted. Hangar 2 now holds an air and space museum. Their listing recognizes their role in military aviation training and industry between 1928 and 1956.","period_of_significance":"1928 - 1956","architect_builder":"Franzheim, Kenneth, architect","architectural_style":"Other: Modern Movement: Art Deco","criteria":["A"],"status_note":"Hangars are intact but show some deterioration and need repair; Hangar 2 houses the Greater St. Louis Air and Space Museum.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:37.457054-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/52/8941/28894152/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/06001024.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/06001024/52aaf18ee2-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/06001024/52aaf18ee2-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Curtiss-Wright_hangar_at_St_Louis_Downtown.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Curtiss-Wright_hangar_at_St_Louis_Downtown.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28894152","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q130217021"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/st-clair-county/curtiss-wright-hangars-1-and-2-06001024/"}