A Helicopter license issued to Coffyn by the National Aeronautic Association of the United States of America Inc. It includes a photo of Coffyn.
Collection Restrictions:
No restrictions on access.
Collection 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
National Air and Space Museum -- Exhibitions Search this
Extent:
13.38 Cubic feet (11 legal document boxes, 1 shoe box (5 x 8 inches), 6 records center boxes )
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Correspondence
Photographs
Date:
1917-2000
bulk 1981-1986
Summary:
This collection consists of background material collected in support of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum (NASM) exhibit "Black Wings: The American Black in Aviation" (opened in 1982) and its companion book (published 1983) by curators Von Hardesty and Dominick Pisano, a related symposium, educational materials, and a travelling version of the exhibit. The collection contains photographs and textual materials used in the exhibit and book, internal correspondence and memoranda, and a large amount of material gathered for research purposes but not used in any "Black Wings" production.
Scope and Contents:
The core of the collection covers activities of American Black aviators between 1917 and 1981, from Eugene Bullard's service as a pilot in World War I through the first Black astronauts assigned to the Space Shuttle program in the early 1980s. Curators Von Hardesty and Dominick Pisano and other Museum staff collected and generally grouped materials to fit the four chronological sections of the "Black Wings" exhibit and related book, with a strong emphasis on the stories of individual people.
Headwinds (1917-1939) covers pioneer fliers such as Bullard and Bessie Coleman; Black aviation activities in the Chicago and Los Angeles areas; early aviators and organizers including William J. Powell, Willa Brown, and Cornelius Coffey; and long distance flights by James Herman Banning and Thomas C. Allen, and C. Alfred "Chief" Anderson and Dr. Albert E. Forsythe.
Flight Lines (1939-1945) includes the 1939 flight of Dale L. White and Chauncey E. Spencer to Washington, D.C.; the Civilian Pilot Training Program (CPT); the start of training of Black military pilots at Tuskegee Army Air Field during World War II; and training of the all-Black 477th Bombardment Group. This section and the next include U.S. Army Air Force documents and photography, and materials obtained from individual Tuskegee Airmen.
Wings for War (1943-1945) covers the experiences of the men of the 99th Fighter Squadron and later the 322nd Fighter Group, all-Black fighter units which participated in the Allied campaigns in North Africa, Sicily, and Italy during World War II, and their commander, Benjamin O. Davis, Jr.
Era of Change (1945-1981), including many materials from the U.S. armed forces and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), covers the desegregation of the armed forces; military pilots' participation in the Korean and Vietnam wars (featuring William Earl Brown, Jr.; Daniel "Chappie" James, Jr.; Benjamin O. Davis, Jr.); general aviation (John W. Green, Jr.; Neal Loving); commercial aviation (Perry H. Young, Jr.; James O. Plinton, Jr.); and the U.S. space program, including not just the first Black astronauts (Guion S. Bluford, Jr.; Ronald E. McNair; Frederick D. Gregory; Charles F. Bolden) but many other NASA professional men and women from Project Mercury through the beginning of the Space Shuttle era.
Most of the material was photocopied from other sources such as books, newspapers, periodicals, and other archival collections, but many copy photographs and anecdotes were obtained from the aviators themselves (or their families), particularly those active in the 1930s and 1940s. The collection also contains internal Museum documents, notes, and memoranda regarding the development and implementation of the various "Black Wings" productions, including portions of exhibit scripts, book manuscripts, ephemera, and Museum photography taken at the exhibit opening and the symposium. Photographic formats include prints, copy prints, 4 x 5 inch black and white copy negatives and color transparencies, and 35mm copy slides. Quality of the photography is often fair to poor, as the copies are several generations removed from the original images.
