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This newspaper page contains 6 articles. Subscribers can read the full text of each article.
Newspaper
Washington Evening Journal
Location
Washington, Iowa, United States of America
Date
Feb 10, 1950
Page
4
A nostalgic recollection of a group of 20 Washington men who entered and quickly exited a business venture many decades ago. The piece reflects on a time before aviation became a major commercial industry, recalling the entrepreneurial episode with local memory and perspective.
Despite air travel's novelty and risk a number of Washington men seized the chance to earn a few dollars by barnstorming. Pilots flew about the country offering venturesome passengers brief rides aloft, turning the pastime into a time of opportunity for these locals.
A group bought a plane for about two thousand dollars and funded a flyer named Donaldson to operate passenger flights from improvised fields near town. The venture thrilled eastern Iowans until a Mt. Pleasant mishap wrecked the plane, injuring a passenger and ending the venture.
A reader recalls first flying displays in Washington at Denison ball park and a field across the fence, featuring a French flyer named Dupry or Depree. He describes a later Donaldson show, a near crash above Hast Main street, and his first airplane ride with Richard Davis in a two seat model T Ford. He recalls Niagara Falls displays of Lincoln Beachey, parachute stunts, and the Kendrick field incidents with Bacon White, plus a 1930 Chicago air show trip with S A Dickerson and Loyd Morrison.
John Dodd convalescing after surgery at University Hospital shows steady improvement and expects to return home soon.
Publication details for the Washington Evening Journal include publishers editors and staff roles, distribution notes, and subscription rates. The page lists management, editors, and affiliations with press associations along with mailing and carrier pricing and general publication schedule.
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