The site is located approximately 20 miles south of Sacramento and 30 miles north of Stockton, lying midway between highway 99 on the east and Interstate 5 on the west. The Army purchased the 640-acre site in November. 1942. It is currently a county airport serving private and commercial interests flying small, fixed wing aircraft. The property was turned over to the County of Sacramento under the Surplus Property Act.
Source: US Army Corps of Engineers Public FUDS GIS System
Former Franklin Auxiliary Field was established as an emergency auxiliary field for two large U.S. Army airfields: Mather Field and Stockton Field. The mission of these airfields was to train pilots and other flight crewmembers for the Army Air Forces from 1942 until 1946. From 1942 to 1943, the War Department, through the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), acquired two parcels of land totaling 641.63 acres. The primary use of the Site was to provide a location for emergency landings and general training in support of operations from Mather and Stockton Fields. During World War II, AT-6, UC-78, and AT-17 training and utility aircraft used the Site. Additionally, the Site was available for all aircraft in the area to use in case of emergencies.
Franklin Auxiliary Field consisted of an airfield, buildings, and a drainage easement. The airfield consisted of four interconnected runways in a triangular pattern. There were five buildings denoted on the USACE Facilities Map dated 1942
From 1 December 1943 to 30 November 1944, the Army Air Forces, through USACE, leased land around the runways to Frank Loretz for grazing purposes. During the U.S. Army’s demobilization after the conclusion of World War II, the Site was deemed excess to the needs of the service and its management was transferred to the War Assets Administration (WAA) on 22 May 1946.
On 6 January 1947, the WAA issued a permit to the County of Sacramento to operate a municipal airport on the Site pending final disposition. On 9 July 1947, the 639.5-acre parcel of former Franklin Auxiliary Field was formally transferred by quitclaim deed, through the WAA, to the County of Sacramento. Shortly after the County of Sacramento took formal possession of the Site, the County of Sacramento began to further develop the public airport (Franklin Field Airport), and to build the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department’s Rio Cosumnes Correctional Center (RCCC) and small arms firing range. The 2.13 acre parcel leased for drainage reverted back to private ownership and agricultural usages.
Building Schedule
Function Type of Construction Condition Barracks Wood frame, Theater of Operations Design Removed Latrine Wood frame, Theater of Operations Design Removed Airfield Operations Wood frame, Theater of Operations Design Removed Headquarters and Administration Wood frame, Theater of Operations Design Removed Supply Room Wood frame, Theater of Operations Design Removed