The last six boxes of the collection (currently unprocessed) consists of material collected circa 2000 by curator Cathleen S. Lewis and Ian Cook (NASM Department of Space History) for a proposed update to the "Black Wings" exhibit. After it became clear that the exhibit was not going to be updated, Lewis transferred the material to the NASM Aeronautics Department, as Hardesty and Pisano were contemplating an update to the Black Wings book. This, too, failed to materialize, and the material was transferred to the NASM Archives in May 2018 to be added to the existing Black Wings Exhibit and Book Collection. This series was received by the Museum's Archives Division after the existing collection material had been scanned; it has not been scanned.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into six series. The first four roughly chronological series (Exhibit, Book, Educational Outreach, and Symposium) relate to the different "Black Wings" productions, and materials within each series often reflect the four-section groupings detailed in the Scope and Content note. The next series, Research Materials, has four sub-series: Biographical Files (alphabetical by last name), Subject Files and Study Materials (alphabetical by subject), Photographic Negatives, and Photographic Prints and Illustrations. The last series houses later additions to the collection which are currently unprocessed.
Materials within folders are predominantly photocopies (xerographs) and often include numerous duplicates, many unlabeled, and in no specific order. Materials relating to an exhibit often include a NASM Exhibits Department reference number (example: SE:13-L73-P58 to P59) indicating the exhibit number (13), label number (L73), and position within the exhibit (P58 to P59). Some materials are not visible online due to copyright restrictions.
Biographical / Historical:
On September 23, 1982, the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum (NASM) exhibit "Black Wings: The American Black in Aviation" opened as part of the existing "Pioneers of Aviation" exhibit located in Gallery 208 of the museum's National Mall Building in Washington, D.C. The exhibit was dedicated to the American Black Aviator, who anonymously played a historic role in shaping the growth of modern aviation. "Black Wings" encompasses the men and women who had to overcome enormous social pressures in order to gain the right to pursue the dream of flight in both civilian, military, and commercial circles. The exhibit generated much public and media interest, and inspired the Museum to sponsor a symposium on February 25, 1983, entitled "The American Black in Aviation, A Decade of Change: 1939-1949," (working title: "Tuskegee Airmen at War") featuring presentations by historians and U. S. Army Air Forces veterans including Noel F. Parrish (Commander, Tuskegee Army Air Field, 1942-1946), George F. Roberts (Commander, 99th Fighter Squadron, September 1943 to April 1944), and pilots Lewis A. Jackson, Elwood T. Driver, and Louis R. Purnell. In conjunction with the exhibit, the Museum, working with Sid Aaronson Films, Inc., produced a set of sound filmstrip packages designed for elementary and secondary school use. In 1983, the Smithsonian Institution Press published a companion book, Black Wings: The American Black in Aviation, authored by the exhibit's curators, Von Hardesty and Dominick Pisano; a second edition was issued the following year as part of the Smithsonian History of Aviation and Spaceflight series. A Smithsonian Institution Travelling Exhibition Service (SITES) version of the exhibit began circulating to other museums and venues in June 1983, and a expanded version of the SITES exhibit (featuring additional artifacts, photography, and audio-visual materials) was displayed April 1 to August 5, 1984, at the Anacostia Neighborhood Museum (later know as the Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum) in Washington, D.C. The original NASM "Black Wings" exhibit—with occasional updates—remained on display in the "Pioneers of Flight" gallery (later renamed the "Barron Hilton Pioneers of Flight Gallery") until 2019 when the gallery was closed due to renovations to the Museum's National Mall Building.
Related Materials:
"Black Wings: African American Pioneer Aviators" NASM Website Collection, NASM.2004.0026 [finding aid not available online]
Provenance:
National Air and Space Museum (NASM) Department of Aeronautics, Transfer, 1993, NASM.1993.0060; additional material transferred from NASM Department of Space History, 2018
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
An Aviator's Certificate no. 7171 issued to Grover Loening on 24 July 1929 by the National Aeronautic Association (NAA), member of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI). It includes small portrait photo of Loening and signatures of Orville Wright (Chairman) and George Lewis (Executive Vice-Chairman).
Collection Restrictions:
No restrictions on access.
Collection 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
An Airman's Identification Card issued to Grover Loening by United States Department of Commerce, Civil Aeronautics Administration. The identity card includes a personal description, small photograph, and fingerprints of Loening. Date not listed. Item is fragile along the folds of the document.
Collection Restrictions:
No restrictions on access.
