REPOSITORIES WITHIN THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION
Smithsonian Institution Archives
Arts and Industries Building, Room 2135
900 Jefferson Drive, S. W.
Washington, DC 20560
(202) 357- 1420
Note: A general 23-page guide, Archival, Manuscript, and Special
Collection Resources, was published by the Smithsonian Institution
in April 1988. It describes 20 major collections, covering most of the
Institution's subject interests. The following selection of collection
descriptions is more specific to aviation and aerospace. It is by no means
comprehensive. The collections described herein are among the most significant
in the Smithsonian. In 1983 a Guide to the Smithsonian Archives
was published as Number 4 of the series, Archives and Special Collections
of the Smithsonian Institution (xxxiv, 431 pages). It provides a detailed
contents list and indexes materials by form, subjects, persons and titles.
In 1983 the Archives began the publication of a numbered series called
Guides to Collections. In addition to the collection description they contain
a biographical sketch of the individual, some photographs, and a comprehensive
but not exhaustive index of persons and subjects.
Langley, Samuel Pierpont, 1834-1906. RU 7003. MS 72-1242
Personal papers; 1867-1906; 9.5 linear meters.
Physicist, astronomer and aeronautical pioneer, Third Secretary of
the Smithsonian. This material documents the progress of his aeronautical
research from his first flying model of 1891 through the failure of his
Aerodrome A of 1903. Includes manuscripts, diaries, shorthand notebooks,
correspondence and notes of Langley, Charles M. Manly, E. C. Huffaker,
L. C. Maltby, B. L. Rhinehart and R. L. Reed, oversize aerodrome drawings,
and bolometer readings. Also contains photocopies of Langley's correspondence
for his time at the Allegheny Observatory, Pittsburgh. No finding aid available.
National Air and Space Museum. RU 162
Records; 1912-1971; 11.8 linear meters.
From 1912-1946 the collections were under the custody of various divisions
of the Institution. The National Air Museum was created by Congressional
Act in 1946, and the National Air and Space Museum by act of 1966. Records
include public inquiries and staff replies concerning aeronautical history
and artifacts, lecture arrangements, and accession acknowledgments. Correspondents
or employees include Paul E. Garber, Esther C. Goddard, Philip S. Hopkins,
S. Paul Johnston, Carl W. Mitman, the US Army, Navy, and Air Force, the
Civil Aeronautics Board, and NASA. Finding aid available.
Office of the [Third] Secretary. RU 31 and RU 34
Correspondence; 1887-1907; 32.4 linear meters.
Samuel Pierpont Langley, 1834-1906, astronomer and pioneer in aeronautics,
served as the Third Secretary 1887-1906. Two collections of incoming and
outgoing correspondence include about ten volumes for his interests in
aerodynamics and aerodromics. Finding aids available.
Office of the [Fourth] Secretary. RU 45, RU 46, RU 7004
Records; 1903-1927; ca. 18 linear meters.
Charles Doolittle Walcott, 1850-1927, paleontologist, served as the
Fourth Secretary 1907-1927. Includes material on aviation, the Langley-Wright
controversy, the Langley Aerodynamical Laboratory, and the National Advisory
Committee for Aeronautics. Finding aids and "Guides to Collections" Numbers
2 and 5 available.
Office of the [Fifth] Secretary. RU 46
Records; 1925-1949; 29.1 linear meters.
Charles Greeley Abbot, 1872-1973, astrophysicist, served as the Fifth
Secretary 1927-1944. Includes material on the National Advisory Committee
for Aeronautics, the Langley-Wright controversy, and Robert H. Goddard's
rocket research. Finding aid available.
Office of the [Sixth and Seventh] Secretary. RU 50
Records; 1949-1964; 42.9 linear meters.
Alexander Wetmore, 1886-1978, ornithologist, served as the Sixth Secretary
1945-1952, and Leonard Carmichael, psychologist, 1898-1973, as the Seventh
1953-1964. Includes material on the earth satellite program, the Link Foundation,
the National Air Museum, and the National Air and Space Museum. Finding
aid available.
Smithsonian Institution
Archives of American Art
Eighth and F Streets, N. W.
Washington, DC 20560
(202) 357- 2781
Ponce de Leon, Michael, MS 71-1465.
Papers, artwork, photographs; undated and 1943-1969; ca. 500 items on 2
rolls of microfilm.
Artist, printmaker. Correspondence, journal notes, writings, artwork,
clippings and photographs including materials relating to Ponce de Leon's
service as a USAAF cartoonist during World War II. Finding aid not available.
Smithsonian Institution
National Air and Space Museum
Archives Division, Room 3100
Washington, DC 20560-0322
(202) 357- 3133
Note: The archival collection contains approximately 10,000 cubic feet
of material including over 1.5 million photographs (700,000 of which can
be searched on videodiscs, and 800,000 in different files such as biographical,
aircraft, spacecraft, lighter-than-air, aerospace events, airlines, associations
and societies, 700,000 feet of motion picture film, 2 million technical
drawings and over 1,400 archival collections, of several types. Personal
and professional papers may document the professional activities of the
material's creator as well as personal and family matters. Corporate and
organizational records reflect the activities of those entities. Artificial
collections compiled by someone other than the creator consist primarily
of published materials gathered from a number of sources to form reference
files around one or more topics.
A major attribute of the
archival collection is its visual representation of air and space craft
through photographs and technical drawings. The latter vary from three-view
drawings to detailed engineering plans, many of which are on microfilm.
The archives also holds many technical manuals that document the design,
construction, and performance of air and space craft and the engines that
powered them.
The files are organized by subject in 22 series and includes photographs,
press releases, clippings, correspondence, reports, brochures, and many
other materials on individuals, organizations, events, and objects.
The archival film and videotape
collection consists of approximately 20,000 titles. Copies of these films
and tapes are generally available for a fee. Reference service in the film
and video collection is also subject to a fee. For additional information,
The NASM Technical Files contain 1,300 cubic feet of aviation and space-related
materials arranged as a vertical file. contact the film archives at the
address above.
There are some 1200 accessions in NASM which have not been edited as collection
descriptions. Searchers may ask Archives staff to search the accessions
records by computer if they do not find what they seek in this Guide
to Sources.
Aerial Photographic Reconnaissance
(Batchelder) Collection, Acc. 1986-0005
6.54 cubic feet
This collection contains historical information on aerial photographic
reconnaissance compiled by Samuel L. Batchelder, who served at the USAAF
Intelligence School, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and the Joint Photographic
Reconnaissance Center, Medenham, England. Publications, include The
Illustrated War News from World War I, Evidence in Camera (British
Air Ministry), and Enemy Defences (Mediterranean Allied Photographic
Reconnaissance Command). Also included are recognition and training manuals
for photographic interpretation, aerial photos of the European Theater
of Operations, and damage plots of Allied bombing targets.
Aeronautical Article Scrapbook, Acc. XXXX-0024
1921-1935; 1 item.
A collection of general, fiction and technical articles from publications,
on subjects such as polar flight, safety, crime, instrument flight, from
the USA, UK, Italy, France and Germany, and a complete file of L'Ala
D'Italia.
Aeronautical Bookplates Collection, Acc. XXXX-0080
Scrapbook; .25 cubic foot
A collection of bookplates with aeronautical inscriptions; three commemorate
Lindbergh's flight.
Aeronautical Charts Collection (1938-1968), Acc. XXXX-0034
1.09 cubic feet
Contents: Aeronautical charts for regions of the US (c.1944-1963),
selected states (c.1965), the Middle East as charted by the USAAF during
World War II (c.1944), and some international flight areas (c.1947 and
1968). Airline maps of the US and South America (1968), compiled by an
official airlines guide and copyrighted by Reuben H. Donnelley Corp. Summary
of the legislative history of District of Columbia airport bills (1938).
Aeronautical Flight Research Pamphlets, Acc. XXXX-0204
1948-1958; .33 cubic foot
These pamphlets were published on the progress of flight technology
for use at open house event at Langley, Lewis, and Ames Laboratories of
the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics.
Air Meet Collection, Acc. XXXX-0117
Memorabilia; 1900-1931; 1 box.
Includes memorabilia from air meets and exhibitions, such as ticket
stubs, programs, invitations, and flyers.
Airborne Radar Technical Archive, Acc. 1986-0121, 1987-0011
25.5 cubic feet
Contents: Material documenting the development of airborne radar and
related avionics compiled by Zdzislaw I. Szewczyk, an engineer with the
General Motors Co. Thirty-five volume catalog of ready reference information
on radar hardware, arranged by country and manufacturer. Catalog entries
refer to specific supporting material, including technical manuals, books,
periodicals, and technical pamphlets, as well as radar hardware which has
been accessioned separately into the National Air and Space Museum artifact
collection.
Aircraft and Airships 1911-1932 Scrapbooks, Acc. XXXX-0073
2 items
Includes quotations from Otto Lilienthal and Goethe, the death of several
air pioneers, such as Eduoard Nieuport and John J. Frisbie (1868-1911),
pictures of American aviators flying in exhibitions in Europe, the hydroplane
races at St. Malo, Monte Carlo and Deauville. There are articles on dirigibles
and zeppelins and on woods used in aircraft. Rare airplanes are shown,
such as the Gallaudet racing monoplane and the Queen aeroboat, the
first American hydro-monoplane. There are articles on aviation insurance
in 1912, the Coupe Michelin and the conditions of the Peking to Paris aviation
event.
Aircraft Design, Acc. XXXX- 0042
Scrapbook; 1931-1932; 1 oversize item
An attempt to highlight advancements in airplanes and their design,
through news and other clippings in a nation-by-nation arrangement, from
the US, France, Germany and Italy.
Aircraft Design Collection [Alter], Acc. 1989-0074
3.27 cubic feet
Contents: Material gathered by Horace J. Alter, an aerospace engineer
for Convair and Lockheed in the 1950s-1970s relating to aircraft design.
Course/lecture notes, design notes, proposals, and papers concerning a
variety of Convair and Lockheed projects including Convair airliners and
interceptors, Lockheed interceptors, rotorcraft, supersonic transports,
and "wing-hull" vehicles.
Aircraft Performance Charts, Acc. XXXX-0198
.29 cubic foot
Contents: C.600 aircraft performance charts. The material includes
charts for landplanes, floatplanes, flying boats, and gliders produced
by various English, Italian, American, French, Dutch, and German aircraft
companies. Each chart includes data on wing section, crew, motors, length,
height, weight, useful load, landing gear, and references, as well as the
performance chart for the aircraft.
Aircraft Structural Material Reports, Acc. XXXX-0194
.55 cubic foot
Contents: Reports dealing with the selection and maintenance of materials
for aircraft structures, including wood, plywood, metal, and plastics.
Airline Annual Reports, Acc. 1986-0043
13.95 cubic feet
Contents: Published annual reports from domestic and foreign commercial
air carriers, arranged both alphabetically by carrier and chronologically.
Includes information on evolution and mergers of various airlines.
Airline Baggage Label Collection, Acc. XXXX-0146, 1987-0088
8.72 cubic feet
Contents: Airline timetables, memorabilia, baggage tags, and logos;
aircraft company logos; aviation school logos; and balloon prints covering
airlines and aircraft companies from around the world.
Airline Timetable Collection, Acc. 1986-0127
5.45 cubic feet
Contents: Published flight schedules of major domestic airlines, including
American (1975-85), Braniff (1976-82), Continental (1976-85), Delta (1973-84),
Eastern (1976-86), Northwest Orient (1975-85), Pan American (1975-86),
Republic (1980-84), Trans-World (1970-86), and United (1970-86).
Airship Oversized Photographs, Acc. 1995-0009.Photographs; 1940s-1950s
Six color and one black and white oversize photos of Navy airships
ZP4K (ZSG-4), ZPW-2W, and ZSG-2/3 (ZP2K).
Airship Photographs Collection [Holub], Acc. 1994-0014
Photographs; 1920s; 1 folder.
Eleven snapshots of the Graf Zeppelin, LZ 127, the Akron,
ZRS-4 and personalities such as Hugo Eckener, Charles Lindbergh and Lady
Drummond May.
American Airlines Scrapbook, Acc. XXXX-0038
October 1945; .75 cubic foot
American Airlines began commercial service from Boston to London October
23, 1945, with the plane New England. Contains labeled photographs
of crew, passengers, speakers at the ceremonies, flight memorabilia, and
audio recordings.
American Expeditionary Force Photo Section [Mann] Collection (c.1917-1919),
Acc. 1986-0014
1 cubic foot
Contents: Copies of original material used for Edgar S. Gorrell's History
of the A.E.F., the official history of the American Expeditionary Force
(AEF) in World War I on file at the US National Archives and Records Administration
Record Group 18. Material covers the history of the Photographic Section,
Army Air Service, AEF (section G of the original document). Material originally
assembled by Edward Steichen, Chief of Photographic Section, AEF. Includes
an article by Steichen on aerial photography in the Army Air Service; histories
of individual photographic sections; bound and unbound volumes on photographic
interpretation, camera installation, and camouflage; and photographic volumes
on the battles of Chateau Thierry and Cantigny.
American Volunteer Group Collection [Pistole], Acc. 1987-0075
4.47 cubic feet
The American Volunteer Group (AVG), better known as the "Flying Tigers,"
was organized in 1941 by Claire L. Chennault, an inactive US Army Air Corps
officer, as a mercenary air unit to support the Chinese against Japanese
air attacks. The AVG, made up of discharged US military personnel, began
operation in July 1941. The first combat action for the AVG occurred on
20 December 1941, near Kunming, China, when AVG aircraft intercepted a
Japanese raid, shooting down at least four attacking bombers. On 1 July
1942 the AVG was incorporated into the USAAF as the China Air Task Force
(CATF), under the command of Chennault, who had been recalled to active
duty and promoted to brigadier general. On 4 July the fighter squadrons
of the AVG became the 23rd Fighter Group, Tenth Air Force, detached to
the CATF. The CATF became the Fourteenth Air Force under Chennault's command
on 10 March 1943. The addition of medium and heavy bomber formations to
the predominantly fighter unit gave the Fourteenth Air Force additional
ground support capabilities, and the unit continued operations in the China-Burma-India
Theater through the end of World War II.
