|
|
The South Dakota Pilots Association is promoting and supporting the 100th Anniversary of Flight in South Dakota. Aviation Historian Norma Kraemer of Deadwood, SD, is leading the effort on several fronts. If you have suggestions on activities that can promote Centennial of Flight in South Dakota please contact Norma at cubandcorben@msn.com
- Exhibit schedule for South Dakota’s First Century of Flight celebration
- SD Centennial of Flight Book Project
- South Dakota’s First Heavier-than-Air Flight
- South Dakota’s First Pilot
- Battle of Rickenbacker Field
Exhibit Schedule for South Dakota’s First Century of Flight Celebration
2011: Future major historical photograph and artifact exhibit at other South Dakota locations.
September 18, 2011: Traveling photo display “South Dakota’s First Century of Flight” by Norma Kraemer at Chan Gurney Airport Breakfast, Yankton, SD.
August 31, 2011: Traveling photo display “South Dakota’s First Century of Flight” by Norma Kraemer at General Aviation Rally, Pierre.
August 27, 2011: Presentation “Nellie Zabel Willhite, South Dakota’s First Woman Pilot” by Norma Kraemer at SD Aviation Hall of Fame event, Spearfish Airport.
July 12, 2011: Presentation “South Dakota’s First Century of Flight” by Norma Kraemer at Cultural Heritage Museum in Pierre.
June 30, 2011: Traveling historical photo display and presentation “South Dakota’s First Century of Flight” by Norma Kraemer at the Short Wing Piper convention at Spearfish Airport. Presentation at banquet program at Holiday Inn.
June 4, 2011: Traveling historical photo display “South Dakota’s First Century of Flight” by Norma Kraemer at Ellsworth AFB Open House and Civilian Fly-in.
May 7, 2011: Traveling historical photo display and presentation “South Dakota’s First Century of Flight” by Norma Kraemer at Dakota Sunset Museum, Gettysburg. Two restored historical aviation films from 1950s narrated by Steve Hamilton.
April 3, 2011: Story Teller Series presentation “South Dakota’s WASP” by Ola Mildred Rexroat, last remaining South Dakota WASP (Womens Airforce Service Pilots) at Journey Museum, Rapid City.
April thru September 12. 2011: Major historical photograph and artifact exhibit on “South Dakota’s First Century of Flight” by Norma Kraemer at the Cultural Heritage Museum, Pierre.
March 27, 2011: Story Teller Series presentation on the “History of South Dakota Ballooning” by Arly Fadness of the SD Balloon Historical Society at Journey Museum, Rapid City.
March 18, 2011: Presentation “Nellie Zabel Willhite, South Dakota's First Woman Pilot” by Norma Kraemer at Minnehaha Historical Society Meeting, Old Court Hall Museum, Sioux Falls.
March 6, 2011: Presentation "A Brief History of South Dakota Aviation" by Norma Kraemer at annual meeting of the Minnilusa Historical Association, Rapid City.
February 27, 2011: Story Teller Series presentation "A Brief History of South Dakota Aviation" by Norma Kraemer at Journey Museum, Rapid City.
February 19, 2011: Gallery Talk presentation "South Dakota's First Century of Flight" by Norma Kraemer at the Journey Museum, Rapid City.
February 12 to May 31, 2011: Traveling historical photo display "South Dakota's First Century of Flight" by Norma Kraemer at Dakota Sunset Museum, Gettysburg. Museum used display as core for local aviation people to display aviation artifacts and history. (Bobbie Potts gets credit for this wonderful exhibit.)
February 12, 2011: Presentation "Western South Dakota Takes to the Skies" by Norma Kraemer at South Dakota Pilots Association meeting at Al’s Oasis in Chamberlain. Two restored historical aviation films from 1950s narrated by Steve Hamilton.
January thru March 2011: Major historical photograph and artifact exhibit on “South Dakota’s First Century of Flight” by Norma Kraemer at the Journey Museum, Rapid City.
December 12, 2010: Presentation “Wings Over Yankton, 1942-43” by Steve Hamilton at YRAA meeting, JoDean’s Restaurant, Yankton.
October 24, 2010: Traveling historical photo display and presentation on “South Dakota’s First Century of Flight” by Norma Kraemer at the South Dakota State Archives, Pierre, SD. The Archives showed two restored historical aviation movies from the 1950s. The SD Aeronautics Commission funded the film conservation.
September 25, 2010: Traveling historical photo "South Dakota's First Century of Flight" by Norma Kraemer at Cessna 120 / 140 Annual Convention (Hospitality Tent), Spearfish Airport.
September 24, 2010: Paper and oral presentation of "Western South Dakota Takes to the Skies" by Norma Kraemer at West River History Conference, SD School of Mines &Technology, Rapid City. Paper published in conference proceedings (available September 2011). Traveling historical photo display was shown in vendor area on September 23 and 24.
September 17, 2010: Presentation “Wings Over Yankton, 1942-43” by Steve Hamilton at Yankton Territorial Museum, Yankton.
September 4, 2010: Traveling historical photo display and presentation "South Dakota's First Century of Flight" by Norma Kraemer at SD Aviation Hall of Fame event / SDPA meeting, Spearfish Airport. Presentation “Wings Over Yankton, 1942-43” by Steve Hamilton.
