This collection contains Hall's personal and professional papers. The material consists of his correspondence, photos, and scrapbooks, as well as patent and patent infringement files.
Biographical / Historical:
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) when World War I interrupted. He enlisted in the United States 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 United States, taking a position as 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 (1928-32, 1933-41). 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.
General:
NASMrev
Provenance:
Theodore A. Hall, gift, unknown, XXXX-0169, 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 accession consists of ephemera relating to Virginia D. Martus and Dorothy K. de Silva's Air France Concorde flight on May 28, 1978.
Scope and Contents:
This accession consists of the following material relating to Virginia D. Martus and Dorothy K. de Silva's Air France Concorde flight on May 28, 1978: Air France flight certificates, along with letters explaining the certificates; two copies of the "Concorde Network" brochures, one from de Silva's is annotated with flight information; three postcards of the Air France Concorde; one 8.5 by 10 inch photograph of the Air France Concorde; a "Guide for the Supersonic Traveller" brochure, produced by Air France; and two menus. This collection also contains two Trans World Service (TWA) menus, presumedly from their trip back to the United States.
Arrangement:
Arranged by type.
Biographical / Historical:
The first supersonic airliner to enter service, the Concorde flew thousands of passengers across the Atlantic at twice the speed of sound for over 25 years. Designed and built by Aérospatiale of France and the British Aviation Corporation (BAC), the graceful Concorde was a stunning technological achievement that could not overcome serious economic problems. In 1976, Air France and British Airways jointly inaugurated Concorde service to destinations around the globe. Carrying up to 100 passengers in great comfort, the Concorde catered to first class passengers for whom speed was critical. It could cross the Atlantic in fewer than four hour—half the time of a conventional jet airliner. However its high operating costs resulted in very high fares that limited the number of passengers who could afford to fly it. These problems and a shrinking market eventually forced the reduction of service until all Concordes were retired in 2003.
Provenance:
Virginia D. Martus, Gift, 2012, NASM.2019.0030
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 Velma Maul Tanzer's scrapbook which documents her career as flight attendant with American Airlines, 1933-1936.
Scope and Contents:
This collection consists of Velma Maul Tanzer's 10 x 14 inch brown scrapbook which documents her career as flight attendant (Stewardess and Chief Stewardess) with American Airlines, 1933-1936. The scrapbook includes the following material: 8 X 10 inch American Airline publicity shots; newspaper articles; correspondence and a telegram; the passenger list for the first flight Chicago-New York direct service; American Airways brochure, "Travel Log for American Airways New York to Chicago;" a 1933 American Airlines menu; and American Airlines tickets. The collection also includes the following: later newspaper articles on Tanzer and American Airlines; American Airlines Kiwi Club documentation, including a few issues of the Kiwi Kaleidoscope (Kiwi newsletter) and a 1966 menu from the Kiwi Club in 1966; a few issues of the Flagship News, the American Airlines Employee newsletter; Tanzer's flight diary from April 17 - September 6, 1933; and a 12 x 13 inch color-tinted photograph of an American Airlines Curtiss Condor.
Arrangement:
Arranged by type.
Biographical / Historical:
Velma Maul Tanzer (1911-1990) was born in Alton, IL. She attended high school in Burlington, IA and received nurses' training at Chicago's Jackson Park Hospital in 1933. Later that year, Tanzer joined American Airways as one of its first four stewardesses, rising to the level of chief stewardess. She remained with the company until 1936, and then went to work for the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company in Los Angeles as a visiting nurse. After her stint with Metropolitan Life, she became a nursing supervisor at Frances Shimer Junior College in Mount Carroll, IL. In 1942, Tanzer joined the Army Nurse Corps with the rank of Second Lieutenant. She was assigned to Bushnell General Hospital in Brigham City, UT, where she met Radford Tanzer, a plastic surgeon who she married in December of 1943. Velma Maul Tanzer was assigned to the 104th Evacuation Hospital in Bend, Oregon, before being transferred to England in 1944 and serving one year in the European Theater. In 1946, the Tanzers were released from military duty and moved to Hanover, New Hampshire. Velma Maul Tanzer was a member of the American Airlines Kiwi Club.
