Taliafero Field No. 2 was used by the
Royal Flying Corps from October 1917 to April 1918 as a training field for American and Canadian pilots. It was then turned over to the Air Service, United States Army. The Americans renamed the field
Barron Field after
Cadet R. J. Barron, who was drowned at
Chandler Field, Pennsylvania on 22 August 1917 when the airplane he was flying fell into the water.
World War I Construction on Taliaferro Field #2 began in September 1917, with the first trainees arriving in November to a very crude facility. Most structures were unfinished and personnel lived and worked in canvas tents. It was taken over by the United States Army in February 1918 and renamed
Barron Field on 1 May for Cadet Robert J. Barron, on 1 May 1918 who was killed at another flying school. The
Curtiss JN-4 "Jenny" became the primary aircraft used for flight training after the Army takeover. Eventually, the base expanded to 600 acres, housing as many as 150 officers and 900 enlisted men. Barron Field saw flight training and daredevil stunting by the likes of
Ormer Locklear, and other pioneer
barnstorming pilots, sending six squadrons of pilots to France before the war ended in November 1918. Squadrons assigned to Barron Field: • Post Headquarters, Taliaferro Field #2, 1 February 1918 : Re-designated Post Headquarters, Barron Field, 1 May 1918-April 1919 • 77th Aero Squadron (II), May 1918 : Re-designated Squadron "A", July–November 1918 • 106th Aero Squadron (II), March 1918 : Re-designated Squadron "B", July–November 1918 • 207th Aero Squadron (II), April 1918 : Re-designated: Squadron "C", July 1918; Transferred September 1918 to
Call Field, Texas • 273d Aero Squadron, February 1918 : Re-designated Squadron "D", July–November 1918 • Flying School Detachment, November 1918-March 1919 : Formed from elements of Squadrons A,B,C,D Service Squadrons trained at Barron Field: • 351st Aero Squadron (Service), March–July 1918; Deployed to American Expeditionary Forces. France • 353d Aero Squadron (Service), May–July 1918; Deployed to American Expeditionary Forces. France After the war ended, the base was closed in April 1919 and was used as an Army storage depot. Military use ended in 1921, and the facility was eventually dismantled and returned to farmland. Over the years, the southern suburbs of Fort Worth have expanded over the area, the airfield now is indistinguishable from the urbanized area. Barron Field was located south of Everman Parkway and west of Oak Grove Road. One small building, used for munitions, has survived, and today a Texas historical marker is located at the site on the west side of Oak Grove Road. ==See also==