Contents: Copies of historical documentation on the AVG, including
fragmentary operational records (e.g. combat reports), correspondence,
diaries, logs, and newsclippings, and a large number of unidentified photos
of the unit. Compiled by Larry Pistole.
Archer, Wesley, (Cockburn-Lange Hoax) Collection, Acc. 1986-0008
5.45 cubic feet
In 1933 the book Death in the Air: The War Diary and Photographs
of a Flying Corps Pilot was published anonymously, purporting to be
the record of a Royal Flying Corps (RFC) pilot during World War I. The
book included photos allegedly taken by the pilot during aerial combat.
The photos were supposedly owned by a Mrs. Gladys Maud Cockburn-Lange,
but had actually been contrived by Wesley David Archer, an American pilot
who had served in the RFC. The Cockburn-Lange hoax persisted until it was
exposed by Peter M. Grosz, author and historian, and Karl S. Schneide,
Curator of Early Flight at the National Air and Space Museum, in the early
1980s.
Contents: Documents relating to the Cockburn-Lange hoax. Photos used
in the book, correspondence and journal articles detailing Grosz' and Schneide's
unraveling of the hoax. Includes personal correspondence from Archer and
topographical and road maps.
Arcier, A. Francis, Collection, Acc. XXXX-0072
2.18 cubic feet
A. Francis Arcier (1890-1969) was an aircraft designer and engineer.
Born in London, he emigrated to the US and became an American citizen in
1929. He worked for a number of aircraft companies, including Wittemann
Aircraft Corporation (1919-25), Fokker Aircraft Corp. (1925-28), General
Airplanes Corp. (1928-30), and Waco Aircraft Co. (1930-47). He was a science
advisor at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, from 1948 until his retirement in
1963, and continued his association with the Air Force until 1968.
Contents: Newspaper and magazine clippings, job applications, and other
material offering biographical information, including published articles
from 1943 and 1981. Photographs and negatives, personal and business correspondence,
aircraft drawings, technical papers, dissertations, and related correspondence.
Arens, Charles, Scrapbooks, Acc. XXXX-0016
1911-1960; 1 cubic foot
Pilot, mechanic, manufacturer. He was active in aviation from 1911-1967,
at the Chicago Flying Field 1912-1919, and the new Ashburn Field in Chicago,
1916 and member of the Early Birds. He worked for LWF Engineering Co.,
College Point, Long Island, later for the E. M. Laird Co., founded his
own company, Arens Controls Inc., in 1923, and supplied controls for Ford
and Boeing aircraft. He was secretary of E. M. Laird Co. which provided
control systems for many World War II aircraft.
Aviation and Aerospace Drawings Collection, Acc. XXXX-0002
436.56 cubic feet
Contents: Primarily three-view/general arrangement engineering drawings
for a variety of aircraft and aviation- and aerospace-related equipment.
Aviation History [1784-1931] Scrapbooks, Acc. XXXX-0025
5.9 cubic feet
This collection, probably of European origin, is concentrated on 1860-1918.
Includes newsclippings, photographs, reports, early comic books, picture
transfers, airline tickets, and original letters relating to balloons,
dirigibles, airplanes, and aviation personalities; and a 30 page aviation
history report in Greek. In chronological order.
Aviation News Clippings Collection, Acc. XXXX-0148
95.92 cubic feet
Contents: Newspaper clippings of aviation-related stories covering
the first half-century of heavier-than-air flight. Includes articles on
notable events (record-breaking flights, races, accidents), personalities
(domestic and foreign), as well as aircraft and aircraft manufacturers.
Also includes extensive press materials on dirigibles and balloons (lighter-than-air
flight) dating from the mid-19th century through the early days of the
Korean War.
Aviation Photography [Reynolds], Acc. 1989-0057
Photographs; 1916-1920; .05 cubic foot
Copies of images of Curtiss airplanes and several airships.
Aviation Pioneers Scrapbook, Acc. XXXX-0077
Scrapbook; 1905-1945; 1.09 cubic feet.
A miscellaneous collection of clippings, pamphlets and magazine excerpts.
Aviation Technical Manuals Collection, Acc. XXXX-0429
1224.07 cubic feet
Manufacturers and operators of aircraft and equipment produce large
numbers of manuals for their air and ground crews. These manuals generally
cover all phases of operation, from the assembly of the newly-purchased
aircraft, through the operation and maintenance of the equipment, to storage
of the equipment. Manuals are revised as new procedures are developed or
modifications are made to existing models. New subtypes generally receive
new manuals, although subtypes with the same procedures are generally grouped
into the same manual. New models are added by revision supplement.
Contents: Original technical manuals for aircraft, aeronautical engines,
aircraft components, and aviation ground equipment. Material consists primarily
of military technical manuals (US Air Force and Navy) with some civil aviation
manuals. Manuals relate primarily to American-built equipment, although
some foreign types are included. Where possible, revisions are maintained
separately from the basic manual.
Aviation Technical Manuals Collection [Doty], Acc. XXXX-0164
-
Manuals, charts, pamphlets; 1930-1970s; 3.27 cubic feet
Includes Army aviation technical manuals, pamphlets relating to Federal
Aviation Administration pilot certification, aeronautical charts and Trans-World
Airlines flight and policy manuals.
Balzer, Stephen, Correspondence, Acc. XXXX-0129
Papers; 1898- 1934; .56 cubic foot
Inventor. Balzer was commissioned by Samuel Pierpont Langley to produce
the engine for the Langley Great Aerodrome. The papers contain the original
contract signed by Langley and Balzer, correspondence between Balzer and
Langley's associates, and letters from the l930s relating to the recognition
that Balzer claimed for the engine's development, in light of modifications
made by Charles M. Manly, Langley's assistant.
Banquet Programs Collection, Acc. XXXX-0116; see also XXXX-0542
Banquet programs; 1907-1964; 1 box.
These programs are for banquets honoring Charles Lindbergh, Richard
Byrd, Amelia Earhart, Aero Club of America Annual Dinners (1907, 1914,
1915), Christening of the Jet, Clipper America, X-15 Flight Test Program,
Dedication of Chanute Memorial, Diner Du Club; and the 6th Annual Banquet
of the 31st Division Air Corps. Finding aid available.
Barnaby, Ralph Stanton, Papers, Acc. 1988-0007
3.15 cubic feet
Ralph Stanton Barnaby (1893-1986) was an aviation pioneer. Barnaby
was the first licensed glider pilot in the US and the first to successfully
launch a glider from an airship. He organized and directed the Navy's first
school for glider pilots. Barnaby also founded and served as president
of the Early Birds and helped organize the Soaring Society of America,
as well as authoring a number of books on gliders and paper airplanes.
Contents: Newspaper clippings and correspondence documenting Barnaby's
gliding career and association with the Early Birds. Also correspondence
received late in his life from other aviation pioneers, awards and commendations,
and material on numerous aviation celebrations and dedicatory events attended
by Barnaby.
Beatty, George W., Collection, Acc. 1989-0013
.45 cubic foot
George W. Beatty (1887-1954) was an Early Bird, aviator, and instructor.
After finishing school, Beatty became a mechanic and linotype operator.
In 1909 he became interested in a New York gliding club and assisted in
the construction of an unsuccessful home-built Santos-Dumont Demoiselle.
In 1911 he entered the Wright Flying School, completing his license in
July. He spent much of the remaining years before World War I carrying
passengers, flying exhibitions, and instructing in England and the US.
In February 1914 he established a flying school at Hendon, near London,
in cooperation with Handley Page and instructed military pilots during
the war. After the war he returned to America and became superintendent
of the Hughes Printing Co., where he remained until his death.
Contents: Photographs, newsclippings and correspondence describing
Beatty's aviation career. Bulk of the material dates from 1910 to 1912
and includes an Early Birds plaque, several small banners from flying meets,
and a 1928 letter from Orville Wright.
Beckert, Wilfred C., Scrapbook, Acc. 1987-0013
Scrapbook; 1904-1927; 0.1 cubic foot.
Contains newspaper and magazine clippings on early military aviation,
airplane crashes, dirigibles and airships, and a lengthy article on Lindbergh's
1927 transatlantic flight. Personalities featured include Glenn Curtiss,
the Wright Brothers, Harriet Quimby and Lincoln Beachey.
Bikini Atoll Bombing Collection, Acc. XXXX-0040
1 scrapbook of 100 pages; .75 cubic foot
Newsclippings and newswire reports of the atomic bomb test, "Operation
Crossroads," at Bikini Island on July 1, 1946. The test was conducted by
US government and military personnel upon a target of isolated ships in
a controlled area.
Bodie, Warren and Catherine, Photograph Collection, Acc. XXXX-0003,
XXXX-0004, XXXX-0005, 1986-0031, 1987-0017, 1988-0030, 1989-0018
5 cubic feet
Contents: Miscellaneous photographs and negatives of military, commercial,
and private aircraft taken or compiled by Warren and Catherine Bodie and
donated to the National Air and Space Museum in annual increments.
Bodine, John, Autograph Collection, Acc. XXXX- 0483
Autographs, photographs; 1912-1960; .45 cubic foot
These autographs and autographed photographs are of famous persons
in aviation.
Boyne, Walter James, Collection, Acc. 1985-0003, 1985-0005
1.09 cubic foot
Walter James Boyne (1929- ) is a writer, historian, and former museum
director. He served in the USAF (1952-74; retired colonel) during which
time he earned degrees from the University of California, Berkeley (BBA,
1958) and University of Pittsburgh (MBA, 1963). After retiring from the
Air Force he joined the National Air and Space Museum (Assistant Curator,
Aeronautics, 1974-75; Curator, Aeronautics, 1975-78; Executive Officer,
1978-80; Assistant Director, 1980-82; Deputy Director, 1982-83; Director,
1983-86). He retired from the Museum in 1986.
Contents: Boyne's research notes, correspondence and documents used
in the preparation of several of his books, including Phantom in Combat
(Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution, 1985) and Boeing B-52: A Documentary
History (London: Jane's, 1981) and audio tapes of interviews and presentations.
British Aircraft Rigging Diagrams Scrapbook, Acc. XXXX-0068
Scrapbook; 1916-1918; 1 oversize box.
Contains rigging instructions for some British aircraft of World War
I, with three view drawings and control systems. List of aircraft models
is available.
Brooks, Arthur Raymond, Collection, Acc. 1988-0051, 1989-0104, 1991-0046
12 cubic feet
Arthur Raymond Brooks (1895- ) is a World War I ace credited with six
enemy aircraft. Brooks graduated from Massachusetts Institute of Technology
(1917) and enlisted in the Signal Officer Reserve Corps. He attended the
School of Military Aeronautics with the Royal Flying Corps in Canada (September
- November 1917), then trained with the 139th Squadron (November 1917 -
February 1918). In March 1918, he was transferred to France, where he flew
the SPAD XIII C.1 Smith IV, which now resides in the NASM aircraft
collection. While in France he became flight commander of the 22nd Aero
Squadron and earned the Distinguished Service Cross. He returned to the
US in July 1919, and was stationed at Kelly Field, Texas, where he was
promoted to Captain. He resigned from the army and received an Honorable
Discharge in December 1927. As a civilian, Brooks was connected with Florida
Airways Corp., which eventually merged into Eastern Airways. He was also
involved in the Contract Air Mail Route No. 10, and worked for the Department
of Commerce, Aeronautics Branch. He joined Bell Laboratories (1928), where
he supervised air operations and the testing of electronic aids for air
navigation. He is also involved in numerous flying clubs.
Contents: Brooks' personal papers and memorabilia. Photographs, correspondence,
documents, and certificates relating to Brooks' aviation career, as well
as personal correspondence, photographs and diaries (1907-87). Brooks'
decorations and pins have been transferred to the NASM artifact collection.
Bueschel Model Airplane Engine Collection, Acc. XXXX-0174
Photocopies; 1934-1974; 1 box.
This collection consists of photocopies of model airplane gas engine
advertisements and articles, with operating and instruction manuals. List
of engine names available.
Burke, E. Woodward, Scrapbook, Acc. XXXX-0217
Memorial scrapbook; 1939-1945; 1 box
Test pilot, research aerodynamicist for Brewster Aeronautics Corp.
on the F2A Buffalo and the McDonnell FD-1 Phantom. Burke died November
1, 1945 in a crash. The book was prepared by his associates and presented
to his minor son, Stephen W. Burke. Includes correspondence and photographs.
Captured German/Japanese Aviation Technical Documents, Acc. XXXX-0408,
XXXX-0409, XXXX-0431
c.6000 reels
In the final days of World War II, the advancing Allied armies captured
a large number of documents from the German and Japanese governments. These
documents were taken to various sites in Europe and the US for evaluation
and appraisal. Those documents considered of value were microfilmed for
preservation. Aviation-related documents were turned over to the USAAF
and microfilmed by the Air Documents Division, Technical Information Section
(T-2), Air Materiel Command at Wright Field, Ohio.
Contents: Microfilm of captured German and Japanese documents pertaining
to a wide variety of aviation-related subjects, including aircraft and
engines, flight test reports, proposals, and engineering studies. In German
or Japanese language except for Allied reports regarding captured equipment.
Carrying the Fire: An Astronaut's Journeys, Acc. XXXX-0399
Autobiographical manuscript; 1 item
Michael Collins, astronaut, former Director of the National Air and
Space Museum. The manuscript (and galley proof) of Collins' book, Carrying
the Fire, traces his life from his experiences with the Air Force through
his days as a test pilot to flights in the Gemini and Apollo spacecraft.