Provenance:
Jonathan Battle, Gift, 2005, NASM.2005.0036
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 15.52 cubic feet of documents relating to the aviation career of Morten S. Beyer, both his time with various airlines and his career as an aviation consultant. The following types of material are included: speeches, cartoons, correspondence, financial reports, newsletters, conference programs, newspaper articles, and aviation market research reports.
Scope and Contents:
This collection consists of 15.52 cubic feet of documents relating to the aviation career of Morten S. Beyer, documenting both his time with various airlines and his career as an aviation consultant. The following types of material are included: speeches, cartoons, correspondence, financial reports, newsletters, conference programs, newspaper articles, scrapbooks, and aviation market research reports.
This collection was organized by Mr. Beyer in chronological order reflecting his involvement in the aviation industry. Please note, during processing some original file titles were transcribed. These are indicated with quotation marks. Mr. Beyer did not separate personal and professional correspondence. Correspondence pertaining to events that occurred in between Mr. Beyer's professional engagements are interfiled in chronological order. The processing archivist maintained this order.
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:
This collection is organized by Mr. Beyer's employment in chronological order. The arrangement reflects Mr. Beyer's original organization. Files listed in quotation marks indicate the exact titles taken from Mr. Beyer's folders.
Biographical/Historical note:
Morten S. Beyer (1921-2010) was one of the first aviation consultants and the author of articles and newsletters analyzing the economic trends of aviation. After graduating with a Bachelor of Arts from Swarthmore College in 1943, Beyer started his aviation career at Pan American Airways (PAA), where he established and directed the first centralized scheduling and operations control office. He left PAA in 1948 to work for Capital Airlines, Inc., where he was the assistant to the Senior Vice President of Operations and Maintenance. In 1960, Beyer went to work at Riddle Airlines, Inc., as Senior Vice President, Operations and Sales, of Riddle's overall activities. From 1964 to 1967, Beyer was employed by Trans World Airlines, Inc. (TWA), where he was appointed the System General Manager and Deputy Director General for Saudi Arabian Airlines, responsible for the performance of TWA's contract with Saudi Arabian Airlines. From 1967-1971, Beyer was the President of Modern Air Transport, a charter airline, and in 1971 he become the President of Capitol Airlines where he remained until 1972 when he bought the stock of bankrupt Universal Airlines. He attempted to refinance the airline into a new company, Phoenix Airlines, but due to the nation's fuel crisis sparked by the Arab oil embargo, he failed to accomplish this and accepted the presidency of Johnson International Airlines in 1973.
In 1974, Beyer established AVMARK, an aviation international consulting company. As a regular feature he established one of the first aviation newsletters. He also published a book of Transport Aircraft Values (TAV), which forecasted aircraft values twenty years in to the future, using a formula that accounted for inflation, fuel price fluctuations and labor cost variables. This formula became a standard for aircraft appraisals and made Beyer a trusted appraiser and marketing expert. Beyer testified before Congress twice and was a guest-expert on many television news programs. In 1993, Beyer sold AVMARK and founded Morten Beyer and Associates, later Morten Beyer and Agnew, which continued aviation consulting in France and Japan. Beyer retired in 2003.
The following timeline covers key events in Morten Beyer's life as well as world events. Events involving Mr. Beyer are shown in normal type world events are shown in italics.
Timeline of Morten S. Beyer
1921 -- Morten Beyer born
1941 -- US enters World War II
1943 -- Graduates from Swathmore College
1943-1948 -- Employed by Pan American Airlines
May 1945 -- War in Europe ends
August 1945 -- Atom bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki; Japan surrenders and World War II ends
1948 -- Orville Wright dies at age 76 Berlin Airlift begins operation
1948-1960 -- Employed as Assistant to the Senior Vice President of Operations and Maintenance at Capital Airlines
1960-1964 -- Employed as Senior Vice President, Operations and Sales, Riddle Airlines
1964-1967 -- Employed as System General Manager and Deputy Director General for Saudi Arabian Airlines for TransWorld Airlines (TWA)
1967-1971 -- Employed as President of Modern Air Transport
1971-1972 -- Employed as President of Capitol Airlines
1972 -- Buys stock in the defunct Universal Airlines Creates Phoenix Airlines to take over Universal Operations
1973 -- Employed as President of Johnson International
1974-1993 -- Owns and operates Avmark, Inc.
1993-2003 -- Owns and operates Morten Beyer and Associates
October 21, 2010 -- Dies of pneumonia at Sibley Memorial Hospital in Washington, DC.
Provenance:
Morten Beyer, Gift, 2007
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.
In 2002 Betty Skelton donated a collection of materials outlining her career as an aviatrix and race car driver to the National Air and Space Museum. The donated material consists primarily of news clippings, pamphlets, magazines, photographs, and scrapbooks covering the span of Ms. Skelton's career.
Scope and Contents:
This collection consists primarily of news clippings, pamphlets, magazines, photographs, and scrapbooks covering the span of Ms. Skelton's career.
Arrangement:
The collection has been divided into three series. The first series contains information on Betty Skelton's personal life, including birth and wedding announcements and family photos. The second, pertaining to her professional life, spans a broad range of materials covering the various careers pursued by Ms. Skelton. The third series consists of oversized items such as scrapbooks and large format magazines. Each series is further divided by format (i.e. news clippings, brochures, and photographs) and then chronologically.
SERIES I: Personal
News clippings;
Photographs
SERIES II: Professional
News clippings, Programs and Pamphlets;
Correspondence;
Magazines/Press Releases;
Photographs;
Negatives
SERIES III: Oversized Materials
Biographical / Historical:
Betty Skelton Frankman, noted aviatrix, automobile test driver, race car driver, and business woman, was born in 1926 in Pensacola, Florida. Her interest in aviation was kindled at a young age while watching Navy stunt pilots practice. Soon, she and her parents began taking flying lessons and Betty soloed for the first time at age 12, four years before the legal age. As soon as she was legally able, age 16, Betty got her pilot's license. At age 19 she joined the Civil Air Patrol while also working as a flight instructor at her father's aviation school. She began a professional career as an aerobatic pilot in 1946, flying a 1929 Great Lakes 2T1A biplane. In 1948, while flying that aircraft, Betty won her first International Aerobatic Championship for Women. She would repeat this achievement in 1949 and 1950 while flying a Pitts-Special S-1C that she nicknamed "Little Stinker." By 1951 Betty realized that she had gone as far as a woman could go in aviation and retired.
Through a chance meeting with Bill France, the founder of the National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), Betty began a second career as a test and race car driver. She set multiple land speed records and two transcontinental speed records. Her work with Dodge and Chevrolet led her to her next career as an advertising executive for Campbell-Ewald Advertising Agency, the firm that handled Chevrolet advertising.
In 1959, Betty was given the opportunity to train with the original Mercury 7 astronauts. She completed the same physical and physiological tests as the astronauts, but knew a woman was not destined to be the first American in space. The experience resulted in only a cover story in LOOK magazine (Vol. 24 No. 3 Feb. 2, 1960). In 1965, Betty married Donald Frankman and, eventually, the two moved to Florida and started a real estate business.
Betty held more combined aviation and automotive records than any other person. Her aviation achievements included: a world speed record for piston engine aircraft (unofficial), two light plane altitude records, and three international aerobatic championships. Her achievements in the automotive field included a women's closed course speed record (144.02 mph), a speed record for 200-249 cubic inch piston displacement (105.8 mph), a 24-hour stock car endurance record, a transcontinental record New York to Los Angeles (56 hrs 58 mins.), four land speed records, a South American transcontinental auto speed record, and multiple Bonneville Speed and Endurance Records.
She was also inducted into many halls of fame including, the International Aerobatic Hall of Fame, the NASCAR International Motorsports Hall of Fame, the Corvette Hall of Fame, the Tampa Sports Hall of Fame, and the Florida Women's Hall of Fame. In 1985, Betty and Don donated her Pitts Special "Little Stinker" to the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum (NASM). It currently hangs at the entrance to NASM's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center at Dulles, Virginia.
Betty and her second husband, Dr. Allan Erde, retired to The Villages, Florida, a popular retirement community where many residents use golf carts to get from place to place. But Betty, in keeping with her moniker as the "fastest woman on Earth," drove a bright red Corvette convertible. She died at her home on August 31, 2011, at the age of 85.
The following timeline covers key events in Skelton's life, as well as in the aerospace and automotive industries. Events involving Skelton are shown in normal type while those of the latter are shown in italics.
Timeline of Betty Skelton
6/28/1926 -- Betty is born in Pensacola, Florida
May 1927 -- Charles Lindbergh makes the first solo west to east transatlantic flight
May 1932 -- Amelia Earhart becomes first women to solo across the Atlantic
1937 -- Amelia Earhart and Captain Fred Noonan go missing
12/7/1941 -- Bombing of Pearl Harbor forces American entry into World War II
1942 -- Officially soloed and received pilot's license at age 16
1944 -- Women's Airforce Service Pilots program ends
1945 -- Joins the Civil Air Patrol, eventually achieving rank of Major
May 1945 -- End of War in Europe
August 1945 -- Atom bomb dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki followed by Japanese surrender and end of World War II
1946 -- Begins career as aerobat at Southeastern Air Exposition in Jacksonville, Florida
1947 -- The United States Air Force becomes an independent military service Chuck Yeager breaks the sound barrier becoming the first man to fly faster than the speed of sound
1948 -- Becomes International Aerobatics Champion for women Buys "Little Stinker" Orville Wright dies at age 76 Berlin Airlift begins operation NASCAR is formed
1949 -- Pilots the smallest plane to cross the Irish Sea Represents United States in RAF Pageant – Belfast, Ireland Sets World Light Plane Altitude Record (~26,000 ft) First non-stop round the world flight is made by Capt. James Gallagher Represents United States in International Air Pageant – London, United Kingdom Unofficially sets world Speed Record for engine aircraft (426 mph) Retains title as International Aerobatics Champion for women
1950 -- Retains title of International Aerobatics Champion for women Becomes hostess of radio program "Van Wilson's Greeting Time"
1951 -- Four monkeys become the first living creatures to travel in space Retires from Flying Sets World Light Plane Altitude Record (~29,000 ft)
1953 -- Jacqueline Cochran becomes first women to fly faster than the speed of sound Stars in a movie short about motor boat jumping Meets Bill France and takes first ride in pace car
1954 -- Sets Stock Car Flying Mile Record (105.88 mph) Sets new world women's closed course record (144.02 mph) Sets new world women's closed course record (143.44 mph) First woman to drive an Indy Car
1955 -- Participates in Stock Car Endurance Run
1956 -- Becomes an advertising executive for Campbell-Ewald Participates in Stock Car Endurance Run First successful launch of a Chrysler Redstone Rocket from Cape Canaveral Sets new land speed record (145.044 mph) Sets transcontinental record New York to Los Angeles (56 hrs 58 mins)
1957 -- Sputnik 2 carries first dog into space Participates in Mobilgas Economy Run Sputnik is launched by the Soviet Union
1958 -- United States launches Explorer 1, the first US satellite to enter Earth's orbit National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is established South American Transcontinental Auto Speed Record (41hrs 14 mins)
1959 -- Trains with Mercury 7 astronauts
1960 -- Participates in Mobilgas Economy Run
1961 -- Alan Shepard becomes the first American in space Participates in Mobilgas Economy Run Yuri Gagarin becomes first man in space
1962 -- Cuban Missile Crisis Participates in Baja Run
1963 -- John F. Kennedy is assassinated Valentina Tereshkova becomes first women in space
1965 -- Sets new land speed record (315 mph) Marries Donald A. Frankman
