Glenn Hammond Curtiss (1878-1930) is best known as an aviation pioneer and inventor and founder of the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Co. This collection consists of fifty-four images, predominantly photographs printed as postcards. The postcard images feature subjects relating to Glenn Curtiss and his aviation career.
Scope and Contents:
This collection consists of fifty-four images, predominantly photographs printed as postcards. The postcard images feature the following subjects relating to Glenn Curtiss and his aviation career: early Aerial Experiment Association (AEA) and Curtiss aircraft predominantly at Hammondsport, New York (H. M. Benner photographs) but also elsewhere (including one image of flight at Atlantic City dated 1920); International Air Meet (Los Angeles, 1910); US Army airship Signal Corps No. 1 (Baldwin); Gordon Bennett Aviation Trophy; ice boats on Lake Keuka, Curtiss "wind-wagon;" Curtiss motorcycles (with G. H. C. team); Glenn Curtiss with others (including Mrs. Curtiss, Louis Paulhan); group photographs which probably show Curtiss employees; and informal Curtiss family photographs.
All images have received minimal subject headings, but only some have had additional captions added.
Note: The digital images in this finding aid were repurposed from scans made by an outside contractor for a commercial product and may show irregular cropping and orientation in addition to color variations resulting from damage to and deterioration of the original objects.
Arrangement:
The fifty-four photographs have been assigned "7A" image numbers. They are arranged in numerical order (some images were assigned multiple numbers). Some photographs are in sleeves that hold two images.
Biographical / Historical:
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 founded the Curtiss Manufacturing Co. By 1904, Curtiss' engine had been co-opted 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 Aerial Experiment Association. In 1909, Curtiss joined with Augustus M. Herring to form the Herring-Curtiss Co to manufacture powered vehicles, but Herring's unsubstantiated claims to priority over the Wright Brother's aeronautical patents led to the Wright and Curtiss patent suits which continued until the merger of Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor with Wright Aeronautical in 1929. Curtiss and Herring split after the Wright's filed suit and Herring sued Curtiss, claiming that Curtiss had failed to turn his air race winnings over to the company. Despite these, and other, suits, 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.
Provenance:
Unknown - found in collection, Unknown, Unknown, NASM.XXXX.0682.
Restrictions:
No restrictions on access.
Rights:
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests
This collection consists of the twelve microfiche sheets which were shot from nine scrapbooks loaned to NASM by the donor. The scrapbooks contains newspaper clippings from American, English and French newspapers relating to Moisant and his aviation activities.
Biographical / Historical:
John B. Moisant (1868-1910) had been a farmer, sugar planter, banker and revolutionary before entering the aviation field in 1909. Moisant trained at the Bleriot School in France and in August of 1909 began his fifth flight which was also the first successful cross-country passenger-carrying flight from Paris to London. That fall he competed in the Belmont Park International Aviation Meet, where he won the Statue of Liberty Race and took second place in the Gordon Bennett Cup. In December 1910 Moisant was killed in New Orleans, Louisiana, while competing for the Michelin Cup prize -- a prize awarded to the pilot who could stay in the air longest.
General:
These scrapbooks were reportedly compiled by Matilde Moisant. Matilde was John's sister and the second American woman to become a licensed pilot.
NASMrev
Provenance:
John Weyl, Loaned and microfilmed, 1978, XXXX-0536, unknown
Restrictions:
No restrictions on access
Rights:
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests
Early Birds of Aviation (Organization). Search this
Wiseman-Peters (Fred Wiseman and J. W. Peters) (Aircraft manufacturer) Search this
Extent:
0.59 Cubic feet (1 flatbox)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Tickets
Correspondence
Clippings
Date:
1909-1968
bulk [ca. 1910s, 1950s]
Summary:
Fred Wiseman, along with J. W. Peters and D.C. Prentiss, built a biplane named the Wiseman-Peters. During July 1910, both Peters and Wiseman flew the Wiseman-Peters and the following year Wiseman entered the 1911 Aviation Meet at Selfridge Field, Michigan. On February 17, 1911, Wiseman made the first airplane-carried mail flight officially sanctioned by any local U.S. post office and made available to the public when he carried mail, a bundle of newspapers and a sack of groceries from Petaluma, CA, to Santa Rosa, CA. After the 1911 season, Wiseman gave up flying.
This collection consists of a large scrapbook. Inside the scrapbook are newspaper clippings, correspondence, 1st Day Covers, race tickets, and photographs chronicling both Wiseman's automobile and aviation careers.
Scope and Contents:
This collection consists of a large scrapbook. Inside the scrapbook are newspaper clippings, correspondence, 1st Day Covers, race tickets, and photographs chronicling both Wiseman's automobile and aviation careers.
Note: The digital images in this finding aid were repurposed from scans made by an outside contractor for a commercial product and may show irregular cropping and orientation in addition to color variations resulting from damage to and deterioration of the original objects.
Arrangement:
Materials are in the order the donor attached them to the scrapbook. Correspondence is often located within the envelope that is attached to the scrapbook. Some materials are loose and have been left in the arrangement in which they were found, unless a portion of a newspaper article could be matched to its other parts.
Biographical / Historical:
Fred Wiseman (1875-1961) was born in Santa Rosa, California, and after attending local schools he engaged in both the bicycle and automotive businesses. Wiseman won considerable fame racing Stoddard-Dayton cars on the West Coast as well as in the Chicago area. He became interested in aviation after attending the Wright brothers' homecoming celebration in 1909 and the first Los Angeles aviation meet at Dominguez Field in 1910.