Caunter, C. F., Collection, Acc. 1988-0073
1 cubic foot
Cyril Francis Caunter (1899-?) was an author, historian, and curator
at the Science Museum, London, England. Caunter published a number of works
on the development of light internal combustion engines for automotive
and aeronautical use.
Contents: files relating to Caunter's final book "Rotary Aero Engines,
1900-1918" (unpublished). Manuscripts of the book, correspondence and research
relating to the book, and documents regarding the attempt by Robert Meyer,
Curator of Propulsion at the National Air and Space Museum, to have the
book published by the Smithsonian Press.
Chanute, Octave, Collection, Acc. XXXX-0482
Correspondence, etc.; 1891-1910; ca. 125 items.
Pioneer in aeronautics. Includes correspondence letters with James
Means, 40 photographs and postcards, and the Avery collection of clippings,
letters and articles.
Charles, Mary, Papers, Acc. XXXX- 0011
Correspondence, photographs; 1931-1965; 3 boxes.
Pilot, blind flying, racer at the 1931 Cleveland Air Races, member
of OX5 Club, the IAA, Ninety-Nines, a captain in the Women's Air Reserve,
a group organized to fly into inaccessible stricken areas and to provide
emergency medical treatment.
Chicago World Cruiser Collection, Acc. XXXX-0123
Memorabilia; 1924; .45 cubic foot
Contains several charts used by the Chicago in its flight around
the world in 1924, a photograph of the Army Air Service pilots, and the
celebration in Chicago, IL, November 9, 1924.
Chillson, Charles W., Collection, Acc. XXXX-0008
3 cubic feet
Charles W. Chillson (1910-?) was an expert in air and rocket propulsion.
He received his BS degree in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University
(1931) and went on to work in Chemical Engineering at the California Institute
of Technology (1931-36). At the same time (1931-36), Chillson worked with
C. K. Greene on a mechanical controllable-pitch propeller which progressed
through whirl-testing at the USAAF Engineering Division at Wright Field,
Ohio. He then moved to the Curtiss-Wright Corp., Curtiss Propeller Division,
as an engineer and project designer (1936-40) and was later promoted to
Chief Researcher (1940-47). In 1947 he won the Collier Trophy for his propeller
work and became Chief Engineer of the newly-formed Rocket Department at
Curtiss-Wright. In 1950 he became Program Chairman of the American Rocket
Society (ARS) Board of Directors and was later elected Vice President (1951)
and President (1952-55), before being made a Fellow of the ARS (1956).
Contents: Documents relating to Chillson's affiliation with the ARS,
particularly his presidency of the ARS. Correspondence with ARS members,
aerospace companies, and organizations such as the American Society of
Mechanical Engineers, the British Interplanetary Society, the International
Astronautical Federation, and the Institute of Aeronautical Sciences. Papers
presented to or published by the ARS, diagrams and photographs highlighting
rocket plans or capabilities, pamphlets and articles on rockets.
Claudy Glass Plate Negative Collection, Acc. XXXX-0549
Photographs
Charles H. Claudy was an author, newspaperman and photographer who
worked for the New York Herald. Collection includes copies of original
photographs taken by Claudy at the time of the Wright Brothers' flights
(1908- 1909).
Coanda, Henri, Papers [Stine], Acc. XXXX-0170
1.09 cubic foot
Henri-Marie Coanda (1885-1972) was born and died in Bucharest, Rumania.
He spent his early childhood in Paris (1886-91), before being educated
in a Rumanian military school (graduated 1903). Coanda continued his studies
in Berlin and Paris and was a member of the first class of L'Ecole Superieure
d'Aeronautique. He invented a jet-propelled aircraft concept in 1910 and
in 1932 discovered the "Coanda effect," in which fluid streams follow curved
surfaces, thereby creating vacuums. His other projects included prefabricated
housing developments, water conservation, sea water distillation, energy
conservation, and agricultural equipment. In his lifetime he contributed
some 250 inventions to these diverse fields.
Contents: Material relating primarily to Coanda's sea water distillation
machine. Includes correspondence, reports, the articles relating to SFERI-Coanda
and AQUA, experimental photographs, Societe de Constructions Multicellulaire
pamphlets (1920s), and photographs of Coanda's farm in Auxances.
Coffyn, Frank, Scrapbooks and Photo Albums, Acc. XXXX-0065
Scrapbooks; 1911-1932; 5 units in 2 boxes.
Pioneer flyer, aviation consultant, learned to fly from the Wright
Brothers in Dayton and a member of the original Wright Flying Team. Includes
correspondence, photos and newsclippings relating to his visit to the aviation
meet of the Michigan Aero Club June 19-23, 1911. The photos for 1910-32
are labeled by subject and date and feature a model B Wright biplane. There
are photos of Coffyn and a Lachapelle Gliding Boat and a Burgess Flying
Boat, 1913.
Congressional Space Science Hearings Transcripts, Acc. XXXX-0205
1.09 cubic feet
Contents: Published transcripts of hearings before the US House of
Representatives Committee on Science and Astronautics and the US Senate
Committee on Aeronautics and Space Science, dealing with a wide variety
of topics including appropriations for NASA, the US and Soviet space programs,
as well as other space science-related topics.
"Conquest of the Air" Cartoon Series Scrapbook, Acc. XXXX-0066
Cartoon series; 1927; 1 box
This scrapbook is a newspaper cartoon story of man's attempts for "The
Conquest of the Air" and was created or collected by Nicholas Afonsky.
Itappeared in the Washington Evening Star in 1927, beginning with
mythological flight and ending with the nonstop flights to Hawaii in 1927.
Cross-Section of Aviation Personnel Scrapbook [Boedecker], Acc. XXXX-0323
1920s-1930s; 2.18 cubic feet
This scrapbook consists of 16 volumes of photos of personnel in aviation-related
employment. The material covers a cross section of fields from aicraft
and engine manufacture and airport employees to military and airline personnel
(both flight and ground crews.) Most of the photographs, which were
taken by Kenneth Boedecker of Curtiss-Wright, are autographed by the subject
and all are captioned with name, firm, date, and location.
Crouch, Tom Day, Collection, Acc. 1985-0012
6.35 cubic feet
Tom Day Crouch (1940- ), historian and author, earned degrees in American
History, specializing in History of American Science and Technology, particularly
Aeronautics and Astronautics (BA, Ohio University, 1966; MA, Miami University,
1968; Ph.D., Ohio State University, 1976). He taught high school in Ohio
(1967-69) before becoming Director of Education for the Ohio Historical
Society (1969-72) and later Director of the Ohio American Revolutionary
Bicentennial Committee (1972-74). He then joined the National Air and Space
Museum (NASM; Associate Curator, 1974-85), where he wrote a number of works
on aviation history. He then moved to the National Museum of American History
(Curator, 1985-89) before returning to NASM as Chairman of the Aeronautics
Department in 1989.
Contents: Crouch's research files from his 1974-85 tenure at NASM.
Correspondence, photos, and published material assembled by Crouch for
several of his books, including The Eagle Aloft (Washington, DC:
Smithsonian Institution, 1983) and A Dream of Wings (Norton, 1981).
Cuneo, John R., Drawings, Acc. 1987-0025
.45 cubic feet
John R. Cuneo (1907-1984), a lawyer, began Winged Mars with the intent
to write a multi-volume history of the air forces of Germany, France, and
Great Britain through the end of World War I. The first volume, The
German Air Weapon, 1870-1914, was published in 1942 and traced the
emergence of German aviation to the outbreak of the war. That volume was
followed in 1947 by The Air Weapon, 1914-1916, tracing the functional
value of airplanes as weapons during the first two and a half years of
the war. Cuneo planned two additional volumes in the series to complete
the history of these air forces to the end of 1918, but he abandoned these
plans when his publisher, Military Service Publishing Company, canceled
the contract.
Contents: Fifty-five unpublished pen and ink drawings done by Cuneo
for The Air Weapon, 1914-1916. The drawings were deposited in the
Institute of Aeronautical Sciences and in 1960 Cuneo retrieved them with
the intention of having them published as a separate volume. At the time
of his death the drawings had still not been published.
Current News Collection, Acc. XXXX-0061
Newsletter; 1958- 1959; 1.09 cubic feet
The "Current News" was a newsletter prepared by the Office of the Administrative
Assistant, Secretary of the Air Force containing newspaper, magazine and
wire service stories relating to aerospace, military and defense issues.
In chronological order.
Curtiss A-1 Hydroaeroplane Drawings, Acc. XXXX-0212
Engineering drawings; 1911-1912; 2.18 cubic feet
Contains structural drawings necessary to construct a full size flying
replica of the first aircraft purchased by the US Navy. The replica was
made in 1961, with minor safety modifications designed into it. Specifications
were obtained from Lt. T. G. Ellyson's Navy A-1 aircraft flight log book,
Curtiss Aeroplane Co. three view general arrangement drawings #223, #224
and #225, Engel-Curtiss Pusher Hydro-Aircraft, and Kaminski-Curtiss Pusher
Land Type.
Curtiss Flying Schools Photographs [Clemons], Acc. XXXX-0022
2.18 cubic feet
Glenn Hammond Curtiss (1878-1930) worked with mechanical objects, seeking
faster forms of travel. He developed bicycles, motorcycles, and aircraft
and won international fame as an aviator. In 1909, he opened the world's
first public flying schools, with locations in his hometown of Hammondsport,
New York, as well as in Miami, Florida, and San Diego, California. In 1911
he designed the first successful water-landing aircraft which he called
the hydroplane.
Contents: Mounted photographs depicting Curtiss aircraft, flying schools,
plants, and personnel. Concentrates mainly on Curtiss' Hammondsport operations,
although some photos of other early Curtiss activities are also included.
The photos were assembled by Alpha Rickard Clemons, Service Manager at
Curtiss' Hammondsport plant during World War I.
Curtiss NC-4 Design, Construction, and Testing Reports, Acc. XXXX-0422
2.18 cubic feet
Contents: Reports on the design, construction, and testing of the NC
series flying boats. Photographs of NC-4's construction and transatlantic
flight.
Curtiss NC-4 Collection [Smith], Acc. XXXX-0418
2 cubic feet
Contents: Material gathered by Dr. Richard K. Smith of NASM in conjunction
with the fiftieth anniversary of the transatlantic flight. Correspondence,
published material, maps, and photographs relating to NC-4 and the anniversary
celebration. Aircraft logs, naval ship logs, weather reports, progress
reports, biographies of the participants, information on the thirtieth
and fiftieth anniversaries, and material on the construction of NC-4 and
general planning for the flight.
Curtiss, Glenn H., Collection (1911-1930), Acc. XXXX-0053
2.18 cubic feet
Glenn Hammond Curtiss (1878-1930) is best known as an aviation pioneer
and inventor and founder of the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Co. Initially
a bicycle repairman and designer, by 1902 Curtiss had begun to manufacture
motorcycles using a lightweight internal combustion engine of his own design
and had founded the Curtiss Manufacturing Co. By 1904 Curtiss' engine was
being used by Thomas Baldwin for his airship experiments. This activity
led to a connection between Curtiss and Alexander Graham Bell and, in 1907,
to the foundation of the Aeronautical Experimental Association. In 1909
Curtiss joined with Augustus M. Herring to form the Herring-Curtiss Co.
to manufacture powered vehicles. Despite numerous lawsuits, Curtiss continued
to advance the cause and technology of aviation, founding the first public
flying school (1910) and later a chain of schools across the US, inventing
the aileron (1909), the dual-control trainer (1911), and the hydroaeroplane
(1911). In 1920 Curtiss retired from active aviation pursuits.
Contents: Documents and memorabilia relating to Curtiss during the
years of his active aviation pursuits. Material primarily relates to patent
suits, including Wright v. Curtiss; Herring v. Curtiss; and Curtiss v.
Janin.
Davies, Ron, Air Transport Collection, Acc. 0604
This collection was compiled by Ron Davies, who currently is a Curator
in the Aeronautics Department of the National Air and Space Museum.
The bulk of the collection was donated in 1981, and consisted of the following:
5,000 aviation prints; 3500 airline timetables; 63 loose-leaf notebooks;
annual reports; and miscellaneous airline memorabilia. It is unclear
if additional timetables, negatives, photographs, and dossiers were donated
from 1982-1989, or if the collection was transferred to the Archives over
a period of time.
Davis, Manila, Scrapbook [Talley], Acc. XXXX-0041
1 item
Pilot, saleswoman, member of 99s and Betsy Ross Corps. Scrapbook contains
correspondence, newsclippings, membership cards, programs, photographs,
pilot's licenses. Joined Curtiss-Wright Corp. as a saleswoman in 1929 or
1930. A founding member in May 1931 of the Betsy Ross Corps, a private
female auxiliary/reserve for the Army Air Corps. Includes information on
the Women's National Air Races and Meets, and on her work with the Civil
Air Patrol.
Day, Charles Healey, Scrapbooks and Photo Albums, Acc. XXXX-0028
Scrapbooks; 1904-1942; 4 items.
Pilot, aircraft designer and manufacturer. Contents probably collected
by Day's wife, Gladys M. Day. In 1912 Charles Day built an aircraft for
"Japanese Pilot Takeishi" who "expects to be able to make valuable use
of the plane in Japanese war tactics." The Japanese bombed the Chinese
aircraft factories operated by Day in the 1930s. He designed the Standard
airplane and operated the Standard Aircraft Co. earlier. Includes photographs
of the plant and products, and badges, ribbons, customs pass, employment
contracts from China.
De Florez, Luis, Scrapbook and Memorabilia, Acc. XXXX-0069
Scrapbook; 1943-1945; 1 item
US Navy rear admiral and engineer who created a flight simulator for
Navy pilots. The Collier Trophy was awarded to him in 1943 for his contribution
to the safe and rapid training of combat pilots and crews; he was an Early
Bird. Includes correspondence, photographs, texts of speeches and newsclippings.
