I need information and photos of the World War II Alachua Army Airfield, which is now Gainesville (FL) Regional Airport. I have a list from Wickipedia of the units that were at the Airfield (which is not complete) but can not find any photos or information past this point. Alachua Army Airfield was the main base with five or six bases it supported around north and central Florida. The World War II hanger still stands and is in use by the FBO. Hanging from the ceiling is a sign "No Smoking By Order Of The Commanding Officer".
CAP was involved at Airfield, operating from a grass airport 6 miles away. The CAP Squadron provided laision work, moved equipment to the various sub-bases and provided tow target operations to a limited extent.
But I can't find any US Army oir USAF archives on the Field. Any help or suggestions appreciated.
Check the local libraries. They probably have local newspapers on microfilm that carried stories about the base. Also, many libraries will carry newletters or base newspapers for nearby military bases.
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Bill;
That is my suggestion. The University of Florida has many private collections that are worth your time. I don't know any specific collection but know that many private collections from local servicemen are house at the library.
Bill,
Officially, records were supposed to be sent to the Air Force Historical Research Agency at Maxwell AFB. A quick search at the Air Force History Index shows 11 records from Alachua AAF held at AFHRA: http://www.airforcehistoryindex.org/search.php?q=ALACHUA&c=u&h=25&F=&L= (http://www.airforcehistoryindex.org/search.php?q=ALACHUA&c=u&h=25&F=&L=)
Every time I've done research at AFHRA, I've gotten great support from the staff. I haven't requested records from AFHRA following the AF History Index instructions, so I can't tell you what to expect using that method.
Hope that this helps you.
You might try this site: http://www.airforcebase.net/ . It is run by a retired AF guy and his hobby is finding and visiting old AAF/USAF bases.