July 28, 2010: Presentation “South Dakota’s First Century of Flight “ by Norma Kraemer in the Vette Theater of the EAA Museum at EAA’s AirVenture, Oshkosh, WI.
July 24, 2010: Traveling historical photo display “South Dakota’s First Century of Flight” by Norma Kraemer at the AirVenture Cup Race event, Mitchell Airport.
If you would like to help sponsor the traveling display of historical photos or the major exhibit, please contact Norma Kraemer at 605-342-2339 and her e-mail address is cubandcorben@msn.com The SDPA has donated $1,000 toward the traveling photograph exhibit. The SD Aeronautics Commission has pledged $4,000 toward the cost of doing the major museum exhibits.
SD Centennial of Flight Book Project
The book “South Dakota’s First Century of Flight” by Norma Kraemer has been completed and should be available in August 2010. The book is being published by Arcadia Publishing (www.arcadiapublishing.com). The format of the book is pictures with captions and a limited amount of text. It will not be an all-inclusive history of the state’s aviation history, however, the picture format will keep pilots and the public entertained and informed.
The link for the book project for information on the book is: http://sdaviationhx.blogspot.com/
Contact Norma Kraemer at 605-342-2339 and her e-mail address is cubandcorben@msn.com
South Dakota’s First Heavier-than-Air Flight by Norma Kraemer
The first flight of a heavier-than-air aircraft was in Rapid City, SD, on March 9, 1911. The plane was brought here by the Western South Dakota Stockgrower’s Association for their convention and was a contracted exhibition using a Curtiss Model D pusher. In September 1911 the State Fair hired several demonstration companies to perform for the entire week. Over the next several years planes made appearances at Deadwood, Sioux Falls and Yankton (1912), Spearfish, Edgemont and Belle Fourche (1913), Vermillion and Ft. Pierre (1915). Over the years I have seen various references to “firsts” in aviation throughout the state that conflict. It basically shows that news did not travel well between communities before the advent of radio and television.
South Dakota’s First Pilot by Norma Kraemer
Saxe Pitts Gantz was born in 1883 in Rapid City, SD. In 1898 he moved with his mother to the Klondike for the Yukon Gold Rush. After returning to South Dakota, he attended the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology.
He worked for General Electric in Schenectady, NY. He also worked on the Crouch Railroad Line as a Civil Engineer in Rapid City. During WWII he worked in production control at Douglas Aircraft Tulsa, OK.
Saxe attended the Stockgrower’s Convention in Rapid City, SD, on March 9, 1911, when he first saw a plane fly. The demonstrator pilot was Hugh Robinson from the Curtiss Aerial Exhibition Company. Saxe asked about learning to fly and Robinson recommended the flying school at Kinloch Park, MO. Saxe was unhappy with the flying school’s Curtiss Model D, which cost $5,000. He knew he needed a plane of his own so with the help of two other men they built a replica in about 2 months for $3000. The aircraft was powered with a 50HP Roberts engine that cost $1150 and had an empty weight of about 1500 lbs.
While teaching himself to fly he said, “We did a lot of grass cutting around the field before we had enough nerve to go airborne.” On his first flight he pancaked from about 40 feet and demolished the plane. He rebuilt the plane and steeled his nerves to return to the air for a successful flight, and was the first South Dakotan to fly an airplane. For $800 he flew four flights at the Clinton County Fair in Breese, IL. He had a contract to fly at Laramie, WY, for $2500, but his plane was destroyed in shop fire in St. Louis before he arrived. Saxe never flew again.
Saxe died at Custer, SD, December 31, 1959, at the age of 76. He was cremated and his ashes are buried at his tombstone site at Silver City, SD.
Saxe Pitts Gantz was inducted into the South Dakota Aviation Hall of Fame September 11, 2009.
Battle of Rickenbacker Field by Norma Kraemer
Charles Lindbergh toured the lower 48 states in 1927 after his record setting fight to Paris. South Dakota had one of the more unusual events on his tour. Lindbergh landed at Sioux Falls’ Renner Airport (initially called Lindbergh Airport, but renamed Renner so people would know where it was.) From there he was to visit Sioux City, Iowa. However, Sioux City had no airport of its own. The only airport in the area was at what is called North Sioux City, named Rickenbacker Field.
When Lindbergh scheduled his landing, the people of Sioux City failed to realize that the airfield was not in Iowa . They sent the Iowa National Guard to protect Lindbergh, only to be faced down by the Union County Sheriff and the chief deputy state sheriff. The Union County State’s attorney, who had been deputized, hit the Iowa Guard captain with a right to jaw that left him on the ground when challenged by the Guard troops. After the Captain returned a punch breaking the attorney’s glasses, the captain ordered his men to “fix bayonets.” With that, one of the sheriff’s deputies pulled a .45. While the Iowa captain was still punching it out, his Sergeant ordered the Iowa troops to stand down. The Guard slinked away to the catcalls of the crowd.
When Lindbergh returned to his plane to fly on to Pierre the next day he had no idea of how well South Dakota protected his plane.