Collection 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
Zeros Ramsey Miller was issued a Military Aviator's certificate by the U.S Army Air Service in 1919.
Collection Restrictions:
No restrictions on access.
Collection 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
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
Brevetto Superiore di Pilota-Aviatore [Superior Aviator-Pilot Patent] issued by Aero Club d'Italia, member of the Federation Aeronautique Internationale (FAI), to Norman Sweetser as certified 'Pilota Aviatore di 1o Grado al N. 1853' [1st grade aviator pilot no. 1853] and 'N. del Brevetto DCCCXVII-' [pilot's license no. 817]. The license is dated 21 February 1918, written in Italian, and includes a photograph of Sweetster.
Collection Restrictions:
No restrictions on access.
Collection 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
Pilote-Aviateur [aviator pilot] license no. 1853 issued to Norman Sweetser on 21 February 1918 by Aero Club d'Italia, member of Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI). The license is dated 21 February 1918, written in both Italian and French, and includes a photograph of Sweetster.
Collection Restrictions:
No restrictions on access.
Collection 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
License folder of Ralph Upson containing Private Pilot's License no. 10290, issued on 1 December 1929 by United States Department of Commerce, Aeronautics Branch, and a medical waiver dated 13 November 1930. License includes a photograph of Upson and renewals issued between 1930 and 1934. Both documents are loose and held together with strong bound around spine of folder.
Collection Restrictions:
No restrictions on access.
Collection 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
Private Pilot Certificate and Pilot's Identification Card
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
1928-07-01
Scope and Contents:
License folder including Private Pilot license no. 2648 and Pilot's Identification Card with small portrait photo attached issued on 1 July 1928 to Grover Loening by the United States of America Department of Commerce, Office of the Director of Aeronautics.
Collection Restrictions:
No restrictions on access.
Collection 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
Certificate card no. 699 issued by Aero Club of America, member of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) to Roland Rohlfs as licensed pilot. Not dated, but expired 31 December 1920.
Collection Restrictions:
No restrictions on access.
Collection 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 Pilot's Identification Card issued to Ralph H. Upson on 1 December 1929 by the Unites States Department of Commerce, Aeronautics Branch, and includes a small photograph of Upson affixed at upper right corner. The Airman Identification Card issued to Ralph H. Upson by United States Department of Commerce, Civil Aeronautics Administration, is not dated. The tri-fold card includes personal description, small portrait photo, and fingerprint card of right hand.
Collection Restrictions:
No restrictions on access.
Collection 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
Student Pilot Certificate no. S431314 issued on 3 July 1942 by United States Department of Commerce, Civil Aeronautics Administration, to Ralph Upson for private pilot license.
Collection Restrictions:
No restrictions on access.
Collection 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
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.
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.
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 Stanton's personal papers. The material includes correspondence, photographs, news clippings and articles, reunion memorabilia and records, and personal and professional writings over the course of his aeronautical career.
Scope and Contents:
This collection of the papers of Charles Ingram Stanton contains work-related photographs, personal writings on his career, periodicals, programs, financial records, published materials, maps, charts, plans, scrapbooks and audiotapes. At the time of processing, no attempt was made to transcribe the audiotapes. Please contact the Archives for information about duplication.
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 collection is arranged as follows:
Series I, Professional Life
Subseries I: Military Career
Subseries II: Civilian Career
Series II, Personal Life
Series III, Miscellaneous Oversize Material
Biographical/Historical note:
Charles Ingram Stanton was born on July 28, 1893, in Medford, Massachusetts. He graduated from high school in Revere, Massachusetts in 1911; and earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Tufts College in 1917. After graduation, he joined the United States Army and was assigned to the Signal Corps. Upon graduation from the Corps flight school, Stanton was promoted to the rank of 2nd Lieutenant. Although he served in the Air Service during World War I, he was never assigned overseas, but remained in the United States conducting research regarding radios and their effects in aircraft. In December of 1918, Stanton was formally discharged from the Army.
