Mitchel Field
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NCO Quarters Murals

NCO Quarters, Enlisted Mens Club, and Theater Murals


​"Of the 1,250,000 Army Air Force aircrew who went overseas, 88,119 never returned. For all embarked airmen, their last glimpse of the United States was the receding hangars and runways of Mitchel Field. At the end of the war, for the half-million aircrew and wounded combatants who returned by air, Mitchel Field was the first thing they saw; it was for them, their Statue of Liberty."
Gary Monti (edited by Jennifer Betsworth, NY SHPO)  Cradle of Aviation Museum
United States Department of the Interior National Park Service / National Register of Historic Places Registration Form 
All photos taken by Paul R. Martin III unless stated otherwise. All rights reserved.
No images or content may be reproduced without prior written permission. 
​

Then ....

.... and Now

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​These two murals were in the NCO Quarters. The angels and airman were in the main room on the ground floor directly behind the main entrance.  It is a large mural that spreads across several walls and corners, interrupted only by windows. It was a huge room almost like a ballroom. I have some overviews as well as closeups. Though as you can see it was very deteriorated when I took the photos ( around 73) I call this mural "Airman's Heaven".  (click on each photo below for enlargements)  
  All photos by Paul Martin
The pictures show airmen sitting on clouds while Angels bring them a beer.  They are disturbing in the sense that we have lost much in the way of the art and history of this formerly great base. In only twelve years time you can see the deterioration wrought by the exposure to the elements. The building is now sealed, but the damage is done.
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Photo above by James P. Kelly, about 1970.
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Photo above by Paul Martin about 1973.

The Mural  obviously dates from the W.W.II period. I can't help think  how the mural may have been painted to honor and commemorate the hundreds of Army Air Forces flyers who passed through Mitchel on their way to the European theater and who were then Killed in action.  Now those men, the mural, and the artist who painted it are lost to us forever. 

I always felt that this room was a ballroom. When I used to visit it many times in the early 70s, I could almost hear the strains of Glen Miller whispering across the years, and feel the presence of lost airman dancing across the shadows, beckoning to me to never forget them, to never forget what they did. It was a very eerie feeling but very intense and very poignant. Mitchel Field to me always embodied that Spirit of American
Youth who suffered and sacrificed to "Save the World". May we never forget.
NOTE: If you know who the artist was and or have photos of the mural in better shape, we would be grateful to have the information. Thanks.
The top photo in the triptych of the exterior rearview shows the outside wall of the rooms where the murals were. You can see the matching windows and the 'notch" on the North wall where the airman and angels section was. You can also see how the open windows allowed the elements to so terribly
destroy the painting. 

Second Floor B-24 Fireplace Mural

The B-24 (photo on the right above and over the mantle below) was upstairs on the second floor in a smaller room but directly above the other room.

The pictures below are of the same main room from two sides. In the photos below the one on the right has the arched doorway in the foreground, in the photo on the left it is to the right in the background.
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The building today. Photos by Paul Martin, March 1, 2020. 

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 The  building today!  Photos by  ARMY.ARCH 

​ My understanding is the building is now controlled by the NCPD as an evidence storage facility and is no longer accessible to the public.

Mitchelfield.weebly.com   Copyright 1973 - 2020.  by Paul R. Martin III
​All photos taken by Paul R. Martin III unless stated otherwise. All rights reserved.

No images or content may be reproduced without prior written permission. 
​

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  • Home
  • 5th Squadron Memorial
  • Period Photos
  • Walk Around 2020
  • Postcards
  • Modern Photos
  • NCO Quarters Murals
  • Aerial Views
    • Then & Now Aerial with Overlay
    • Maps
  • Santini
  • Armed Forces Days
  • Mitchel Field Band
  • Artifacts, relics and memoribilia
  • John Purroy Mitchel
  • Mitchel/Selfridge
  • Contact
  • Links
  • Videos
  • NRHP Registration
  • Crashes & Accidents Index
    • Crashes 17-29
    • Crashes 30s
    • Crashes 40
    • Crashes 41
    • Crashes 41B
    • Crashes 42
    • Crashes 42 B
    • Crashes 43
    • Crashes 43B
    • Crashes 44
    • Crashes 45
    • Crashes 46-47
    • Crashes 48-49
    • Crashes 50-55
    • Crashes 56-61
  • AAF Convalescent Home
  • Air Corps News Letter (ACNL)
    • ACNL 1929
    • ACNL 1930
    • ACNL 1931
    • ACNL 1932
    • ACNL 1933
    • ACNL 1934
    • ACNL 1935
    • ACNL 1936
    • ACNL 1937
    • ACNL 1938
    • ACNL 1939
    • ACNL 1940
    • ACNL 1941
  • Commanding Officers
  • HempsteadPlains.com
  • Lancasters at Mitchel
  • Newspapers and Magazines
  • USO
  • Roosevelt Field
  • USO Jones Beach
  • USO Mitchel Field
  • USO Hempstead
  • Military Camps
  • Treason
  • AA & Ground Forces
  • Beneath the Shadow of Wings