The airfield was built during 1942 by the Army Air Corps, primarily to support the Matagorda Bombing Range.

[3] A series of curved roads on the east side of the parking ramp had dozens of buildings.

[1] After the war ended, the airfield was transferred to civil control, and was known as Matagorda Peninsula Airport.

In the late 1940s, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics considered Matagorda Island as a rocket launch site, however Cape Canaveral, Florida was chosen instead.

[4] The airfield remained active until about 2002 when SSIA ended its use of Matagorda Island, and the airport was closed and abandoned.