Deisch, John Noel, Correspondence, Acc. XXXX-0134
Papers; 1920- 1937; ca. 80 items.
Astronomer, inventor. Correspondence containing letters to prominent
members of the American Interplanetary Society (later the American Rocket
Society) including John Shasta, Alfred Africano and other astronomers,
and the original manuscript of Interplanetary Navigation (1926).
Durant, Frederick Clark, Collection, Acc. XXXX- 0084
Correspondence, articles, reports, manuscripts, photographs; 1953-1963;
29.43 cubic feet
Chemical engineer, rocketry administrator, assistant director of astronautics
at the National Air and Space Museum. Includes material on rocketry, rocket
propellants and space related topics.
Earhart, Amelia, Scrabook, Acc. XXXX-0049
Scrapbook; 1931-1935; 1.08 cubic feet
Pilot. This oversize spiral notebook was compiled by Charles H. Babb
and Paul Mantz as the "Story of NC- 945-Y," probably for Pratt and Whitney
as advertising for the Wasp S1D1 engine installed in Earhart's new Lockheed
Vega. It covers flights from April 1931 to May 1935 when she broke all
records from Mexico City to New York City.
Early Aeronautical Newsclippings (Alexander Graham Bell) Collection,
Acc. XXXX-0086
18.53 cubic feet
Although best known as the inventor of the telephone, Dr. Alexander
Graham Bell (1847-1922) expressed an interest in a wide range of activities,
including aviation. By the turn of the 19th/20th century he was experimenting
with kites and kite structures, including his famous tetrahedral kite Cygnus,
which carried a man aloft in 1907 and was intended to be fitted with a
motor. Bell supported the experiments of Samuel Langley from 1891 on and
had some influence in obtaining War Department funding for Langley's aeronautical
work. After the Wright Brothers' successful flight in 1903, he formed,
with Glenn H. Curtiss, F. W. Baldwin, J. A. D. McCurdy, and Lt. T. Selfridge,
the Aerial Experimental Association, which experimented with a number of
flying machines before the founders dissolved the group in 1909. Bell's
contributions to aeronautics are reflected in the nine patents issued to
him for various advances in "aerial vehicles," "flying machines," and other
aeronautical devices.
Contents: Newspaper clippings gathered by Bell from American, British,
French, German, and other newspapers during the early years of aviation.
Covers a variety of subjects from balloon and airship ascents, air shows,
races, and record flights, to accidents, technological developments, and
applications.
Early Aeronautical Patent Collection, Acc. XXXX-0027
2.18 cubic feet
Contents: Patent drawings for devices pertaining to aeronautics. Mounted
reproductions of patents issued between 1860 and 1898. Some include explanatory
text.
Early Aviation Newsclippings Collection, Acc. XXXX-0420
19.62 cubic feet
Contents: Newspaper clippings relating to airships, balloons, and early
aircraft. Articles on famous inventors, accidents, predictions, war aims,
weather bureau reports, and women in aeronautics.
Early Aviation Photograph Scrapbooks, Acc. XXXX-0048
1909-1913; 2.18 cubic feet
Book A roughly describes early powered flights, with numbered photos
in alphabetic order; there are 150 photos of Curtiss planes and engines
and 130 of balloons, aeroplances and engines. Book B mostly concerns aspects
of lighter-than-air craft, some monoplanes and biplanes, pilots, spectators,
engines, construction and aerial photography.
Early Ballooning Prints, Acc. XXXX- 0137
Prints, correspondence, articles; 1769-1918; 1 box.
Consists of prints, newspapers, articles, a letter and part of a toy
helicopter called Balloon Le Zenith.
Engine Design Reports, Acc. XXXX-0195
.55 cubic feet
Contents: Reports dealing with engine design and fatigue measurement,
drawings of piston engines and graphic logs of engine endurance.
Faurote, Fay Leone, Collection, Acc. XXXX-0030
Automotive engineer and aviation editor; assistant secretary of the
Aircraft Manufacturers Association, advertising manager for Curtiss Aeroplane
and Motor Co. 1916-1920, and then editor of the Aircraft Yearbook
until death.
Includes newsclippings from domestic and foreign papers about the exploits
of Glenn Curtiss and his company during the 1910s, photographs on his flight
from Albany to New York in 1910, and 36 photographs of World War I aircraft
construction.
First Day Covers, Stamps, Patches, and Post Cards Collection, Acc.
XXXX-0119
Philatelic items; 1924-1981; 1 box.
Includes philatelic materials commemorating air and space events around
the world, stamps are from the Soviet Union, some pertaining to the Concorde,
and a patch from BEAN GARRIOTT LOUSMA SKYLAB-II.
Fliedner, Carlisle, Album, Acc. XXXX-0047
Photograph album; 1916-1919; 1 unit
Includes photos of personal experiences and locations in France, the
USNA Station in Panillac, Gironde, and the port. There are photos of Curtiss
twin flying boats, de Havilands, other flying boats and the May 1919 transatlantic
flight of the US Navy squadron.
Fulton, Garland, Papers Collection, Acc. XXXX-0101
16.35 cubic feet
Contents: Materials gathered by Captain Garland Fulton, USN (1890-?),
naval officer and proponent of lighter-than-air (LTA) aeronautics. Books
and magazine articles relating to airships and LTA. Correspondence and
memoranda regarding the Navy's LTA program (1920s-40s), some of which were
collected during Fulton's posting to the LTA section of the Navy's Bureau
of Aeronautics in the 1930s.
Goddard, Robert, Notebook and Publications, Acc. 1997-0061
Papers, photographs; 1920s-1940s; 2 boxes
Physicist, rocketry pioneer. Includes one photograph album of his rocket
researches, bound notebooks and papers, and the original manuscript of
his Methods of Reaching High Altitudes. Finding aid available.
Gampper, Jr., Frederick K., Airship Collection, Acc. 1993-0062
Correspondence, photographs, plans; 1917-1925; 1 box
Airship pilot, supervisor of dirigible construction in Key West for
Goodyear. Includes blueprints, a manual, newspaper articles and photographs
featuring the Roma, the Wingfoot Express, and the Pony
Blimp of Commercial Airship Syndicate, Ltd.
Gardner, Lester Durand, 1876-1956
Photographs
Publisher, promoter of aeronautics and founder of the Institute of
the Aeronautical Sciences. This is an autographed photograph collection
of members of the Institute and other aviation personalities.
German Electronics and Experimental Projects Drawings, Acc. XXXX-0216
1.09 cubic feet
Contents: Documents relating to German experimental projects from late
in World War II. Schematics for a wire-guided surface-to-air missile launch
site computer, reports and schematics for proximity fuses for anti-aircraft
shells, jet and rocket engine component drawings, and similar equipment.
Gilbert, Glen A., Collection, Acc. XXXX-0187
1.09 cubic foot
Glen A. Gilbert (1913-1982), pilot, administrator, and aviation consultant,
played a key role in the development of the US and international Air Traffic
Control (ATC) System. Following his graduation from the University of Wisconsin,
Gilbert went to work in commercial aviation, including periods at Northwest
Airways (communications installation and operations, flight operations,
1931-34) and American Airlines (Communications Supervisor and Assistant
Flight Supervisor, 1934-36). During this period he helped develop and operate
collision-avoidance procedures for aircraft operating under instrument
conditions until this service was taken over by the Federal government.
Gilbert became the first Director of the US ATC system (Chief, Airway Traffic
Control Section, 1936-40; Chief ATC Division, 1940-46) during which time
he represented the US at a number of international conferences on aviation
and played a key role in the formation of the International Civil Aviation
Organization (ICAO) in 1944. He then became Special Assistant to the Administrator
of Civil Aeronautics (1946-51), where he continued his involvement with
international aviation issues, often under commission from the President
or Secretary of State. In 1951 Gilbert became an aviation expert for ICAO
(1951-57) and later founded Glen Gilbert and Associates (1957), an aviation
consulting firm. Gilbert co-authored 28 patent claims for airborne and
ground equipment to improve ATC safety and efficiency and wrote a number
of books and articles on the subject.
Contents: Seven volumes compiled by Gilbert's wife representing a partial
documentation of Gilbert's contribution to ATC development. Includes two
books by Gilbert on air traffic control.
Gorrell, Edgar S., Collection, Acc. XXXX-0057
21.8 cubic feet
Colonel Edgar S. Gorrell (1891-1945) was a pilot and aviation advocate.
He graduated from West Point in 1912 and, in 1914, transferred to the Signal
Corps. He joined the 1st Aero Squadron, serving in the 1916 expedition
against Pancho Villa. During World War I he served on the Air Service staff,
becoming Chief of Staff, Air Service, American Expeditionary Force, before
the end of the war. He resigned his commission in 1920 and joined the Nordyke
and Marmon Co. (1920-25), then moved to the Stutz Motor Car Co. (Director,
Vice President, and General Manager, 1925-29; Director and President, 1929-35).
During 1934 he served on the War Department Special Committee on the USAAF
(the Baker Board), which investigated the aircraft industry and its relationship
to national defense. In 1936 he was elected the first president of the
Air Transport Association of America, where he served until his death.
Contents: Documents relating mainly to Gorrell's activities as president
of the Air Transport Association of America. Copies of Gorrell's addresses
and congressional testimony and press clippings concerning Gorrell's activities
and albums of World War I era photographs collected by or presented to
Gorrell.
Great Lakes Aircraft Co. and National Air Races (Five Photographs),
Acc. 1990-0025
Photographs; 1925 and 1929
Great Lakes Aircraft Co. hangar, Cleveland, Ohio, with a Martin MB
inside 1925; a Boeing 40B-4 with a Cities Service emblem and Goodyear airships
at National Air Races 1929.
Groenhoff, Hans, Photographic Collection, Acc. XXXX-0359
Photographs; ca. 1930s-1950s; 10 cubic feet
Aviation photographer, aviator and writer. Photographs of gliders,
engines, aerospace personalities and aircraft taken by Groenhoff for aviation
magazines.
Grumman SA-16 Albatross Crash Research Collection, Acc. 1989-0142
.23 cubic foot
On 24 January 1952, a Grumman SA-16 Albatross crashed in the Panamint
Mountain Range in Inyo County, California. The aircraft, from the 580th
Air Resupply and Communication Wing, was on a night navigation mission
from Mountain Home AFB to San Diego Naval Air Station. The seven-man crew
parachuted to safety and the aircraft flew on for approximately 20 miles
before crashing. The wreckage of the Albatross was found by James A. O'Neill,
who began to research the history of the aircraft in 1980.
Contents: O'Neill's crash research documentation, photographs of the
crash site and wreckage, Air Force photos of Albatross aircraft, Air Force
reports, other documents, magazine articles, and O'Neill's correspondence
relating to the crash.
Haley, Andrew G., Papers, Acc. XXXX-0200
46.87 cubic feet
Andrew Gallagher Haley (1904-1966) was a lawyer and administrator who
had a major influence on the development of space law. Haley graduated
from Georgetown University Law School (LLB, 1928) and worked for a time
as a congressional aide, where he assisted in the drafting of communication
laws. He then worked as counsel to the Federal Radio Commission and its
successor, the Federal Communications Commission (1933-39), before entering
private practice (1939-42). With the United States' entry into World War
II he was called to service as a Major in the Judge Advocate General's
Office, Headquarters USAAF (1942). He was released from service within
a year, however, to found Aerojet Engineering Corp. (later Aerojet General),
which designed and developed Rocket-Assisted and Jet-Assisted Take-Off
units for aircraft, and to serve as its first President and Managing Director
(1942-45). After the war he became active in promoting space exploration
and astronautics in the International Astronautical Federation (IAF; Vice
President, 1951-53; President, 1957-58; General Counsel, 1959-66) and the
American Rocket Society (ARS; Vice President 1953; President 1954; Counsel
1955-63). In 1960 he helped found the International Academy of Astronautics
and International Institute of Space Law under the auspices of the IAF.
He authored a number of papers and articles and helped organize a number
of international conferences on space and communications law.
Contents: Documents relating to Haley's involvement with astronautics
and space law. Primarily documents covering Haley's activities in the IAF
and ARS, including information on the various conferences and institutes
he helped organize. Material relating to the founding and early operations
of Aerojet General.
Hall, Randolph Fordham, Papers, Acc. XXXX-0169
2.18 cubic feet
Randolph Fordham Hall (1896-?) was an aeronautical engineer and inventor.
He began work as a draftsman at the Thomas Brothers Airplane Co. (1915-16)
and moved to Standard Aeronautical Corp. as an engineer (1917). He enlisted
in the US Army Air Service Technical Service (1917-19), advancing to the
rank of sergeant first class. During this time he attended the American
Expeditionary Forces University in Dijon, France, where he earned degrees
in mathematics and mechanical engineering. He returned to the US, becoming
an assistant engineer at the Thomas Morse Aircraft Corp. (1920-28) before
joining Francis E. Cunningham and James C. Dryer to form Cunningham-Hall
Aircraft Corp. (1928-41). He left Cunningham-Hall to join Bell Aircraft
Corp. (1941-59) where he remained until he retired. Hall received over
forty patents during his career, including a patent for a high lift wing
which flew on Cunningham-Hall's entry in the Guggenheim Safe Airplane Competition
of 1929.
Contents: Hall's personal and professional papers. Correspondence,
photographs, scrapbooks, and patent and patent infringement files.
Halley's Comet Tour Packages, Acc. XXXX-0125
Travel brochures; 1985-1986; .5 cubic foot
Contains travel brochures to view Halley's Comet and a sample itinerary
for viewing the comet from the South Pacific; they present the history
and background of the comet.
Hammer, William Joseph, Collection, Acc. XXXX-0074
Correspondence, photographs; 2.3 cubic feet
Turn of the century aeronautical pioneer and associate of Thomas A.
