Established in 1922 to promote general aviation, 18 men including W. Sid Park and Abe H. Bowman, founded the non-profit organization to promote aviation.

Still, in existence today as the Aero Club of Louisville, Inc., the Aero Club's early history goes hand in hand with the development of aviation in Louisville. In 1918, a Canadian Jenny had landed in a pasture located on Taylorsville Pike. About two years later, W. Sidney Park and businessman Abram H. Bowman "considered to be the Father of Louisville Aviation" formed the Bowman-Park Aero Company, operating from this same pasture, which had been leased by Bowman in order to have a secure base of operations.

Aviation continued to grow, and in the next several years the Club sponsored many flying exhibitions with the newly formed 456th Pursuit Squadron, an Air Corps reserve unit. One outstanding performance featured then-lieutenant Jimmy Doolittle and two fellow pilots, who tied their planes together, and then took off and landed without breaking the cord between their planes.

In 1923 the Aero Club was funded by the city and county governments and was officially put in charge of managing the airport. This continued until 1928 when the Louisville and Jefferson County Air Board was created by the Kentucky State Legislature.

The transfer of management and operations of the airport only stimulated increased interest and support of the Aero Club members, who dismantled a surplus Ft. Knox hangar and re-erected it on Bowman Field as the Air Reserve Squadron's headquarters.

Several members of the Aero Club continued to serve for many years as members of the Louisville and Jefferson County Air Boards. They participated in numerous air tours throughout the Commonwealth to promote interest in aviation. In 1938, four young ladies joined the club and organized early morning “Dawn Patrolâ€Â? flights to numerous cities. The ideas spread with several similar groups (including Lexington) being formed. As a result of this promotion, the Kentucky Aeronautics Act was passed in January 1940 and the State Air Board was formed.

In more recent years the group has sponsored numerous promotional activities including the annual Louisville Air Fair. It raised over $100,000 to build its current facility, which enables it to host more than 20 aviation organizations that wish to use the Aero Club meeting rooms.

Bowman Field has been recognized and honored in recent years as the oldest continuously operating airport in the United States, and the club has a special sense of pride in that it was there from the beginning and has been located on the Field the entire time. In fact, there are those who say it is the oldest continually operating aviation club in the world!