Based at Wold-Chamberlain Field, it would shape airline service in the Twin Cities for many decades to come. But in the s, Northwest pushed for one main airport to serve the metro in Minneapolis. In , the Park Board turned the keys over to a newly created airports commission, which would also oversee Holman Field. The airport's name was changed to Minneapolis-St. Ultimately, the Wold-Chamberlain reference was dropped. Campbell also wanted to know what original parts of Terminal 1, formerly known as the Lindbergh Terminal, are still visible today.
It was front-page news when the main terminal opened in — an open house drew a whopping , people. Although the main terminal has been expanded many times, some hints of its original bones remain.
The most obvious is its distinctive "saw-toothed" roof design, which remains visible in some parts of the airport. Most of the space that now serves as the main Airport Mall, plus concourses E and F, are also part of that original footprint. A key design component of Terminal 1 involved locating passenger services on the top level and baggage and ground transportation on the lower level — traits that set the airport apart at the time from others nationwide, according to the MAC.
The original terminal featured a drugstore and children's nursery in the ticketing lobby, as well as a dining room, snack bar and coffee shop closer to the concourses.
Airport security didn't enter the picture until the s. And, in a nod to Minnesota's harsh weather, the terminal boasted what the MAC describes as a "state-of-the-art built-in snow-melting system" on the upper level roadway. If you'd like to submit a Curious Minnesota question, fill out the form below:. What happens to all the de-icing solution used at MSP airport? Does it affect nearby rivers? In a hangar was built on the property to facilitate airmail service, and the property was renamed Speedway Field.
In , three more hangars were constructed for the National Guard Observation Squadron and the property was renamed Wold-Chamberlain Field after 2 pilots from Minnesota who died in the line of duty. This marked the start of their year run before merging with Delta in The launch of Holman Field in Saint Paul led to intense competition as the two airports sought to command the highest market share.
To differentiate their service and generate more revenue, Wold-Chamberlain Field launched short, affordable sigh-seeing trips that lasted between minutes. It soon became apparent that having two airports in Saint Paul was not an optimal solution. The first hangar, a wooden structure, was constructed in to accommodate airmail service, and the acre property became known as Speedway Field. The airport soon became home to Northwest Airways, which in won the government's airmail contract and acquired the airport's only hangar.
In its year history, MSP has undergone numerous changes, from its first landing strip in , to its first passenger service in and massive expansion efforts in the early s, including construction of the Lindbergh Terminal now Terminal 1 , a maintenance base and Northwest Airlines' world headquarters.
With the arrival of international service, MSP underwent its final name change in , becoming Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. In , ground breaking ceremonies were held for the terminal, which opened to the public in
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