Edison. The collection contains ballooning and early flight photographs;
aircraft postcards; and the Wright Brothers' collection of autographed
letters and photographs.
Harrison, George Blair, Collection, Acc. 1987-0012
1.09 cubic foot
George Blair Harrison (1873-1930) was a pioneer aeronaut and businessman.
Following graduation from Washburn College and the University of Michigan,
he entered the business world, working as a newspaperman (1898-1903, 1908-15).
He also worked for a time for the St. Louis World's Fair (1903-05), in
printing and lithography (1905-07), and in the motion picture industry
(1915-17). During this time he earned Federation Aeronautique Internationale
(FAI) Balloon Certificate 32, becoming the first licensed balloon pilot
west of St. Louis. In January 1910 he helped organize the first international
air meet in the US, at Dominguez Field, Los Angeles. He was also associated
briefly with Wright Airplane Co. (1910) and Glenn L. Martin Co. (1911).
He joined the US Army as an aviation cadet when America entered World War
I, attending ground school at Austin, Texas (1917) and the US Army Balloon
School, Ft. Omaha, Nebraska (1917-18). After his discharge in 1919, he
returned to commercial aviation, serving as airport inspector for Los Angeles
County (1920-21), and as secretary and director of Universal Institute
of Aeronautics, Inc., until his death.
Contents: Material documenting Harrison's aviation career. Primarily
newspaper articles on Harrison and early aviation in general, with a small
amount of material on his son, Bennet.
Henize, Karl Gordon, Collection, Acc. 1986-0147
57.86 cubic feet
Dr. Karl Gordon Henize (1926- ) is an astronomer and astronaut. He
joined the US Naval Reserve (1944-46) while studying at the University
of Virginia (BA, 1947; MA, 1948). After completing his doctorate at the
University of Michigan (Ph.D., 1954), he became an observer at Michigan's
Lamont-Hussey Observatory, Bloemfontein, Union of South Africa (1954-56).
He then spent several years as Senior Astronomer at the Photographic Satellite
Tracking Station, Smithsonian Astronomical Observatory (1956-59) before
beginning to teach astronomy (Northwestern University: Associate Professor,
1959-64; Professor, 1964-72; University of Texas: Adjunct Professor, 1972-?).
In 1967 he joined NASA's manned space program (Scientist/Astronaut, 1967-86;
Senior Scientist, 1986-?), serving on the support crews for Apollo 15 and
Skylab 2, 3, and 4 (1970-73) and as a mission specialist on Spacelab 2
(1985). He also served as primary investigator for NASA experiments on
Gemini 10, 11, and 12 and Skylab 1, 2, and 3 (1964-78); team leader, NASA
Facility Definition Team, Starlab Telescope (1974-78); and chairman, NASA
Working Group, Spacelab Wide-Angle Telescope (1978-79). He has authored
or co-authored over thirty astronomy-related publications.
Contents: Henize's professional files. Correspondence and subject files
covering most of Henize's career. Material from his college tenure, his
time at NASA, including Apollo and Skylab training.
Herrick, Gerard Post, Papers, Acc. XXXX-0097
12.18 cubic feet
Gerard Post Herrick (1873-1955) was an inventor and research engineer
who is known as the inventor of the "convertible aircraft." Herrick, a
graduate of Princeton (AB, 1895) and the New York Law School (LLB, 1897),
served as a captain in the Army Air Service during World War I (1918-19).
He is best known for his invention of the Herrick rotary engine and the
Herrick Vertoplane, the first aircraft which could operate both as a fixed-wing
airplane and as a gyroplane (1937). Herrick remained as president of Convertoplane
Corp., working on production plans for the Vertoplane, until his death.
Contents: Herrick's personal papers. Correspondence, newspaper and
magazine clippings, handwritten technical notes, drawings, photographs,
reports, and affidavits in support of historical statements. Black-and-white
negatives and motion picture film of the Herrick Vertoplane.
Howell, Clark, Scrapbook, Acc. XXXX-0021
Scrapbook; 1934-1935; 1 box.
Howell was publisher of the Atlanta Constitution and Chairman
of the Federal Aviation Commission under President Roosevelt. Articles
concern the separation of the Commission from the Post Office and the need
for military buildup of the Air Corps. Includes newspaper clippings with
sources and dates, and some photographs.
Hunsaker, Jerome Clarke, Papers, Acc. XXXX-0001
8.72 cubic feet
Jerome Clarke Hunsaker (1886-1984) was an aeronautical engineer and
designer. He graduated from the US Naval Academy in 1908 at the head of
his class and received his MS (1912) and D.Sc. (1916) from the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology before being posted as Chief, Aircraft Division,
Bureau of Construction and Repair, Navy Department (1916-21). He advanced
to Chief of Design Division (1921-23) where he designed the airship USS
Shenandoah
(ZR-1, commissioned 1923). He served as Assistant Naval Attache - Europe
(1923-26) before resigning his commission in November 1926. He then worked
as Assistant Vice President (VP) and Research Engineer for Bell Laboratories,
where he helped standardize wire and radio service for America's developing
airways. He moved to Goodyear-Zeppelin Corp. (VP, 1928-33) where he supervised
the design and construction of the airships USS Akron (ZRS-4) and
USS Macon (ZRS-5) before returning to MIT as head of the Department
of Mechanical Engineering and Aerospace Engineering 1933-1951. He also
served as a member of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (1923-56),
including a term as chairman of that body, as well as editor of the Journal
of the Aeronautical Sciences.
Contents: Material relating to Hunsaker's work following the end of
his naval career. Correspondence, memos, and reports covering Hunsaker's
tenure at Bell Labs and Goodyear and his association with Chrysler and
Sperry while teaching at MIT. Documents pertaining to his association with
national defense planning during the World War II period.
India-Burma Headquarters Photograph Collection [Pace], Acc. 1989-0100
.45 cubic foot
Joseph J. Pace was stationed in Malir, India, at the India-Burma Headquarters,
where he served as photo chief during and after World War II (1945-46).
Although much of the information from this post was destroyed, Pace salvaged
a portion of the photographs and negatives documenting the activities at
the post.
Contents: Photographs and negatives documenting the aircraft, equipment,
operations, and recreational activities in the Malir area. Included are
images of recruit processing at Landhi Field and operations at the Landhi
Flexible Gunnery Training Unit. List of special orders and addresses.
International Astronautical Journals, Acc. XXXX-0186
2.18 cubic feet
Contents: Astronautical journals from Argentina, Austria, Britain,
Denmark, Egypt, France, Germany, Italy, Holland, Japan, Poland, South Africa,
Spain, Sweden, the US, and Yugoslavia.
Johnson, Robert E., Collection, Acc. XXXX-0054
4.36 cubic feet
Robert E. Johnson (1903-?) was an aeropropulsion expert with Curtiss
Aeroplane and Motor Co. and Curtiss-Wright Corp. Following his graduation
from Worchester Polytechnic Institute (BS[CS], 1927) Johnson worked as
a draftsman for Curtiss in Garden City, New Jersey. He was promoted to
Chief of the Aerodynamic Section, first at Garden City (1929-31) then at
Curtiss' Buffalo, New York, plant (1931-32). Moving to the Wright Aeronautical
Division of Curtiss-Wright, Johnson worked as a Field Engineer (1934-37)
with Curtiss-Wright's airline customers, later becoming Chief Field Engineer
(1937-58).
Contents: Johnson's professional papers during his tenure as Chief
Field Engineer at Wright Aeronautical. Correspondence relating to flight
and engine testing, engine production, and civil aviation.
Johnston, S. Paul, Scrapbooks, Acc. XXXX- 0036
Scrapbooks; 1935, 1938-1939; .45 cubic foot
Pilot, former director, National and Air and Space Museum. In 1935
he made a 12,000 mile tour from New York through South and Central America
and Mexico to Los Angeles, Seattle and returning to New York to demonstrate
the feasibility of commercial aviation. In 1938 and 1939 he toured aircraft
factories in Britain, Germany, France and Italy, considering factors of
numbers produced, quality, production rates and capacities, personnel and
morale. Includes correspondence, reports, photographs and art work.
Jones, Ernest, Aeronautical Photograph Collection, Acc. XXXX-0096
2 cubic feet
Ernest L. Jones (1883-1955) spent most of his life involved in aviation.
He edited the first American aviation journal, Aeronautics (1907-15),
and was a cofounder of the Early Birds, the society of pre-1916 flyers.
In 1912 he became president of the Aeronautical Manufacturers Association
and in 1917 handled publicity for Wright Aeronautical. During World War
I Jones received a commission in the Army Air Service, later becoming chief
information officer. After writing a history of the Air Service of the
American Expeditionary Force, he became the editor of National Aeronautical
Review (1924-26). Jones later became active in commercial aviation, helping
to establish the aeronautical branch of the Commerce Department, which
later grew into the Civil Aeronautics Administration and Federal Aviation
Administration. He returned to active military duty during and after World
War II (1941-49) and served as a civilian employee of the Air Force until
the early 1950s.
Junkin, Hattie Meyers, Papers, Acc. XXXX-0171
3.27 cubic feet
Hattie Meyers Junkin (1896- ) is an aviator. In 1917 she married George
"Buck" Weaver (d.1924), a civilian flying instructor at the military training
center at Waco, Texas. Weaver, along with Clayton Bruckner and Elwood "Sam"
Junkin (d.1926), founded the Advance Aircraft Co in 1921 (Weaver Aircraft
Co, 1922-29; Waco Aircraft Co, 1929-46). Following Weaver's death she married
Junkin, who died shortly afterwards. In 1929 she married Ralph Stanton
Barnaby (1893-1986), a glider pilot and aviation pioneer. In 1931 she became
the first woman to earn a Glider Class C license. She spent much of her
life writing historical articles, including articles on Weaver Aircraft.
Contents: Personal papers of Hattie Meyers Junkin. Correspondence,
scrapbooks, and manuscripts, material on Junkin's husbands and Weaver Aircraft
Kallmann-Bijl, Dr. Hildegard Korf, Papers, Acc. 1989-0042
2.18 cubic feet
Dr. Hildegard Korf Kallmann-Bijl (1908-1968) was a geophysicist specializing
in atmospheric physics. Following work at the University of Berlin (BA
equivalent, 1929) and Technische Hoch Schule, Berlin (metallurgy, 1934-36),
she worked for several years in the spectroscopic lab at the Zeiss Works
in Dresden (1936-37). In 1937 she fled Nazi Germany to Sweden and, in 1940,
emigrated to the US. She attended the University of California (BS, 1945;
MS, 1947; Ph.D., 1955) and taught on the faculty there while acting as
a consultant to Project RAND (1947-58). She then formally joined the RAND
Corp., where she served as a geophysicist working on upper atmosphere physics
for the US Air Force (1958-64). She was appointed to the University of
Utrecht Observatory as a geophysicist (1964-65). At the time of her death
in 1968 she had served on a number of professional committees and authored
over thirty papers.
Contents: Kallmann-Bijl's professional files. Correspondence, photographs,
and newspaper and magazine articles, research files covering her professional
career (1949-68) and copies of Kallmann-Bijl's publications.
Karstens, Nicholas Van de Grift, Drawings, Acc. 1987-0096
39 items
Nicholas Van de Grift Karstens (1913-1987) was an engineer and draftsman.
He went to work for Douglas Aircraft Co. in 1937 after earning a degree
in mechanical engineering. He retired from McDonnell Douglas in 1969 and
returned to drafting, executing a number of detailed drawings of aircraft
from the early days of aviation.
Contents: Karstens' original ink-on-mylar drawings of 1910s-20s era
aircraft.
Kelsey, Benjamin S., Scrabook, Acc. XXXX-0026
Scrapbooks; 1929-1947
USAAF general, test pilot, air mail pilot. He was involved in the development
and test flight of the P-38 and other military and civilian aircraft. Includes
newsclippings, magazine articles, photographs and correspondence. The boyhood
album contains aviation activity in the 1920s in Waterbury, CT; the other
relates to his aviation career.
Keys, Clement Melville, Papers, Acc. XXXX-0091
12.15 cubic feet
Clement Melville Keys (1876-1952) was a financier and corporate organizer
who promoted aviation through the post Word War I decade. Canadian-born,
Keys graduated from Toronto University (BA 1897) and taught classics before
coming to the US in 1901 (naturalized, 1924). He went to work for the Wall
Street Journal, first as a reporter (1901-1903), then as railroad editor
(1903-1905) before becoming financial editor for World's Work (1905-1911).
In 1911 he founded C. M. Keys & Co., an investment counseling firm
and bond dealer. In 1916 he came to the aid of the financially-troubled
Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Co. and was made an unsalaried Vice President.
Keys accompanied the American Aviation Mission to Europe in 1919, returning
to purchase a controlling interest in Curtiss in 1920. He remained president
of Curtiss until the 1929 merger with Wright Aeronautical Corp. to form
Curtiss-Wright Corporation, whereupon he became president of the new company.
During his tenure as president of Curtiss (1920-1929) and its successor,
Curtiss-Wright Corp. (1929-1933), Keys brought the company from the brink
of bankruptcy to a position as one of the leading aircraft manufacturers
in the world. Curtiss also became the center of a group of aviation-related
companies which served to market and operate Curtiss aircraft. At the same
time, Keys expanded his own holdings until he was at the head of twenty-six
corporations, including aviation holdings companies, such as North American
Aviation and National Aviation Corp., as well as the first American transcontinental
air service, Transcontinental Air Transport (later Transcontinental &
Western Airline). In January 1932, Keys withdrew from all his aviation
interests, citing ill health. He remained connected with C. M. Keys &
Co., concentrating mainly on financial and real estate interests. Upon
retiring from Keys & Co. in 1942, he started a new company, C. M. Keys
Aircraft Service Co. and, after World War II, helped organize Peruvian
International Airways, which began operating in South America in 1947.
