Hesselein Landing Strip

At one time Washington had two restricted landing strips (RLAs) where small planes could take off and land. One of the RLAs was located off the south side of Peoria Street behind the area which now is the location of Pizza Hut. For years the popular fast food restaurant at this location was the Washington A & W where pilots could “refuel” themselves with a hot dog and root beer before taking off again.

The land was owned by Leonard Hesselein and Dick Miller. They and farmers and friends who had small planes used the strip until it was decommissioned. Dick is not really sure that it was “officially” decommissioned because it still has an airplane symbol on some ground surveys. The Hesselein property has been sold, and the land is farmed at this time.

Planes that could use the strip were small high-wing Cessnas. Low-wing Pipers landed a few times, but some of them had trouble, and there were a few minor accidents. No serious injuries resulted. There were no fueling stations available, so the strip was just used for an occasional local need.