After these two events, Wiseman was convinced he wanted to learn to fly and so he returned to his home in Santa Rosa and persuaded Ben Noonan to put up $10,000 to build a plane. Wiseman, along with J. W. Peters and D.C. Prentiss, built a biplane named the Wiseman-Peters. During July 1910, both Peters and Wiseman flew the Wiseman-Peters and the following year Wiseman entered the 1911 Aviation Meet at Selfridge Field, Michigan.
On February 17, 1911, Wiseman made the first airplane-carried mail flight officially sanctioned by any local U.S. post office and made available to the public when he carried mail, a bundle of newspapers and a sack of groceries from Petaluma, CA, to Santa Rosa, CA. (The first air mail flight sanctioned by the U.S. Post Office in Washington, D.C., took place on September 23, 1911, when Earle Ovington carried mail from Garden City, Long Island, to Mineola; and the first continuously scheduled U.S. air mail service began on May 15, 1918, with routes between Washington, Philadelphia, and New York.)
During 1911, Wiseman had an active season of exhibition work, including flying for one week at the California State Fair. However, after this season Wiseman gave up flying because he thought there was no future in it. He sold his plane and returned to the automobile business. He later worked for Standard Oil Company of California. Wiseman was a member of the Early Birds of Aviation, an organization of pilots who flew solo in an aircraft prior to December 17, 1916.
Weldon Cooke, another pioneer aviator from California, bought and modified the Wiseman-Peters aircraft, renaming it the Wiseman-Cooke. Cooke flew the Wiseman-Cooke for exhibition and air mail flights. The Wiseman-Cooke aircraft is currently part of the Smithsonian Institution's collections.
Provenance:
No donor information, Gift?, unknown, XXXX-0618, unknown
Restrictions:
No restrictions on access
Rights:
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests
Please handle the scrapbooks very carefully, as they are in poor condition due to general use.
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Scrapbooks
Date:
1910-1912
Summary:
This Moisant Family Scrapbooks consist of three oversized scrapbooks containing newspaper accounts of the Moisants' flying escapades, as well as press releases and writings. The articles also discuss the following aviators who were involved with the Moisants: Harriet Quimby, Roland Garros, Rene Barrier, Rene Simon, John J. Frisbie, Charles Hamilton, and Shakir S. Jerwan.
Scope and Contents:
This collection consists of three oversized scrapbooks containing newspaper accounts of the Moisants' flying escapades, as well as press releases and writings. The articles also discuss the following aviators who were involved with the Moisants: Harriet Quimby, Roland Gerros, Rene Barrier, Rene Simon, John J. Frisbie, Charles Hamilton, and Shakir S. Jerwan. Dates, condition of scrapbooks, and a brief description of content for each scrapbook are listed below.
Arrangement:
Three stand-alone scrapbooks; no arrangement.
Biographical/Historical note:
The Moisant Family -- John, Alfred and Matilde -- helped spark America's early interest in aviation. John Moisant (1868-1910) trained at the Bleriot School in France and made the first successful cross-country, passenger-carrying flight from Paris to London in 1910. That fall he competed in the Gordon-Bennett Trophy Races but was killed in December while flying an exhibition in New Orleans, LA. His brother Alfred was president of the Moisant Aviation School and of the Hempstead Plains Aviation Company, 1911. Alfred also organized the Moisant International Aviators, Inc., which embarked upon a series of flight exhibitions in the United States and Mexico, 1911-1912. The Moisants' sister, Matilde (1887-1964), joined the family's exhibition tour and was the second American woman to become a licensed pilot. Matilde established two altitude records before giving up exhibition flying in 1912.
Related Archival Materials:
The National Air and Space Museum (NASM), Archives Division also holds additional materials about the Moisant Family. Biographical information can be found in the biographical fiche collection at the NASM Archives/Garber Facility. In the NASM archives downtown facility, we recommend the Biographical Files which contain additional newspaper and journal articles, letters, memorabilia and photographs. For more information on John Moisant, please see the John B. Moisant Scrapbook Collection (Accession number XXXX-0536) on microfiche.
Related Materials:
The National Air and Space Museum (NASM) Archives also holds additional materials about the Moisant Family. Biographical information can be found in the Biographical series of the National Air and Space Museum Technical Reference Files, NASM.XXXX.1183, which contain additional newspaper and journal articles, letters, memorabilia, and photographs. For more information on John Moisant, please see the John B. Moisant Scrapbook Microfiche, NASM.XXXX.0536.
For photographic materials please see the Videodisc Imagery Collection, NASM.XXXX.1000. In some cases, there are original print photographs available in the NASM Archives and copy negatives at the Smithsonian Institution Archives. Please consult a staff member for more details and information about ordering reproductions.
Provenance:
Unknown
Restrictions:
No restrictions on access
Rights:
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests.
This collection includes photographs, newspaper clippings, a speech, flight logs, and maps documenting Atherholt's balloon racing career.
Biographical / Historical:
Arthur T. Atherholt (1867-1915) was an aid to Major Hersey in the American Gordon-Bennett Trophy Race and was also one of the contestants during the 1907-1912 races. During his 1912 racing attempt he and copilot John Watts crashed in Russia and were held prisoners for over a week. Atherholt was one of the first members of the Philadelphia Aero Club, and later the president of this organization. He was also instrumental in organizing the Ben Franklin Aeronautical Society in Philadelphia.
General:
NASMrev
Provenance:
Mary Ellen Tully, gift, 1992, 1992-0043, NASM
Restrictions:
No restrictions on access
Rights:
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests
