This collection consists of newspaper articles, letters with envelopes, New Zealand postcards, radiograms, and Christmas cards from Konter to his New York Landlady, Mrs. Adalaide Gray (who Konter called 'Ma'), and to Mr. Ed Iovanna. The envelopes and postcards bear the postmarks and stamps of the expedition. There are also three photographs: one of Byrd and Bennett; one of Adalaide Gray; and one of Konter.
Biographical / Historical:
Richard 'Dick' Konter was a seaman on the 'City of New York,' the ship that carried Admiral Richard Byrd to his 'Little America - Antarctica' expedition. Mr. Konter, known as Ukulele Dick, was the recreation officer for this trip and not only played the ukulele for the rest of the crew during leisure time, but also took records and pinola rolls on the trip for the crew to enjoy.
General:
NASMrev
Provenance:
Muriel Yarger, gift, 1998, 1999-0003, pending
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
These scrapbooks consist of press clippings covering Byrd's Antarctic expedition of 1928-30, as well as items relating to his transatlantic flight and League activities. The items cover all aspects of the expeditions from planning through public recognition after Byrd's return.
Biographical / Historical:
Richard Evelyn Byrd (1888-1957) was a noted pilot and explorer. Byrd claimed to be the first human to fly over both the North and South Poles (on 9 May 1926 and 29 November 1929 respectively). Byrd flew across the Atlantic in the airplane America in 1927 and was active in the "National Economy League" during the early Depression years.
General:
NASMrev
Provenance:
No donor information, gift, XXXX-0282, 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 scrapbook consists of photographs of Sergeant Johnston, his fellow servicemen and a few aircraft (including a Junkers and the USS Akron). Most of the scrapbook commemorates personal events in Myriam Lahaurine Johnston's life, such as her relations with family and friends, her wedding to H. W. Johnston, the birth and childhood of their daughter, Miriam, their home in Ohio and the family's travels to such places as Biarritz, Nice, Paris and Washington, DC. Also included are signed photos from Richard Evelyn Byrd and Lily Pons, as well as a signed letter from the latter.
Biographical / Historical:
Myriam Lahaurine met the American Sergeant Major H. W. Johnston during his service with the American Expeditionary Forces in France during World War I.
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 several manuscripts by William I. Votaw relating to the infancy of the air mail service. Also included are biographical information relating to Jack Knight, Richard Byrd and William McCandless, copies of the Air Mail Pioneers newsletter as well as a large amount of newspaper clippings.
Biographical / Historical:
William I. Votaw began his career with the railway mail service and was promoted to the US Sea Post Service where he served until the advent of World War I. He established an American Expeditionary Force Postal Station in New York before entering the air mail service. In 1920 Votaw established the Ak-Sar-Ben air field in Omaha , Nebraska, and served as superintendent of the field, the base for the Chicago-Cheyenne segment of the transcontinental route. In 1921 he was appointed Assistant Director of the International Postal Service and in 1929 became Superintendent of Mails for the new United States Lines.
General:
NASMrev
Provenance:
Suzanne W. Todd, Transfer, 2000, 2000-0052, 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
The Shakir S. Jerwan Scrapbooks Collection contains material from the period 1911-1919. During this period, Jerwan was Chief Pilot at the Moisant School of Aviation, Garden City, New York, and Director of Military Aviation for the government of Guatemala.
The collection consists of one photographic album and one scrapbook.
Biographical / Historical:
Shakir Saliba Jerwan (1881-1942), the son of a Protestant minister, was born in Beirut, Lebanon, then part of the Ottoman Empire. In 1904, Jerwan immigrated to the United States and became a citizen in 1910. In 1911, he learned to fly, earning F.A.I. license number 54. Jerwan was chief pilot for the Moisant School of Aviation, Garden City, New York from 1912 to 1914. From 1915 to 1919 he served as Director of Military Aviation in Guatemala. Jerwan returned to the United States in 1919. His later career was as a hotelier. He was a member of the Early Birds of Aviation.
Provenance:
Shakir S. Jerwan, gift, date unknown, XXXX-0231
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
The Mary E. "Mother" Tusch Collection reflects her interest in aviation. It consists of 12 boxes that contain photography, family documentation, news clippings and scrapbooks.
Scope and Contents:
The Mary E. "Mother" Tusch Collection reflects her interest in aviation. It consists of 12 boxes that contain photography, family documentation, news clippings and scrapbooks. There are formal group and individual photographs as well as informal personal photographs of servicemen whom she had befriended and images signed by such famous aviators as Ruth Law and Earle Ovington. The collection contains photographs of the wallpaper from her Berkeley home which was signed by such aviation notables as Charles Lindbergh and Edward Rickenbacker. There are four scrapbooks that relate to her aviator friends and a fifth on World War I which includes photographs of trench warfare presented to "Mother" Tusch by John Pierson. This collection also contains photographs of "Mother" Tusch and her home; an inventory listing the aviation holdings of her home; guest books recording visitors to The Hangar, Shrine of the Air; and newspaper articles, museum plans, and correspondence relating to Tusch donating her collection to the National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.
"Mother" Tusch carried on correspondence with many of her aviator friends. One of these men, Bill Schneider, sent her a piece of what he claimed was the wreckage of Zeppelin LZ 129 "Hindenburg". The object and a photograph of Schneider and his correspondence to Tusch have been transferred to the Aeronautics Department of the National Air and Space Museum. Photocopies of these materials can be found in Box 7, Folder 3 of this collection.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged by subject. These subjects include Mary E. "Mother" Tusch, her family, The Hangar, Shrine of the Air, photographs of aviators and other materials relating to her life.
Biographical/Historical note:
Mary E. Tusch (1875-1960) was a great supporter of aviation and pilots. She lived across the street from the United States School of Military Aeronautics on the University of California's Berkeley Campus during World War I. She invited the young aviators to her home and became like a second mother to many of them. They nicknamed her "Mother Tusch" and her house became known as The Hangar, Shrine of the Air. Tusch was actively interested in aviation as well as those people associated with aeronautics, and her home reflected her love of aviation. She avidly collected aviation material including artifacts, photographs, and autographs from the aviators. She invited many of the aviators who visited her home to sign the wallpaper.
This collection came to the National Air and Space Museum partially as a result of family ties. Mrs. Tusch's daughter, Irene, married National Air Space Museum curator, Paul E. Garber, in the early 1950s.
Provenance:
Mary E. "Mother" Tusch, Gift, unknown, NASM.XXXX.0128, 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.
No access restrictions Many of SIA's holdings are located off-site, and advance notice is recommended to consult a collection. Please email the SIA Reference Team at osiaref@si.edu
No access restrictions Many of SIA's holdings are located off-site, and advance notice is recommended to consult a collection. Please email the SIA Reference Team at osiaref@si.edu
Skyward : man's mastery of the air as shown by the brilliant flights of America's leading air explorer : his life, his thrilling adventures, his north pole and trans-Atlantic flights, together with his plans for conquering the antarctic by air / by Richard Evelyn Byrd ; with foreword by William A. Moffett and a new introduction by the author
Discovery : the story of the Second Byrd Antarctic Expedition / by Richard Evelyn Byrd ... ; introduction by Claude A. Swanson ... ; with illustrations and maps
