
Prominent Visitors to Hamilton
During Hamilton’s 40-year existence, first as an Army Air Field in 1935 and later as an Air Force Base in 1947, numerous civilian dignitaries and notables visited the base. Naturally, there were also several well-known military personnel who passed through Hamilton's famous gate. The following is a partial listing.
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General Henry Harley (Hap) Arnold
General Henry Harley (Hap) Arnold, then Brigadier General Hap Arnold, was present at the dedication of Hamilton Army Airfield in May of 1935. General Arnold loved the area, and upon his retirement in 1946, he and his wife, Bee, retired in the Sonoma Valley.
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He maintained an office in the basement of the Hamilton Officers’ Club until he died in 1950. Upon his death, Grand Avenue in Sonoma was renamed Arnold Drive. General Arnold had a remarkable career. He took his first flight lessons from the Wright Brothers, guided U.S. military aviation from its infancy to its position of prominence in the world, and became the only man to hold the rank of 5-star general in both the Army and the Air Force.
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Major General Clarence L. Tinker
Major General Clarence L. Tinker was the Base Commander at Hamilton from December 1934 until December 1936. He was the highest-ranking Native American officer (Osage) and the first to achieve the rank of Major General.
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He died leading a force during the Battle of Midway in June 1942. He was the first American general to die in the war. Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma is named in his honor.
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Edward Vernon (Eddie) Rickenbacker
Edward Vernon (Eddie) Rickenbacker (center), March 1942 -Three months after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the famed WW1 flying ace and Medal of Honor winner was on a “Morale Boosting” trip for Army Flyers around the country. Rickenbacker believed that the government was too complacent and not aggressive enough in its pursuit of the war.
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Joe E. Brown
Joe E. Brown, April 1943 – A beloved comedian and film actor of the 1930s and 1940s, Brown had two sons in the military. He spent a great deal of time (and his own money) entertaining troops around the world. He wrote a book in 1944 titled Your Kids and Mine, about his troop's entertaining experiences.
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Bud Abbott and Lou Costello
Bud Abbott and Lou Costello, September 1944 - The well-known comedy team toured the Evacuee wards at the Hamilton Debarkation Hospital. At the peak of their popularity during the war years, the duo promoted the sale of war bonds. On two nationwide tours during the war years, they raised 85 million dollars in war bond sales for the U.S. Government.
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Angels of Bataan
Angels of Bataan and Corridor, March 1945- Seventy-eight Army and Navy nurses were captured during the fall of the Philippines in 1942. They continued their nursing duties, taking care of wounded and sick soldiers during their 3 1/2 years as Prisoners of War. They were liberated on February 12, 1945.
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Sir Anthony Eden
Sir Anthony Eden, British Foreign Minister, April 1945- Arrived at Hamilton to attend a United Nations Conference on International Organization in San Francisco. Eden was scheduled to deliver the opening address to delegates from 50 nations, launching a global effort to build peace after World War II.
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President Harry Truman
On June 26th, 1945, President Harry Truman arrived to make the closing address and sign the United Nations Charter in San Francisco. During his visit, he also toured the Base Evacuation Hospital, offering encouragement to wounded servicemen recovering from the war.
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General Johnathon Wainwright
In September of 1945, accompanied by his sister, General Jonathan Wainwright arrived at Hamilton Field from Tokyo, just days after witnessing Japan’s formal surrender aboard the USS Missouri. A revered hero of Bataan and Corregidor, Wainwright had endured over three years in a Japanese prison camp.
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Lt. General James (Jimmy) Doolittle
Lt. General James (Jimmy) Doolittle (Ret.) (center), August 1957. On 18 April 1942, then Lt. Colonel Jimmy Doolittle led a carrier-launched squadron of 18 B-25 Mitchell Bombers on a raid over Tokyo and other Japanese cities. Just four months after the Pearl Harbor attack, the raid was a morale booster for America.
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A much-decorated Medal of Honor recipient, Doolittle is credited with the development of Instrument Flying as well as other aviation innovations.
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First Lady, Lady Bird Johnson
On September 20, 1966, First Lady Lady Bird Johnson and Interior Secretary Stewart Udall arrived at Hamilton as part of the First Lady’s “Faces West” tour. From there, they traveled to Drakes Beach in Point Reyes, where Johnson formally dedicated the newly established Point Reyes National Seashore, celebrating it as one of the nation's proudest conservation achievements.
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President Richard Nixon President Richard Nixon
In August 1969, President Richard Nixon and First Lady Pat Nixon arrived at Hamilton Field, where they continued by helicopter to the Presidio of San Francisco.
There, Nixon met with South Korean President Park Chung-Hee to discuss U.S.–Korean relations and regional security concerns amid Cold War tensions.
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President Gerald Ford
President Gerald Ford, April 1975-The President arrived, visited, and then flew by helicopter from Hamilton to a meeting at “The Geysers” geothermal power field in Sonoma County.
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At The Geysers, Ford toured drilling rigs, attended briefings, and met with energy executives and local leaders.
The visit was part of a broader effort to highlight alternative energy sources during the 1970s energy crisis.

Historical Timeline
Take a deep dive into the history of Hamilton Field with our detailed timeline. Explore the key events that shaped both the base and the community of Novato, from its early days as an airfield to its final years of operation.