Jerry Summers
Most Chattanoogans remember Harry Porter as one of the pioneers in aviation in the Chattanooga area. In that capacity he achieved a lifetime of recognition as the principal supporter of Chattanooga aviation beginning in the 1920’s. However, less is known of his daredevil feats as a motorcycle racer and stock car driver.
In 1921-1922, he raced at the Chattanooga Interstate Fair at the old horse racing track at Warner Park in his “No.
7” Dodge automobile. He completed the Five Mile Elimination Race in five minutes and forty-nine and a half seconds. In the 25-mile feature race he finished second to future Lake Winnepesaukah developer and owner Carl Dixon with a time of 34 minutes and 32 seconds.
Porter had also previously raced motorcycles in the Chattanooga area during this period on his 1912 Indian model. He was a true daredevil and enjoyed the excitement of speed in any category.
Harry first flew a plane from Marr Field in East Chattanooga in 1923. Marr Field was located on the west side of Missionary Ridge and was susceptible to violent crosswinds that resulted in many aviation accidents. As a result, Lovell Field on the eastern side of the ridge was constructed at its present location in 1930. During this early stage of his aviation career Harry participated in barnstorming and flying shows across the South.
He also performed air shows every Sunday and gave plane rides. Soon people began asking for flying lessons that turned into Porter Flight Service in 1931. In 1938 the Tennessee Bureau of Aeronautics started a free flight instruction program with Harry as the instructor. Said program was a boost to aviation in every major Tennessee city. Also in 1938 the first Chattanooga Flyers Club was established with several private pilots holding ownership rights to a few planes that would be available for use on an hourly rate. By pooling their efforts more pilots could fly at a lower individual cost.
The state's Civilian Pilot Trainee Program was started in 1942 and changed the name to “War Training Service.” Porters Flight Service was employed to train pilots for military service. Student pilots would attend classes in the morning at the University of Chattanooga and take flight instruction at Lovell Field in the afternoon under Porter's supervision.
The program continued until 1944 and over 800 pilots obtained the primary training that would qualify them for the Army Air Corps flight program.
On March 26, 2003, 82-year-old Soddy native James Thomas McClure gave an interview in the Veterans History Project that vividly described his aviation training with Harry Porter.
He would later convert that training into a career as an Army Air Corps instructor and Trans World Airways (TWA) pilot for 28 years and was highly complementary of the flight instruction that he received from Harry Porter and Buck Frame at Lovell Field.
In a 1987 interview, Harry Porter recalled the two times he met famed aviator Charles Lindbergh. He first met the “Lone Eagle” in Americus, Georgia, at a government flight school in the early 1920’s and described him as “just an average guy.” Porter’s second meeting with Lindbergh was on his 1927 stop in Chattanooga following his celebration tour after his historic New York to Paris flight.
Porter had a 64-year career in all aspects of aviation. In 1967 he sold his business to another fixed base operation, Hangar One, but remained a full-time consultant until his death in 1988. In 1974 he was given the Amelia Earhart Award by the 99’s, an international women’s flying organization, in recognition of his 80th birthday. When he flew a plane at the age of 90 he was considered the oldest active pilot in the country. In the 80’s, the new air traffic control tower was named the Harry Porter Tower in his honor.
He served as a sergeant in World War I in France and is accordingly buried in the National Cemetery in Chattanooga when he died in 1988 at the age of 94.
In March 2003, the Chattanooga Regional History Museum opened an exhibit in the metropolitan airport at Lovell Field to honor Harry Porter and to display some of the memorabilia that he had acquired during his lengthy aviation career. Originally located in the Baggage Claim area of the airport as a tribute to Porter it was later donated to the Chattanooga Regional History Museum. On June 12, 2017, the successor to the Regional History Museum, the Chattanooga History Museum, transferred legal title and all literary property rights of Porter to the Chattanooga Public Library and University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.
Hopefully the community will recognize the importance of preserving this important part of aviation history and the memories of the contributions of Harry Porter.
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Jerry Summers
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