Prior to his military discharge, Stanton accepted a position with the United States Post Office Department of Aerial Mail, and began work as a test pilot. On September 15, 1920, Stanton was promoted to Superintendent of Operations, United States Air Mail Service. He later resigned from the Post Office and went to work for the National Aeronautic Association (NAA). His tenure there was terminated for unknown reasons in 1923; he then went to work for the U.S. Engineer Corp as a surveyman. From 1925 through 1926, he was employed as a civil engineer in Miami, Florida. On January 17, 1927 Stanton returned to government service as an airplane and engine inspector for the United States Department of Commerce. He was named the Chief of Airways Engineering Division, Civil Aeronautics Authority (CAA) on May 4, 1937. While working there, he obtained patent number 2,147,679 for an illuminating system for runways. On June 29, 1940 Stanton was named Assistant Administrator and Director of the Bureau of Federal Airways. Stanton served as Administrator for the CAA from 1942 to 1944 before returning to his previous position as Deputy Administrator. During his tenure with the CAA, Stanton attended several conferences and important meetings for the establishment of international airways. Stanton was instrumental in establishing the Provisional International Civil Aviation Organization. In 1944 he received an honorary doctorate from Tufts College for his contribution to the field of civil aeronautics.
On March 8, 1948 Stanton retired from the United States Government and took a teaching position at the Technological Institute of Aeronautics of Brazil as Professor of Air Navigation, and Chief of Airway Division. Upon returning to the United States in 1952, Stanton went to work for Bell Telephone Laboratories. He returned to work for the CAA in 1957, where he remained until his retirement in 1962.
Charles Ingram Stanton's love of flying did not end with his work. He remained an active member in the OX-5 Club, the Society of Air Mail Pioneers, Society of Airway Pioneers, and the Washington Air Derby Association. In addition to flying clubs, Stanton was a member of the Delta Upsilon Fraternity. Charles Ingram Stanton passed away in 1986.
Timeline:
1893 July 28 -- Born in Medford Massachusetts
1911 -- Graduated from Revere High School
1917 -- Graduated from Tufts College
1917 December 8 -- Joined United States Army
1918 December 12 -- Joined United States Post Office Department of Aerial Mail
1918 December 18 -- Discharged from the United States Army
1920 September 15 -- Appointed Superintendent of Operations, Air Mail Service
1923 November 13 -- Terminated from National Aeronautic Association
1924 -- Worked for United States Engineer Corp as Surveyman
1925 -- Worked as a Civil Engineer in Miami
1927 January 17 -- Worked for U.S. Department of Commerce as an Airplane Inspector
1937 May 4 -- Selected as Chief of Airways Engineering Division, Civil Aeronautics Authority
1939 June 1 -- Granted U.S. Department of Justice Patent Number 2,147,679
1940 June 29 -- Appointed Assistant Administrator and Director of Bureau of Federal Airways, Civil Aeronautics Authority
1942 July 20 -- Appointed Administrator of Civil Aeronautics, Civil Aeronautics Administration
1944 June 18 -- Received Honorary Degree from Tufts College
1944 September 23 -- Resigned as Administrator to return to former position as Deputy Administrator, Civil Aeronautics Administration.
1948 March 8 -- Took leave of absence to serve as head of Department of Airways Engineering, Aeronautical Technical Institute of Brazil.
1952 -- Returned to America to work for Bell Laboratories
1956 November 16 -- Left Bell Laboratories
1957 January 23 -- Worked for the Air Navigation Development Board, Civil Aeronautics Administration
1957 November 6 -- Worked as Electrical Engineer (Gen.) of Airways Modernization Board Civil Aeronautics Administration
1957 -- Worked as Chief of Airports Division, Civil Aeronautics Administration
1962 -- Retired from the Federal Aviation Agency
1986 January 1 -- Passed away
Provenance:
Charles I. Stanton, Jr., gift, 1987, NASM.1987.0076
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.
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.
Collection Citation:
Charles Ingram Stanton, Sr., Papers, Acc. NASM.1987.0076, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.
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.
Collection Citation:
Charles Ingram Stanton, Sr., Papers, Acc. NASM.1987.0076, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.
