Austin Hall Opens
By August 28, 1931, sixty-four officers with spouses and other family members started to arrive at Maxwell Field in preparation of the grand opening of the school house. The school house was built in the Renaissance Revival style of architecture. Elements of this style were borrowed from fifteenth century Italian Renaissance merchant palaces and public buildings. The school house’s hipped roof, corner quoins, and classical entrance gave the feeling of both formality and elegance.
On September 4, 1931, the school house (Building 800) was formally dedicated in honor of First Lieutenant Charles B. Austin. Austin was an instructor at the Air Corps Tactical School when the school was at Langley Field. Lieutenant Austin was born in Vermillion Grove, Illinois, on January 7, 1891. Austin had graduated from DePauw University in 1913. He was scholastically outstanding to the point where he was selected for a membership in Phi Beta Kappa. On October 11, 1917 he enlisted as a flying cadet and attended ground school as a cadet at the University of Illinois. He received his flight training at Rich and Ellington Fields in Houston, Texas. On March 30, 1918, Austin received his commission in the aviation section of the Signal Officers Reserve Corps and was promoted to first lieutenant in the regular army July 1, 1920. Austin served in England; Mitchel Field, New York; France Field; the Panama Canal Zone; and Langley Field. First Lieutenant Austin served with distinction at Langley Field as an instructor at the Air Corps Tactical School and received a letter of commendation for his efforts. On July 27, 1928, Lieutenant Austin died following illness and a subsequent operation. Major John F. Curry, commandant of the Air Corps Tactical School thought all personnel associated with the school would profit by the example Austin set.
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