Contents: Keys' business records and correspondence. Material centers
primarily on Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Co. and Curtiss-Wright Corp.,
but includes documents on the other firms in the Curtiss group. Business
(operating) correspondence and records relating to the Curtiss group's
financial interests. Some personal correspondence and documents tracing
the general development of aviation in the 1920s.
Knabenshue, A. Roy, Collection, Acc. XXXX-0136
Autobiography; 1 manuscript.
Dirigible pilot and racer. His manuscript, titled "Chauffeur
of the Skies," tells the story of his life as the first man to fly a powered
lighter-than-air craft in America at the St. Louis exhibition in 1904.
He flew the first blimp in California at Old Chutes Park in Los Angeles
in 1904, raced his dirigibles at Dominguez Field in 1910 and started a
dirigible passenger flight service in 1912.
Krainik, Ballooning Collection, Acc. 1990-0009
Photographs, post cards, woodcuts, etc.; 1859- 1934; 1 cubic foot
This collection of ballooning memorabilia includes 112 stereoscopic
photos, 107 photos, 84 postcards, trade cards, valentines, etc., 80 prints
and 23 miscellaneous items. Highlights of the stereos include T. S. C.
Lowe's Civil War balloons, the Nadar and Godard balloons, balloons during
the Boer War, Russo-Japanese War, and World War I; views of the airships
Ganymede,
Great
Western, Phantom Balloons, Buffalo,
Madame Carlotta,
and The Aerial. There are lithographic cards from Germany 1905-1910.
Lahm, Frank Purdy, Collection, Acc. 1986-0044, XXXX-0268
2 cubic feet
Major General Frank Purdy Lahm (1877-1963) was the first balloon pilot,
the first airship pilot, and the first airplane pilot in the US Army. Like
his father, Frank Samuel Lahm, his early interest was in ballooning, and
in 1906 he won the James Gordon Bennett International Balloon Race. In
1909 Lahm and Lt. Frederick E. Humphreys were trained by Orville and Wilbur
Wright to fly the first plane the Army purchased from the Wrights. In 1912
he was made commanding officer of the US Army Flying School in the Philippines,
and during World War I he was commander of the Second Army Air Service.
Following the war Lahm founded the Air Corps Training Center at Randolph
Field, Texas. In 1931 he was reassigned as Air Attache‚ and later Military
Attache‚ to France and Belgium. Lahm retired from the military in 1941
as a recipient of the Distinguished Service Medal and the French Legion
of Honor.
Contents: Photographs and newsclippings detailing Lahm's military career
and his personal life.
Landauer, Bella C., Aviation Ephemera Collection, Acc. XXXX-0122
Scrapbooks; .5 cubic foot
Lannen, Robert, Aircraft Slide Collection, Acc. XXXX-0432
2.18 cubic feet
Contents: C.2000 slides taken during the 1960s and early 1970s, primarily
transparencies from the Air-Britain Film Unit (ABFU). Arranged by subject:
air shows, airliners, US Military and Naval Aircraft, Swiss Air Force,
British and Canadian Civil Aircraft, air races, Battle of Britain Day,
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) aircraft, light aircraft, homebuilts,
the Antique Airplane Association Fly-In, seaplanes, aircraft of the Korean
War, aircraft in museums, and a survey of aircraft from around the world.
Material compiled by Robert Lannen.
Langley, Samuel P., Collection, Acc. XXXX- 0494
Papers; 1890s-1906; 8 boxes, 43 volumes
Aviation pioneer and Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. The
collection contains aeronautical research including correspondence with
James Means, Octave Chanute, and many contemporary aeronautical pioneers,
wastebooks and notes of Langley, Charles M. Manly, E. C. Huffaker, and
others on the Great Aerodrome (aircraft), and an early manuscript for Mechanical
Flight in eight chapters.
Lawrence, Lovell, Jr., Collection, Acc. XXXX-0010
3.27 cubic feet
Lovell Lawrence, Jr. (1915-1971) was an amateur rocket experimenter
in the 1930s under the auspices of the American Rocket Society (ARS), of
which he became President in 1946. He worked as Assistant to the Chief
of IBM (1933-41), then joined with John Shesta, James Wyld, and Hugh Franklin
Pierce to form Reaction Motors, Inc. (RMI), the first American rocket propulsion
company, with Lawrence as President. Lawrence left RMI in 1951. In 1953
he joined Chrysler's Missile Division as manager of powerplant design.
By 1956 he was director of the Redstone project. He went on to Chrysler's
Advanced Project organization, first as chief engineer (1959), then as
director (1961). In 1964 he became chief research engineer for Chrysler.
Contents: Documents relating to Lawrence's work at RMI. Technical reports,
administrative papers, personal and business correspondence. Some material
on ARS and Lawrence's Chrysler years.
Ley, Willy, Papers, Acc. XXXX-0098
35.97 cubic feet
Willy Ley (1906-1969) was an expert on rocketry and an author who popularized
space travel. Ley studied general science at the University of Berlin,
but never completed his degree, receiving an honorary Ph.D. from Adelphi
University in 1960. In 1927 he co-founded Verein fur Raumschiffahrt ("Society
for Space Travel," popularly known as the German Rocket Society) and became
the first Vice President (1927-33) of that body, which conducted a number
of experiments in rocketry. In 1935 he emigrated to the US under the auspices
of the American Interplanetary Society/American Rocket Society. He worked
as science editor at the New York magazine PM (1940-44) and for
the Washington Institute of Technology in College Park, Maryland, as a
research engineer (1944-47). He worked as a consultant to the Office of
Technical Services at the US Department of Commerce before accepting a
teaching position at Fairleigh Dickinson University (1957-58). During this
time he also worked as a columnist for Galaxy magazine (1952-69).
He served as a planning consultant for NASA from its founding (1958) until
his death in 1969.
Contents: Ley's personal files, business correspondence, book contracts,
galley proofs, publicity concerning Ley and his activities, and inquiries
and comments from Ley's Galaxy readership. reference files on a wide variety
of subjects including astronomy, space travel, biology, natural parks,
mythology, psychic phenomena, and UFOs.
Lindbergh, Charles A., Scrapbook, Acc. XXXX-0044
Scrapbook; 1928-1962; 1 oversize box.
Transatlantic pilot and air route explorer. Includes clippings on the
deterioration of the relationship between Lindbergh and the American people,
his leadership of the America First Party, and his contribution as a civilian
to increasing the range of combat aircraft in the Pacific. Also covered
is his book, The Spirit of St. Louis and the movie made from it.
Also featured are clippings on the kidnapping of his son.
Lindbergh, Charles, Scrapbook [Bernard Filippi], Acc. XXXX- 0029
Scrapbook; 1927-1938; 1 item
This scrapbook is about Charles A. Lindbergh, beginning with the transatlantic
flight in 1927. Includes news and periodical clippings, usually dated and
some with sources, songs to Lindbergh, with music and lyrics, and a manuscript
about the aviator.
Log Book Series, Acc. XXXX-0120.
Flight logs; 1920s; .23 cubic foot
Includes the flight log of E. G. Hamilton (1958-0039); the DeHaviland
N-1 (1932-0004); NC-4 logbook, T. C. Read, Commanding Officer (1983-0007);
Commander Alger H. Dresel's logbooks for Akron and Macon
airships (1982-0124 and 1982-0125); Portland, Maine, Airport, 1927-1930;
Double
Eagle II, August 1978; and of Grover C. Loening.
"Man's Reach for the Sky" Scrapbook, Acc. XXXX-0032
Scrapbooks; 1925-1965; 3.76 cubic feet
A collection of domestic magazine and newspaper articles related to
aviation. Volumes 1-6 contain pictures, articles and three-view drawings
of the world's aircraft, by manufacturer or national origin; 7-17 contain
clippings of general aviation interest and AAF technical manuals. Also
included are Lockheed P-80A-1 and Curtiss P-40N pilot's manuals, and aircraft
engine and L-4/J-3 Cub airframe maintenance manuals. Volume 18 is the alphabetic
index to 7-17.
Martin, James Vernon, Papers, Acc. XXXX-0162
2.25 cubic feet
James Vernon Martin (1885-1956) was an aviator and inventor during
the early days of aviation. He joined the US Merchant Marine (1900) before
attending the University of Virginia and Harvard (graduate degree, 1912).
While at Harvard he organized the Harvard Aeronautical Society (1910),
served as its first director, and, through the Society, organized the first
international air meet in the US (1910). He traveled to England in January
1911 for flight training and received Royal Aero Club FAI Certificate #55.
After returning to America in June 1911, he traveled the exhibition circuit
(1911-13) before rejoining the merchant marine as commander of USS Lake
Frey (1914). During 1915 he performed flight tests for the Aeromarine
Co. In 1917, he formed the Martin Aeroplane Co. in Elyria, Ohio, on the
strength of nine aeronautical patents, including his automatic stabilizer
(1916) and retractable landing gear (1916). In 1920 he moved the company
to Dayton, Ohio, as Martin Enterprises and offered free use of his patents
to the American aeronautical industry. In 1922 he moved to Garden City
(Long Island), New York, and renamed the company the Martin Aeroplane Factory.
Two years later he sued the US government and the Manufacturers Aeronautical
Association, claiming that they conspired to monopolize the aviation industry.
The suit was dismissed in 1926, but Martin continued to press his claims
of collusion through the 1930s. During World War II he again went to sea,
commanding a troop transport in the Pacific. Afterwards he tried unsuccessfully
to raise industry and public interest in a large catamaran flying boat,
the Martin Oceanplane.
Contents: Material documenting Martin's life. Letters, photographs,
and documents relating to his merchant marine career and his aircraft and
aeronautical inventions. Documents pertaining to his conspiracy charges
against the government and aircraft industry.
Maxim, Sir Hiram S., Collection, Acc. 1989-0031
1.09 cubic foot
Sir Hiram Maxim (1840-1916) was an engineer and inventor. In 1878,
while serving as Chief Engineer of the US Electric Lighting Co., he fought
and lost a priority battle with Thomas Edison over the invention of the
electric light. He then turned to mechanical engineering and invented the
first efficient machine gun. The US government was not interested in the
gun, so in 1881 Maxim traveled to England and established the Maxim Gun
Co. The company merged with Nordenfeldt Co. (1888) and Vickers Co., which
eventually formed Vickers Sons and Maxim (1896). The British War Office
adopted the gun and Maxim became a British citizen (1901) and was knighted
by Queen Victoria. Maxim experimented in aeronautics during the thirty
years before his death and wrote a number of books and articles on the
subject, including Artificial and Natural Flight in 1908.
Contents: Material by or about Maxim, primarily published works and
newsclippings. Includes an unpublished paper concerning Maxim's aeronautical
experiments.
Mayo, Alfred M., Publications, Acc. XXXX-0178
.55 cubic feet
Alfred Miskin Mayo (1917-?) was an aerospace engineer, consultant,
and author. Following graduation from the University of Idaho (BSME, 1937;
MSME, 1939) he worked for Douglas Aircraft Co. (Air Conditioning Design
Supervisor; Chief Equipment and Interiors Engineer; Chief Equipment and
Safety Research) before joining NASA (Technical Assistant Program Control
and Systems, 1961-62; Assistant Director Bioengineering; Deputy Director
Aerospace Medicine; Special Assistant to the Director of Advanced Research
and Technology) where he worked primarily on human factors engineering.
Contents: Manuscripts and papers published by Mayo (1958-65) covering
space program-related topics emphasizing human factors, as well as NASA
activities and space program benefits.
McMullen, Colonel Alexis B., Collection, Acc. XXXX-0050
1 cubic foot
Colonel Alexis Brenier McMullen (1896-1980) was a pilot and administrator
involved in the development of American aviation at state, local, and national
levels. He learned to fly during World War I and became a flight instructor
and Base Engineering Officer. McMullen barnstormed with Mabel Cody after
the war and owned or operated flying schools, aircraft distributorships,
and other aviation-related companies. He was Florida's first State Director
of Aviation (1933-36), during which time he planned and implemented the
first statewide aviation development plan in the US. He joined the Bureau
of Air Commerce, Airports Section (Chief, 1936-41), retaining his post
when this office joined the Civil Aeronautics Administration as the Airports
Division. During and after World War II he served in the USAAF in several
capacities related to Air Traffic Control (1941-47), both in the continental
US and in North Africa. Following his retirement from active military service,
McMullen founded the National Association of State Aviation Officials (NASAO;
Executive VP, Secretary, Office Manager; 1948-70) and remained with the
association until he retired in 1970. He also was active in the Air Reserve
Association of the US (Executive Director, 1949-53), Civil Air Patrol (National
Flight Safety Committee, 1953-58), Associated Investors Syndicate (Treasurer
and General Manager, 1954-59), and Aviation Employees Life Insurance Co.
(AVEMCO; Director, 1960-65).
Contents: McMullen's files regarding airport planning, financing, safety,
and publicity. Primarily reports, speeches, and published government documents
produced by or for the International Civil Aviation Organization, the Federal
Aviation Agency, the Air Transport Association of America, the National
Association of State Aviation Officials, the Utility Airplane Council,
the American Association of Airport Executives, and the Civil Aeronautics
Administration. Material on radio navigation, aviation meteorology, and
federal laws pertaining to national defense, 1948-51.
Means, James, Collection, Acc. XXXX-0394
Correspondence; 1895-1897; 1.8 cubic feet
Industrialist and early aviation promoter. Correspondence relating
to The Aeronautical Annual of the 1890s, which contained papers
by Alexander Graham Bell, Otto Lilienthal, Octave Chanute, Samuel Pierpont
Langley, and others.
Meyer, Robert B., Jr., Papers, Acc. XXXX-0184
11.8 cubic feet
Robert B. Meyer, Jr. (1920- ), was the first Curator of Propulsion
in the Aeronautics Department of the National Air and Space Museum (NASM),
Smithsonian Institution (1959-80). He authored a number of books on the
development of aircraft engines.
