Charles A. Lindbergh, an air mail pilot, personally selected a 40-acre site on Airport Road for use as an emergency landing field during the Chicago-St. Louis mail flights. In August 1926, the United States Government leased the level tract from William L. Waters, owner of the Benjamin (Godfrey) home at 6808 Godfrey Rd. The landing strip was illuminated by flood lights placed 200 feet apart and marked by a 1250 candle power beacon atop a 60-foot steel tower. Mail pilots used the strip when weather, visibility, or mechanical problems prevented a safe flight into Lambert Field in St. Louis, Missouri, for mail delivery. A small frame station on the field, equipped with a telephone connection, stored supplies such as oil, fuel, and parts for mail planes, offered a cot for overnight stays, and provided a place to keep the mail.