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B−History
History · Scott AFB

Scott AFB dates to 1917, and 1 of its places is on the National Register

More historic than 48% of U.S. towns · #411 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it

Most of Scott AFB was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1993. Below: 18 old photos and papers and maps from 1907 on.

1917founded
1on the National Register
8%homes built before 1940
18old photos & papers
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Scott AFB’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Scott AFB began

When was Scott AFB founded?

1917

Scott AFB dates its founding to 1917 (Wikidata).

2020 census: 3,688109 years

How historic is Scott AFB?

B−

More historic than 48% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Scott AFB’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Scott AFB is more historic than 48% of U.S. towns, #411 of 768 in Illinois. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Scott AFB’s overall grade.
Founding era1917, from Wikidata: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 19408.4% of homes (±3.5) · typical IL town 10.6% · U.S. 8.4%C+National Register1 listing, 100 historic buildings, 253 per 10,000 residents · typical IL town 0.5 · U.S. 2.4A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 48%
NewerOlder
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 47%

Few Illinois towns list much on the Register (a typical Illinois town has 0.5 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Scott AFB’s 253 sits above most of its state (97% of Illinois towns have fewer) while its 100 historic buildings outnumber those of 89% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1917.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.5 points).

Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Scott AFB’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A town in old photos18 old photos, postcards and papers, 1873–1988.On the map since 19077 editions of the USGS map, 1907 to 1991. Watch Scott AFB change.
★ What stands out · By decade

Scott AFB, decade by decade

7 decades in the archive, from the 1870s to the 1980s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1870s1 item
Master Sargent William "Bill" Robinson deplanes at Scott Air Force Base, Andersonville National Historic Site, 19731873Master Sargent William "Bill" Robinson deplanes at Sc…
1910s–1930s5 items
Scott Field - 19171917Scott Field - 1917Scott AFB airship hangar1925Scott AFB airship hangarScott AFB, TC-6 over Hangar in the 1920s (cropped)1926Scott AFB, TC-6 over Hangar in the 1920s (cropped)Scott AFB, TC-6 over Hangar in the 1920s1926Scott AFB, TC-6 over Hangar in the 1920sScott Field - 19301930Scott Field - 1930
1940s–1950s5 items
Scott Field airship hangar interior 19421942Scott Field airship hangar interior 1942FileːScott Field - Students Marching to Radio School1943FileːScott Field - Students Marching to Radio SchoolScott Field - 19431943Scott Field - 1943ScottAFB postcard1-back1957ScottAFB postcard1-backPostcardScottAFB postcardBaseOps-back1957ScottAFB postcardBaseOps-backPostcard
1980s7 items
PAR Scope1980PAR ScopeHammer Ace Portable Antenna1985Hammer Ace Portable AntennaHammer Ace SATCOM Antenna1985Hammer Ace SATCOM AntennaAir to air of a 375th Airlift Wing C-12 Huron aircraft as it prepares to land at Scott AFB, Illinois. Exact Date Shot U…1986Air to air of a 375th Airlift Wing C-12 Huron aircraf…An Illustrated History of Scott Air Force Base, 1917–19871987An Illustrated History of Scott Air Force Base, 1917–…BookMAC Command senior staff personnel in their area overlooking the command post for the Military Airlift Command (MAC) he…1987MAC Command senior staff personnel in their area over…Major (MAJ) Dale Kissenger, executive to the commander, Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Service, and a member of the Mili…1988Major (MAJ) Dale Kissenger, executive to the commande…
1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
On the map

Scott AFB on the map, 1907 to 1991

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Scott AFB. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Scott AFB on the 1907 USGS mapScott AFB on the 1932 USGS mapScott AFB on the 1949 USGS mapScott AFB on the 1954 USGS mapScott AFB on the 1968 USGS mapScott AFB on the 1974 USGS mapScott AFB on the 1991 USGS map1907Belleville sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Scott AFB.

The story

How Scott AFB came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Scott AFB.

Read it all →

During World War I, Secretary of War Newton Baker advocated an expanded role for aviation. Business and political leaders on both sides of the Mississippi River wanted the Midwest to be chosen as a site for one of the new "flying fields." Aerial expert Albert Bond Lambert joined the St. Louis Chamber of Commerce and directors of the Greater Belleville Board of Trade to negotiate a lease agreement for nearly 624 acres of land.

ChaptersWorld War IInter-War periodWorld War IIUnited States Air ForceMajor Commands to which assignedMajor units assigned

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Scott AFB, 1873 to 1971

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1873In the archiveMaster Sargent William "Bill" Robinson deplanes at Scott Air Force Base, Andersonville Na…
  3. 20th century
  4. 1907On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 1917
    FoundingScott AFB is established
  6. 1917In the archiveScott Field - 1917
  7. 1925In the archiveScott AFB airship hangar
  8. 1930In the archiveScott Field - 1930
  9. 1942In the archiveScott Field airship hangar interior 1942
  10. 1957In the archiveScottAFB postcard1-back
  11. 1971Born herePat O'Neill is born here
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Master Sargent William "Bill" Robinson deplanes at Scott Air Force Base, Andersonville National Historic Site, 1973
Retake this viewMaster Sargent William "Bill" Robinson deplanes at Scott Air Force Base, Andersonville National Historic Site, 1973, 1873

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Scott AFB’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

1 listing protects 100 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
100
each building in a district counts

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Help out

Finish Scott AFB’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
6 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewMaster Sargent William "Bill" Robinson …: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Mascoutah Township2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townShiloh Valley Township1 historic placeBShilohIts storyC−Mascoutah2 historic placesA−O'Fallon1 historic placeC+

Questions about Scott AFB’s history

What year was Scott AFB founded?

In 1917, according to Wikidata.

How does Scott AFB rank for history?

Scott AFB is more historic than 48% of U.S. towns, #411 of 768 in Illinois. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

How old are the homes in Scott AFB?

8% of Scott AFB’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.5 points), against a typical 11% for an Illinois town; the median home was built in 1993.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (18), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people and U.S. Geological Survey historical maps. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.