Contents: Meyer's research files. Manuscripts and photo layouts for
several of his books. Correspondence and photographs related to Meyer's
work as curator covering all aspects of aero engines.
Milling, Thomas Dewitt, Collection, Acc. XXXX-0133
Certificates, etc.; 1905-1940; .5 cubic foot
Thomas DeWitt Milling was one of the Nation's first military pilots.
He learned to fly under the tutelage of Orville Wright and was known several
decades ago as "the greatest all-round airman in the world." Milling
died on November 26, 1960 at the age of 73. This collection contains certificates,
flight reports, correspondence and photographs. Also included with
the correspondence is a certificate of his appointment to West Point as
well as various promotions to lieutenant, captain, major, and brigadier
general. There is also a Wright Company flying report on Millings'
training, a certificate for election into the Early Birds and a picture
of him in dress uniform.
Mills, Commodore George H., Collection, Acc. 1994-0022
Scrapbooks; 1920s-1950s; 13.39 cubic feet
Commodore Mills, US Naval Academy 1918, learned to fly at the Naval
Air Station, Lakehurst, and was involved with the Naval Airship program.
During World War II he was in command at Lakehurst and was instrumental
in developing airship antisubmarine tactics against German submarines on
the Atlantic coast.
Mitchell, William, Court Martial Collection, Acc. XXXX-0082
2.18 cubic feet
Brigadier General William "Billy" Mitchell (1879-1936) was a pilot
and aviation and aerial bombing advocate. As an officer in the US Army
he served in the Philippines, Cuba, and on the Mexican border, and on the
Army General Staff (1913-16). During and after World War I he held a number
of command and staff posts in the Air Service, both in France (1917-19),
and in the US (Director of Military Aeronautics, 1919; Chief of Training
and Operations, 1920). As Assistant to the Chief of Air Service (1921-26),
he advocated the creation of an independent Air Service. He arranged demonstrations
illustrating the utility of air power through the famous bomber versus
battleship trials (1921), the group flight to Alaska from the continental
US (1923), and the Army's Around the World Flight (1924). Mitchell's public
criticism of government policies, in defiance of Army regulations, resulted
in his court martial for "conduct prejudicial of good order and military
discipline" and insubordination in October - December 1925. Found guilty
and suspended for five years, Mitchell resigned his commission in January
1926. He continued to promote aviation and decry government inefficiencies
until his death.
Contents: Documents relating to Mitchell's court martial in 1925, including
charge sheets, testimony, and press releases.
Moseley, Francis L., Avionics Collection, Acc. 1986-0148
3.27 cubic feet
Francis L. Moseley participated in the development of the VHF Omni-Directional
Range (VOR) Navigation System and automatic landing systems. He was an
adamant supporter of automatic radio flight control for all-weather operations.
Moseley wrote a number of articles and booklets dealing with the Sperry
flight ray system (a cathode ray tube flight indicator) and the general
problems of automatic control of aircraft landing. Moseley was employed
at Collins Radio Co. and was a member of Aeronautical Radio, Inc.
Contents: Technical reports, booklets, periodicals, and lab books,
dealing with different aspects of all-weather landing systems, radio, and
radar. Material relating to Moseley's avionics patents. Artifacts, including
a Sperry Flight Ray System and Sperry Dual Automatic Direction Finder.
Monoplane America Christening, Acc. XXXX-0076
Scrapbook; 1927; .23 cubic foot
Contains photographs and authenticating information for the christening
of the Fokker monoplane America which was used for the transatlantic
flight attempted by Commander Richard E. Byrd, navigator, Bert Acosta,
pilot, Lt. George Noville, flight engineer, and Bernt Balchen, pilot. The
flight ended in the sea at Ver-sur-mer, France on 1 July 1927. Includes
memorabilia.
"Mr. Space" Manuscript, Acc. XXXX-0135
1972; 1 box.
The manuscript titled "Mr. Space: The Humor and Humanity of Wernher
von Braun," is a broad collection of material providing insight to his
personality, the wit and wisdom of a technical giant, who was America's
chief space planner.
Myers, Carl, Balloon Farm Collection, Acc. 1991-0075
Correspondence, photographs; 1889-1910; .23 cubic foot
Meteorologist, photographer, balloonist. Myers and his wife, Mary ("Carlotta,
Queen of the Air") began experimenting with balloons in 1875 and made their
first ascension in 1880. He constructed and flew a variety of balloons
and airships, developed a varnishing machine for producing fabrics impervious
to hydrogen gas; produced a portable system for generating hydrogen, patented
an apparatus for guiding balloons, and he made the first balloon ascension
using natural gas for lift. He manufactured balloons for the Weather Bureau's
rainmaking experiments and supplied the Signal Corps with 21 balloons for
use in the Spanish American War. The images are of balloons, airships,
views of the Carl Meyers Balloon Farm, and portraits of family and visitors,
including Thomas C. Benbow, noted aeronaut. Correspondence is to George
E. Curtis, head of the US Weather Bureau.
Nation, Steven P., Photographic Collection, Acc. 1988-0068
3109 items
Contents: Black-and-white photographic negatives primarily of jet airliners
from around the world. Images of agricultural, government, and military
aircraft. Photographs taken by Steven P. Nation or acquired by Nation from
the original photographer.
Naudet, Georges, Collection, Acc. XXXX-0479
Papers, photographs; 1700s and 1800s; 1.09 cubic feet
Collector. Correspondence, prints and photographs on 18th and 19th
century balloon ascensions and early aviators. Includes Blanchard, Coutelle,
the Montgolfiers, Louis Bleriot, Pilatre de Rozier and Jules Vedrines.
Family photo album of Godards, European aeronauts.
Neill, Thomas Taylor, Collection, Acc. XXXX-0181
17.25 cubic feet
Thomas Taylor Neill (1903-1988) was an aeropropulsion engineer and
author. Following the completion of his degrees at Catholic University
of America (BSME, 1925) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MS,
1926), he worked in the Aircraft Engine Research Laboratory at the US National
Bureau of Standards (Engineer, 1926-39). He served as an ignition engineer
for the Army Air Corps in Dayton, Ohio (1939-42). He then spent nearly
twenty years in research for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics
(NACA; Assistant to the Director of Research, 1942-58) and its successor,
NASA (Chief of Research Administration Division, Office of Advanced Research
Programs, 1958-61; Chief of Research and Technical Reports, Office of Advanced
Research and Technology, 1961-70). Following his retirement from NASA,
Neill worked as a consultant to the National Air and Space Museum (c.1971-80)
where he began compiling a book on aviation engines during the interwar
period.
Contents: Research material used by Neill in compiling his book. Correspondence
and reports dealing with inspection, specifications, and performance tests
of automobile and aircraft engines and fuels (1926-44), reports, articles,
and logbooks of specific engine types collected from all over the world,
and a manuscript copy of Neill's book.
Nelson, Carl Norman, Collection, Acc. 1985-0007, 1986-0009, 1986-0023
1.9 cubic feet
Carl Norman Nelson (1921-1982) was an aviation mechanic and instructor.
Nelson attended the Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics (PIA; Airframe
& Engine Certificate, 1940-41). He then worked as an Airframe and Engine
Mechanic (A&E) at Waynesburg Airport, Pennsylvania (1941); Helena Aero
Tech, Arkansas (1941-42); and Clarksdale School of Aviation (1942-44).
While at Clarksdale, he began instructing and continued to teach a course
in Engine Accessories until the school closed in August 1944. He then worked
as an A&E for American Airlines (1944-45) until he was drafted into
the US Army, where he served as a helicopter instructor at San Marcos,
Texas (1945-47). Following his Army service he returned to PIA (Instructor,
1947-55). He worked primarily as a corporate mechanic for National Steel
at Allegheny County Airport, Pennsylvania (1955-82), while continuing to
teach at PIA on a part-time basis.
Contents: Nelson's lecture notes, class plans, tests and answer keys,
teaching materials, and study guides. Photographs, newsclippings, and memorabilia
collected by Nelson relating to his tenure at PIA.
New Airplanes and Engines 1934 Scrapbook, Acc. XXXX-0075
1931 and 1934; 1.33 cubic feet
Includes newsclippings and technical descriptions on aircraft and engines
from around the world. Some clippings are labeled with source and date.
Newell, Homer Edward, Jr., Speech Transcripts, Acc. XXXX-0150
.9 cubic foot
Dr. Homer Edward Newell, Jr. (1915-1983), mathematician and administrator,
was the principal organizer of the American space program during the early
years of NASA. He attended Harvard College (AB, 1936; AMT, 1937) and the
University of Wisconsin (Ph.D., 1940) and taught mathematics at the University
of Maryland (1940-44) before joining the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL)
as a mathematician and theoretical physicist (1944-47). He became head
of the Rocket Sonde Branch of NRL (1947-55) and later Acting Superintendent
of the Atmosphere and Astrophysics Division (1955-58). During this time
he coordinated the Navy's development of Project Vanguard, which placed
the first American satellite into Earth orbit (1958). With the creation
of NASA in 1958 he transferred from NRL to become Assistant Director of
Space Science (1958-60) at NASA. He later served as Deputy Director of
Space Flight Programs (1960-63) and Director of the Office of Space Science
(1963-67) before being named Associate Director of NASA (1967-73), where
he served until he retired in 1973.
Contents: Articles and transcripts of speeches by Newell (1960-73)
covering a broad range of space program- and space science-related topics.
New York City Aerial Photographs (1929), Acc. XXXX-0043
Scrapbooks; 1929-1931; 2 units or 154 numbered photographs.
Each photograph is numbered and captioned "Around New York in an Airplane,"
followed by the location and description of the area. Includes newsclippings
and unnumbered high altitude photos.
Nutt, Dr. Arthur, Papers, Acc. 1987-0115, 1988-0055, 1988-0059
4.36 cubic feet
Dr. Arthur Nutt (1895-1983) was an aeronautical engineer specializing
in engine design. Following his graduation from Worchester Polytechnic
Institute (BSME, 1916; honorary Ph.D., 1941), he worked for Curtiss Aeroplane
and Motor Co. (1916-30; assembly department, Motor Engineer, Chief Motor
Engineer) where he was responsible for the development of the Curtiss CD12,
V-1400, and R-1454 engines. Following the merger of Curtiss and Wright
Aeronautical Corp., Nutt moved to the latter (VP-Engineering, 1930-44)
and later to the Packard Motor Car Co. (1944-49; Director of Aircraft Engineering,
Manager) where he continued to develop both piston and turbine engines.
He established Arthur Nutt and Associates (1949-51), an engineering sales
organization, which he operated for a brief period before joining the Lycoming
Division of Avco Manufacturing Corp. (VP-Engineering, 1951-75).
Contents: Nutt's personal files (c.1915-45). Biographical material,
correspondence, photographs, brochures, technical manuals, reports, and
drawings.
Ostheimer, A. J., Autograph Collection, Acc. XXXX-0396
Autographs, photographs, correspondence; 1909-1926; ca. 400 items.
Page, George Augustus, Jr., Collection, Acc. XXXX-0126
Papers, photographs; .45 cubic foot
Engineer, pilot, Early Bird. Includes log book for Big Fish
on Miami-Bimini route, photographs of the Curtiss Condor and other planes.
Philatelic and First Day Cover Collection, Acc. XXXX-0118, XXXX-0473
First day covers, etc.; 1918- ; ca. 140 items.
A miscellaneous collection of first day covers, stamps, etc., linking
aviation and postal events.
Post, Wiley, Scrapbooks, Acc. XXXX-0045
Scrapbooks; 1933; 2.25 cubic feet
Round the world pilot. Volume E is an organized chronicle of his Goodwill
Tour of about 45 cities in the northeastern US; the other scrapbooks contain
miscellaneous clippings by state, city and date.
Presidential Signatures Collection, Acc. XXXX-0131
Correspondence, photographs; 1913-1947; 1 box.
Contains letters and signed photographs from Presidents Eisenhower,
Wilson, Hoover, Roosevelt and Truman pertaining to aviation and space.
One item is a letter relating to the Distinguished Flying Cross presented
from Roosevelt to Emory B. Bronte, September 6, 1934, and the citation
awarded for merit to Grover Loening from Truman.
Queeny, John Joseph, Scrapbook, Acc. XXXX-0256
Scrapbook and photographs; 1914-1927; 0.25 cubic foot.
Chronicles early airplanes and airships at North Island, San Diego,
first as an Army Signal Corps field from 4 November 1912, then from 8 November
1917 as a Naval Air Station.
Ritchell, C. F., Ballooning Scrapbook, Acc. XXXX-0325
Scrapbook; 1878-1901; 1 box
Includes newsclippings relating to Ritchell's flights and activities;
he patented a method of propelling airships in 1878, US Patent #201,200.
Rocket Society Publications (Elder Collection), Acc. XXXX-0182
.55 cubic foot
The American Rocket Society (ARS), founded in 1930, is a national association
of rocket and jet propulsion engineers devoted to the encouragement of
research on and engineering development of jet propulsion, rockets, and
all types of jet-propelled devices. The Reaction Research Society (RRS),
formed in 1943, is a non-profit civilian organization whose purpose is
to aid in the development of reaction propulsion and its applications.
Contents: Pamphlets, bulletins, reports, and meeting notices from the
ARS, RRS, and other rocket societies. Compiled by Henry G. Elder.
Rocket, Space, and Early Artillery History, Acc. XXXX-0007
15.26 cubic feet
Contents: Compilation of various reports, journals, letters, and books
primarily relating to early artillery, rockets, and space technology, manuscripts
and reports on early artillery history (c.1000-c.1850), documents relating
to rocket development in Russia, Germany, England, the US, and Austria
(c.1850-c.1960).
