Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport: Upstate South Carolina's Gateway to the World. a History

By the mid-1950s, the cities of Spartanburg and Greenville, and the Upstate communities around them, were losing ground in an increasingly competitive and global economy. The textile industry was under assault from growing imports. The Upstate was about to be left behind in the rush to capitalize on aviation's potential. Two of the nation's fastest-growing airports, Atlanta and Charlotte, were expanding on either side of the Upstate. The welcome influx of overseas investment into the Upstate was almost a decade from beginning.The idea of regional approaches to ecomomic development had not yet penetrated the philosophies and plans of many local leaders. There were some exceptions, most notable among them Charlie Daniel. The energetic and charismatic founder of his own construction company, Dniel extolled the need for regional solutions to growing challenges. He and some of his friends believed the best hope of bringing the Upstate together, especially its two major cities, would be the building of a regional airport. It wasn't a new idea. It was an idea needing leaders. Charlie Daniel decided he would be one of those leaders and he knew some others, especially one man, Roger Milliken, who could finally turn the idea into reality.This is the story about the dream of a regional airport that became the catalyst that spurred regional cooperation and helped save the Upstate's economy. This book traces that story back to its roots decades before in the years after World War I and follows it through the airport's first forty-five years from 1962 to 2007.With the help of jobs created and investment generated locally and from across the country and around the world, South Carolina's Upstate has become a unique economic success story.This book is about more than the Greenville-Spartanburg Aiport.It covers a century during which America's transportation system grew from rails to roads to airways. It is the story of visionary leaders, landmark decisions, strong commitment and, for the South Carolina Upstate satisfying success.This is the history of an airport. It is also a fascinating glimpse at a success story that has changed our nation and made our world smaller: the development of aviation.