Featured Article: Avon Park Army Airfield
Avon Park Army Airfield
#HistoryTuesday - Tuesday May 19TH 2026
Avon Park Air Force Range has a long and renowned military history going back 84 years. It was originally known as Avon Park General Bombing and Gunnery Range, and it was under the authority of MacDill Field in Tampa. It opened in 1942 during the first full year of the U.S.A.'s involvement in World War II.
Later in 1942 it became an airbase, and by the end of 1943 it was known as Avon Park Army Airfield. By then it covered over 350 square miles of land where Highlands, Polk, and Okeechobee Counties meet. At its peak - 10,000+ active-duty military personnel were stationed at the base - not including their families as well as civil service employees.
Both Avon Park Army Airfield (east of Avon Park) and Hendricks Army Airfield (southeast of Sebring) were busy B-17 "Flying Fortress" bases supporting our mission in World War II. 20,000+ active-duty military personnel combined at both bases dwarfed the populations of both Sebring and Avon Park - which were both just over 3,000 each.
Many of those military personnel decided to stay here and raise their families in Highlands County after the war ended in 1945. 80 years later some of our residents can trace their lineage back to those heroes who worked at and maintained both Army Airfields. We have met some of them at the Sebring Historical Society. We honor them and all of our United States military personnel past and present during this National Military Appreciation Month.
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