Magnuson Park was once known as Sand Point Naval Air Station, and might be the site of more aviation history than anywhere in the Northwest. Its history dates back to the 1920s and was one of the first places that the Boeing Company assembled aircraft for delivery to the US military. It was the site in 1924 of the beginning and end of the famous "Around The World Flight" by the US Army; perhaps second only to Charles Lindbergh's solo Atlantic crossing in aviation history. Lindbergh visited Sand Point in the 1920s and received a hero's welcome. In the 1930s, Boeing tested its famous "Clippers" - giant flying boats for passenger service - just north of Sand Point at what's now Matthews Beach Park. During World War II, the base was a busy place, with "sub chasers" stationed there, making flights out over the Pacific to keep an eye out for enemy submarines. After WWII and until the early 1970s, Sand Point was Naval Reserve base, with weekend warriors taking part in training and keeping up their flying hours. (Felik Banel, Historian) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- KING 5's New Day Northwest celebrates the people places and products that make western Washington a great place to live. Watch it weekdays at 11 a.m. PST on KING 5 TV and streaming live on http://www.king5.com. #newdaynw 🢒 Follow New Day Northwest! 🢐 FACEBOOK 🢒 https://www.facebook.com/newdaynw TWITTER 🢒 https://twitter.com/newdaynw INSTAGRAM 🢒 https://www.instagram.com/newdaynw