Rockwell, Paul Ayres, Photograph Collection, Acc. XXXX-0609
Photographs; 1915-1918; .2 cubic foot
Historian of the Lafayette Escadrille and free lance writer for American,
French and English newspapers and magazines. Collection includes photographs
of the Lafayette Escadrille taken in France during World War I.
Rowe, Basil Lee, Collection, Acc. XXXX-0019
1.09 cubic feet
Basil Lee Rowe (1896-1973) was born and educated in Shandaken, New
York. Two years after his high school graduation, he began his flying career
in 1914 as an apprentice to Turk Adams. He served in the US Army Air Service
during World War I, after which he became a barnstormer and racing pilot
(1919-25). Rowe organized the West Indian Aerial Express in 1927, but it
was absorbed almost immediately by Pan American Airlines. Rowe became Pan
Am's Senior Pilot and during his first ten years flew a record number of
hours and surveyed most of the new routes. He rejoined the USAAF during
World War II, serving on the Cannonball Project, and returned to commercial
aviation afterwards. Following his retirement in 1956, Rowe wrote his autobiography
Under
My Wings.
Contents: Scrapbooks detailing Rowe's life, several drafts of his autobiography,
Rowe's logbooks, and radiograms. Magazines, drawings, and posters concerning
Rowe.
Ritchie, Donald J., Collection, Acc. XXXX-0088
Papers, news and article clippings, photographs, reports; 1955- 1976; 13.08
cubic feet
Mathematician, physicist, professor, active in missile guidance systems
and in arms control and disarmament studies. This collection consists of
Ritchie's research files: news and magazine clippings, photos, drawings,
and Soviet books detailing Russian missile and rocket development during
the 1960s. There are manuscripts of some chapters of his book Rocket
and Missile Systems Development in the Soviet Union.
Ruhe, Benjamin, Collection , Acc. 1987-0024
15.26 cubic feet
Benjamin Ruhe (1928- ) is a boomerang enthusiast who played a pivotal
role in developing popular interest in boomerangs in the US and abroad.
He began a private newsletter about boomerangs which later developed into
the US Boomerang Association's newsletter. He was also captain of the US
team for the first Australian-American boomerang competition.
Contents: Ruhe's files on the ethnological and technological development
of boomerangs. Books, research papers, correspondence, newsletters, planforms,
photographs, artworks, and motion picture films. A collection of tee-shirts
featuring boomerang-related artwork.
Scanlon, Martinus F., Scrapbook, Acc. XXXX- 0037
Scrapbook; 1938-1950; .5 cubic foot
USAAF officer, lieutenant to general. Includes newsclippings of his
career, photographs of him with aircraft and colleagues. He was commanding
general of the Allied Air Force in New Guinea, later chairman of the AAF
Evaluation Board of the Pacific Ocean Areas. One scrapbook highlights his
service in 1939-1940 as aide-de-camp to the American Embassy in London.
Science Fiction Club Newsletters, Acc. XXXX-0142
1.09 cubic feet
Contents: Various newsletters and publications prepared by science
fiction enthusiasts in the US and Canada, catalogs relating to science
fiction publications. Material includes multiple titles, with only selected
issues of each, i.e., no complete runs of any publication. Publications
are largely popular in nature and consist of articles and stories dealing
with futurism, space travel, and extraterrestrial life.
Science Service, Inc. Files, Acc. 1987-0125
27.25 cubic feet
Science Service, Inc., is a commercial wire service affiliated with
Science News. Science Service provides press clippings, news reports, and
photographs on a variety of science- and technology-related subjects.
Contents: Science Service files dealing with aerospace subjects. Material
transferred to the US Naval Observatory before donation to NASM.
Scott, Blanche Stuart, Collection, Acc. XXXX-0062
1.09 cubic foot
Blanche Stuart Scott (1889-1970) was an aviation pioneer. In 1910,
after becoming the first woman to drive across the US, she soloed at the
Curtiss Flying School at Hammondsport, New York, becoming one of the first
American female pilots. Although never licensed, she spent the next six
years (1910-16) performing on the aerial exhibition circuit with a number
of aerial teams. She worked as a public relations consultant to the US
Air Force Museum at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio.
Contents: Scott's memorabilia, including her certificates, membership
cards, ribbons, and newspaper clippings (1939-69).
Seypelt, Albert Willibald, Collection, Acc. 1985-0011
.9 cubic foot
On 21 October 1927, Albert Willibald Seypelt (d.1966) and George William
Kern began a tour of Europe in a lightweight Klemm-Daimler L-20 dubbed
Yankee
Doodle. Leaving from Stuttgart, Germany, the duo traveled over 6,000
miles visiting Belgium, France, Italy, and Austria before returning to
Stuttgart on 20 January 1928.
Contents: Correspondence, newspaper clippings, photographs, and motion
picture film documenting the Seypelt-Kern flight. Seypelt's aviation licenses
and certificates, photographs documenting his enlistment in the German
army during World War I and material on the first westward transatlantic
flight (1928), from Ireland to Labrador by Bremen, a Junkers W-33
monoplane piloted by Hermann Koehl, Baron Guenther von Huenefeld, and James
Fitzmaurice.
Sheldon, Charles Stuart II, Papers, Acc. XXXX-0141
13.08 cubic feet
Dr. Charles Stuart Sheldon II (1917-1981) was an economist, author,
and advisor to Congress and the President on aerospace matters. Sheldon
graduated from the University of Washington (BA, 1936; MA, 1938) and Harvard
University (AM, 1939; Ph.D., 1942), and worked in several transportation-
and economics-related positions before World War II. During and after the
war he served in the US Navy (1943-52) before transferring to the Naval
Reserve. He spent several years on the staff of the University of Washington
Departments of Transportation (1940-48; Director, 1946-48), and Economics
(1949-55). He then joined the Congressional Research Service (CRS) of the
Library of Congress (Senior Specialist, Transportation and Communications,
1955-58). He served as director of several congressional committees relating
to astronautics (1955-61) before serving on the professional staff of the
National Aeronautics and Space Council (NASC; 1961-66), which advised the
President on aerospace matters. He then returned to CRS (1966-81).
Contents: Sheldon's research correspondence from his tenure at CRS
and NASC (1955-81), material relating to his activities on the Joint Economics
Committee (Staff Economist, 1955-57), House Committee on Astronautics and
Space Exploration (Assistant Director, 1958), and House Committee on Science
and Astronautics (Technical Director, 1959-61), papers and notes regarding
the American and Soviet space programs (both manned and unmanned) in connection
with papers and speeches prepared by Sheldon, including original drawings
of Soviet spacecraft, photos of American and Soviet craft, articles, and
papers touching on aerospace subjects, notes of lectures given by Sheldon,
and copies (both rough-draft and final) of speeches given by him in the
1960s.
Silliman, Elton R., Papers, Acc. 1989-0050
1.09 cubic foot
Elton Ross Silliman (1902-?) was a businessman and manager. Silliman
organized Aerovias Centrales, S.A. (1931-32) in Mexico, then joined Pan
American Airways, Inc., as its special representative in Central America,
Panama, Venezuela, and the Dutch West Indies (1932-43). He then became
general manager of Cia. Mexicana de Aviacion, S.A.
Contents: Silliman's personal and business papers. Correspondence,
photographs and documents pertaining to airline operations (1930-1960),
airport and hotel financial records, club and society reports and membership
lists.
Singer, S. Fred, Papers, Acc. 1989-0130
54.5 cubic feet
Dr. Siegfried Fred Singer (1924- ) is a professor, physicist, and administrator.
Singer emigrated to the US from Vienna in 1940 (naturalized 1944) and attended
Ohio State University (BEE, 1943; D.Sc. [honorary], 1970) and Princeton
(AM, 1944; Ph.D. [Physics], 1948). He taught briefly as a doctoral candidate
at Princeton (1943-44), before joining the Johns Hopkins University Applied
Physics Laboratory as a physicist (1946-50). He served as the Office of
Naval Research Scientific Liaison Officer at the US Embassy in London (1950-53),
then joined the faculty of the University of Maryland (Assoc. Professor
[Physics], 1953-59; Professor, 1959-62). He continued to alternate between
public and academic positions, working at the National Weather Satellite
Center, Department of Commerce (Director, 1962-64); School of Environmental
and Planetary Science, University of Miami (Dean, 1964-67); Department
of the Interior (Deputy Assistant Secretary for Water Quality and Research,
1967-70); University of Virginia (Professor [Environmental Science], 1971-87);
and the Department of Transportation (Chief Scientist, 1987-89). Singer
authored a number of papers and articles on astrophysics, space exploration,
and environmental issues and was involved in formulating public policy
on these topics.
Contents: Singer's professional papers covering his career from his
tenure at Maryland through his retirement. Correspondence and research
files relating to space science, physics, and environmental subjects are
included, as well as financial records.
Smith, Ernest and Emory Bronte Scrapbook, Acc. XXXX-0020
Scrapbook; 1927; .83 cubic foot
In July 1927 Ernest Smith, pilot, and Emory B. Bronte, navigator, attempted
to fly from California to Hawaii in The City of Oakland. They crash-landed
on the island of Molokai without injury. Bronte was a Naval Reserve Air
Service pilot. Scrapbook includes news clippings, photographs of the downed
plane, and a piece of the aircraft fabric.
Smith, Colonel Lowell H., Memorabilia Collection, Acc. XXXX-0407
3.27 cubic feet
Colonel Lowell H. Smith (1892-1945) was an aviation pioneer, Army officer
and pilot. He first became an aviator for the Mexican Army (1915), but
in 1917 joined the US Army Air Service. He pioneered air-to-air refueling
in the early 1920s and commanded the Army's Around the World Flight (6
April - 28 September 1924). For these services he received the Distinguished
Flying Cross and the Distinguished Service Medal, respectively. He held
sixteen records for military aircraft in speed, endurance, and distance.
Contents: Primarily newspaper clippings dealing with the 1924 flight,
personal materials relating to Smith, including correspondence, photographs,
official documents such as Army orders, flight logbooks, and certificates.
Smith, Colonel W. Sumpter, Collection, Acc. XXXX-0023
4.36 cubic feet
Colonel Walter Sumpter Smith (1897-1943) was an engineer, army pilot,
government aviation official, and promoter of aviation. He served as a
US Army pilot and instructor in World War I and, afterwards, as Commandant
of Roberts Field in Birmingham, Alabama. He helped to establish new air
mail routes in the South during the late 1920s. In 1935 he was placed in
charge of the Airport Division of the Works Progress Administration (WPA)
and was later appointed chairman of the Safety Board of the Civil Aeronautics
Authority. In January 1939 he was appointed chairman of the commission
to build Washington National Airport. During World War II, he returned
to active military duty and was made chief of the Transport and Facilities
Division of Army Air Support in March 1942. On 24 January 1943 his aircraft
disappeared over the Caribbean Sea. In 1943 he was posthumously awarded
the Distinguished Service Medal.
Contents: Newspaper clippings and photos, primarily from the Birmingham,
Alabama, region, dealing with general aviation news (1918-35), compiled
by Smith's wife. Four scrapbook volumes of clippings, compiled by Smith,
dealing with the activities of the Civil Aeronautics Authority (1938-39),
Civil Works Administration (1933-39), and Works Progress Administration
(1935-36). Scrapbook of a WPA Airport Inspection trip (Oct/Nov 1937). Photographs
documenting the construction of Washington National Airport (1939-43).
Soubiran, Robert, Collection, Acc. XXXX-0230, 1989-0038, 1989-0070
1915-1918
Photographs depict the life of the pilots of the Lafayette Escadrille
at the front during World War I, including crashes and squadron parties.
Space-Related News Publications, Acc. XXXX-0321
2.18 cubic feet
Contents: Published material indirectly relating to space exploration,
drawn from international sources, covering a wide range of topics from
rocket, missile, and guidance technology to space agency activities and
astronaut biographies.
Space Suit Patterns, Acc. XXXX-0157
Fabrics, etc.; 1960s; 7.63 cubic feet.
Contains all of the patterns used in making several different types,
sizes and kinds of space suits, from the outer layers to the underwear.
Stanton, Charles Ingram, Sr., Papers, Acc. 1987-0076
3.27 cubic feet
Charles Ingram Stanton, Sr. (1893-?) was a pilot, engineer, and aviation
administrator. After graduation from Tufts College (BS, 1917) he joined
the US Army Air Service, serving in the 122nd Aero Squadron (1917-18).
Following World War I he joined the Air Mail Service of the Post Office
Department (1918-22), advancing from test pilot through Assistant General
Superintendent. Stanton resigned from the Post Office in 1922 and became
General Secretary of the National Aeronautics Association (1922-24). He
worked briefly in the US Army Engineer Corps (Surveyman, 1924) before moving
to Miami, where he worked as a Civil Engineer (1925-27). He then joined
the Commerce Department and served in the Aeronautics Branch and its successor,
the Civil Aeronautics Authority (1927-48). Stanton was involved in all
areas of airways work, from layout to administration, including periods
as Acting Administrator (1940-42), Administrator (1942-44), and Deputy
Administrator of Civil Aeronautics (1944-48), and was involved in international
negotiations on air navigation (1944-46). In 1948 he resigned and joined
the Technological Institute of Aeronautics of Brazil, where he acted as
professor of Air Navigation and Chief of the Airways Division (1948-52).
After his contract expired in 1952, Stanton returned to the US as operational
advisor to Bell Laboratories (1952-56), assisting in their work to improve
the Air Traffic Control System. From 1956 on he worked in several capacities
on airways and navigation, including periods on the Air Navigation Development
Board (1956) and Airways Modernization Board (Chief, Airport Development
Division, 1957). In 1958 he became Chief of the Airports Division, Research
and Development Bureau (1958-62), of the newly established Federal Aviation
Administration, where he remained until he retired.
Contents: Stanton's personal papers relating primarily to his military
and Post Office service (1917-22) and his post-World War II activities
(1944-56), C