1967 -- An accident during testing of Apollo 1 kills Virgil Grissom, Roger Chaffee, and Edward White
1969 -- Successfully lobbies to end discrimination against female pilots in air racing Becomes Vice President of Campbell-Ewald's new Women's Market and Advertising Department Apollo 11 is launched with Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins, making Neil Armstrong the first man on the moon
1970 -- Explosion onboard Apollo 13 First scheduled service of the Boeing 747
1972 -- The last manned mission to the moon, Apollo 17 is completed President Nixon announces funding for the building of a reusable space shuttle
1974 -- Charles Lindbergh dies at age 72
1975 -- Apollo/Soyuz Test Project and Soyuz 19 successfully dock in Earth orbit
1977 -- Begins working for First Florida Realty Publishes book Little Stinker British Airways and Air France begin regular Concorde service from New York's JKF Airport National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) launches Voyager I & II
1980 -- Jacqueline Cochran dies at age 74
1981 -- Space Shuttle Columbia launches for the first shuttle mission
1983 -- Sally Ride becomes first American woman in space
1985 -- Donates Little Stinker to NASM
1986 -- Space Shuttle Challenger explodes on take off Soviet Union launches Mir Space Station
1988 -- Inducted into International Aerobatic Hall of Fame (1st woman)
1989 -- Destruction of the Berlin Wall
1993 -- Inducted into NASCAR International Motorsports Hall of Fame (1st woman) Inducted into Florida Women's Hall of Fame
1997 -- Inducted into Women in Aviation Pioneer Hall of Fame Mars Pathfinder lands on surface of Mars
2001 -- Space Station Mir ends its 15 year life in space Inducted into Corvette Hall of Fame (1st woman) Donald A. Frankman dies
2003 -- Concorde service between the United States and Europe ends Inducted into International Council of Air Shows Foundation Hall of Fame
2005 -- Marries Allan Erde Inducted into National Aviation Hall of Fame
2008 -- Inducted into Motorsports Hall of Fame of America
8/31/2011 -- Betty dies at her home in The Villages, Florida
Provenance:
Betty Skelton, Gift, 2001
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.
Charles Augustus Lindbergh Public Appearance Advertisement
Names:
Lindbergh, Charles A. (Charles Augustus), 1902-1974 Search this
Extent:
0.05 Cubic feet (1 folder)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Advertisements
Date:
1927
Summary:
On May 21, 1927, Charles Augustus Lindbergh completed the first solo nonstop transatlantic flight in history. Following his historic flight, Lindbergh embarked on a good will tour of various cities in the United States and abroad. This collection consists of a Pacific Electric Railway advertisement for an appearance by Charles Augustus Lindbergh in Los Angeles on September 20, 1927.
Scope and Contents:
This collection consists of a Pacific Electric Railway advertisement for an appearance by Charles Augustus Lindbergh in Los Angeles on September 20, 1927. The advertisement measures 6 by 17.5 inches and is on ivory paper printed in red and blue and features a photograph of Lindbergh, wearing a suit and tie, to which a drawing of the American flag has been added. The advertisement lists the details of the day which include a parade followed by a public reception at the Los Angeles Coliseum and suggests that visitors avoid traffic by taking the train and offers reduced fares to and from Los Angeles on September 20.
Arrangement:
Collection is in original order.
Biographical / Historical:
On May 21, 1927, Charles Augustus Lindbergh completed the first solo nonstop transatlantic flight in history, flying his Ryan NYP Spirit of St. Louis 5,810 kilometers (3,610 miles) between Roosevelt Field on Long Island, New York, and Paris, France, in 33 hours, 30 minutes. With this flight, Lindbergh won the $25,000 prize offered by New York hotel owner Raymond Orteig to the first aviator to fly an aircraft directly across the Atlantic between New York and Paris. When he landed at Le Bourget Field in Paris, Lindbergh became a world hero who would remain in the public eye for decades. Following his historic New York to Paris flight, Lindbergh embarked on a good will tour of various cities in the United States and abroad.
Provenance:
Unknown, Gift, Unknown, NASM.XXXX.0937
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
