Methodists Learn That Tyler Airport Renamed in Honor of Methodist Airman Who Died in Crash, December 1943 Many East Texans would know about the Tyler airport, Pounds Field, but perhaps they do not know that the man being honored by that name was a Methodist with considerable family ties to the church. Jack Windham Pounds was born in Tyler in 1917 to Abe Pounds and Isabella Windham Pounds. His short life ended March 4, 1942 at Lemoore Army Air Field in California. Second Lt. Pounds was a flight instructor who was flying a Vultee BT-13A Valliant at the time. One should note that this was only three months after Pearl Harbor so Lt. Pounds was one of the first fatalities of World War II. The airport had existed since 1929 as a municipal airport serving the nascent aviation industry in Texas. In 1941 the Department of Commerce entered into an agreement with the City of Tyler to upgrade the facilities. Those improvement included hangars, new runways, and barracks that would accommodate 2000 persons. As part of the agreement the city of Tyler would continue to use the facility for civilian purposes. The Tyler Field was one of the smaller installations that related to Barksdale Field in Louisiana, and in March 1943, detachments were sent from Barksdale to Tyler to complete further improvements including a control tower and a PX. The field also benefitted from the large concentration of nurseries in the area as ornamental plants were incorporated into the design. In November 1943 the name was changed and the field was dedicated as Pounds Field. The first training was for bombers, but in 1944 the focus shifted to training observation and reconnaissance missions. Many of the training functions at Pounds Field were transferred to other installations even before the end of the war, and the transition to civilian use was smooth. At least one of the World War II buildings survives as a museum. The Pounds and Windham families are so prominent in Texas Methodist history that I will save them for another week. Personal memory----Pounds Field is directly west of Pleasant Retreat Methodist Church which my father was serving when I was born. One of my earliest memories is of the rotating light from the conrol tower sweeping through our dining room window every night, all night long.