Building 100 "Taj Mahal"
San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas
Marker Inscription
In 1928 the San Antonio Airport Company purchased 2300 acres of land near the city and donated it to the United States Army Air Corps for development of a consolidated flight training facility. Called "the West Point of the air", Randolph Field was dedicated June 20, 1930. One month later, construction was begun on an administration building, designated as Building 100. Because of the structure's exotic appearance, student flyers nicknamed it "The Taj Mahal" soon after its completion in October 1931. With its height and location, the building dominated Randolph Field and the surrounding countryside. It was also a prominent feature in several motion pictures filmed here. To many Americans, "The Taj Mahal" came to symbolized military aviation at a time when air power was becoming vital to military strength. Building 100 was designed by San Antonio architect Atlee B. Ayres. Its unusual 170-foot tower conceals a 500,000-gallon water storage tank. A powerful beacon atop the tower can be seen by aircraft up to fifty miles away. The building also contains an 1100-seat movie theater. Its administrative offices now (1975) house the United States Air Force. (1975)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Dedicated in 1930 as the Army Air Corps' 'West Point of the Air,' Randolph Field consolidated flight training near San Antonio, and its 1931 administration building—Building 100—became instantly famous. Cadets nicknamed the tower-topped structure 'The Taj Mahal' for its exotic silhouette, which hides a 500,000-gallon water tank and an 1,100-seat theater. Designed by architect Atlee B. Ayres, it starred in aviation films and came to symbolize the rise of American air power.
Why it matters
Building 100 marks the moment when military aviation matured into a pillar of national defense, on the eve of the air war that would define World War II.
The story behind this marker
AI contextThe era
In the late 1920s, American military aviation was coming of age. Just a generation removed from the Wright brothers, flight had proven itself in the First World War and was now racing ahead in both the civilian and military spheres. Forward-looking officers argued that air power would be central to the nation's defense, and the Army needed a place to train the pilots that future would require.
San Antonio was already a military city, ringed by Army posts, with a climate and open country well suited to flying year-round. When the San Antonio Airport Company purchased 2,300 acres in 1928 and donated the land to the Army Air Corps for a consolidated flight training facility, it set in motion something ambitious: a single, purpose-built home for the making of military aviators.
The result, dedicated in June 1930, was Randolph Field — grand enough in conception to earn the nickname "the West Point of the air," a deliberate echo of the Army's storied academy on the Hudson.
People & events
Construction of the administration building — Building 100 — began just a month after the field's dedication, and it was finished in October 1931. Almost immediately the student flyers gave it a name that stuck: "The Taj Mahal," a nod to its exotic silhouette rising above the flat Texas countryside.
The building was the work of Atlee B. Ayres, a San Antonio architect of real distinction. He gave it a striking 170-foot tower that dominated the field and the land around it — and hid a practical secret. Inside that tower sits a 500,000-gallon water storage tank, its everyday function disguised by ceremonial grandeur. Atop it, a powerful beacon could be seen by aircraft as far as fifty miles away, a literal guiding light for pilots finding their way home.
Building 100 was more than an office block. It housed an 1,100-seat movie theater, and its dramatic form made it a natural film set — it appeared in several motion pictures shot at the field, carrying the image of American military aviation to audiences across the country.
Its place in the American story
Building 100 belongs to a pivotal moment in the American story: the years when air power moved from novelty to necessity. Randolph Field was built to industrialize the training of pilots, and the aviators who passed through fields like this one would soon be called upon in the vast air war of the Second World War.
The "Taj Mahal" became a symbol precisely because it looked like one. To many Americans who saw it on movie screens or in photographs, its soaring tower stood for the rise of a new kind of military strength — the promise that the nation could command the skies.
That symbolism proved prophetic. On the eve of a global conflict in which air superiority would decide campaigns, this building marked the place where the United States committed, in brick and concrete, to taking flight seriously as an instrument of national defense.
If you visit
Look first to the tower. At 170 feet it still commands the horizon, and knowing that its ornamental height conceals a working water tank makes the sight more delicious, not less — grandeur and plumbing in the same shaft.
Take in the whole silhouette and try to see it as a cadet did in 1931: unlike anything on the Texas plains, foreign and thrilling, worth a nickname that has outlived everyone who coined it. The building was designed to impress, and it still does its job.
Because this is an active military installation, access is controlled, so plan ahead rather than assuming you can simply drive up. Treat it as a destination to research before you go — a landmark best appreciated with a little preparation, and one that anchors San Antonio's deep, ongoing story as a cradle of American military aviation.
Written by AI to add context, grounded in the marker’s inscription and the historical record. The inscription above is the original, unaltered text.
Plan your visit
NearbyMake a day of it — museums, food, and places to stay near this marker.
Museums & culture
- San Antonio Museum of Art13.8 mi away · 200 West Jones Avenue, San Antonio
- San Antonio Fire Museum14.3 mi away · 801 East Houston Street
- Ralston Family Collections Center14.4 mi away
- Alamo Vistor Center and Museum (coming 2027)14.5 mi away
- Ripley's Believe It or Not! Odditorium14.5 mi away
- Louis Tussaud’s Waxworks14.5 mi away
Attractions
- Morgan's Wonderland6.5 mi away · 5223 David Edwards Drive, San Antonio, TX
- Off-Road Adventure Ride6.6 mi away
- Morgan's Inspiration Island6.6 mi away · 5223 David Edwards Drive, San Antonio, TX
- Amazing Air7.2 mi away · 7702 North Interstate Highway 35, San Antonio, TX
- Green Acres Golf and Games11.3 mi away
- San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo12.0 mi away
Food & drink
- Bonham Exchange14.3 mi away · 411 Bonham
- Taco Bell14.4 mi away · 849 East Commerce Street, San Antonio, TX
- Margaritaville14.4 mi away · 849 East Commerce Street, San Antonio, TX
- Mengerita Tacos14.4 mi away · 216 Alamo Plaza, San Antonio, TX
- Colonial Room14.5 mi away · 204 Alamo Plaza, San Antonio, TX
- Starbucks14.5 mi away · 849 East commerce, San Antonio, TX
Places to stay
- Comfort Suites Alamo/River Walk14.1 mi away · 505 Live Oak Street, San Antonio, TX
- Red Roof PLUS+ San Antonio Downtown - Riverwalk14.2 mi away
- Hampton14.2 mi away · 414 Bowie Street, San Antonio, TX
- Days Inn14.2 mi away · 400 Bowie Street, San Antonio, TX
- Tru by Hilton San Antonio Downtown Riverwalk14.2 mi away · 901 East Houston Street, San Antonio, TX
- Residence Inn14.2 mi away
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Related people
- · Atlee B. Ayres
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