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In
studying and forming an understanding of Iowa's aviation
history, we must surely develop a reverence for the lifestyles
that preceded ours. Achieving a greater understanding
of out past, we are better prepared to plan our future as
we say farewell to the 20th century and fly forward into
the 21st. In the words of Oliver Wendell Homes: "I
believe the greatest thing in this world is not so much
where we stand as in what direction we are moving...and
the further backward you can look, the farther forward you
can see." We hope that this will inspire readers
to learn more about our rich, rewarding past and to visit
and experience some of Iowa's historic treasures.
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The
fascination with flying in Iowa dates back to the balloon
era. An unmanned, gas-filled balloon flight occurred in
Burlington July 4, 1845. The first manned balloon - Hercules
- was piloted by Professor Silas Brooks at Burlington in
1856. Following the Civil War, balloon ascensions and races
were popular at fairs and city celebrations. The National
Balloon Museum in Indianola houses a collection of ballooning
artifacts and memorabilia depicting the history of hot-air
and gas ballooning, ballooning events and personalities.
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Clyde Vernon Cessna (1879-1954), was born at Hawthorne, Iowa, in December
1879. During the latter part of 1880 his family moved to Kansas. Growing up,
Cessna exhibited an aptitude for mechanics and became an expert at repairing
farm
machinery and early automobiles. In 1911 he set out to build an airplane. In
the late
1920s, Cessna formed Cessna Aircraft Company of Wichita, Kansas.
During his life he
played an important role in the development of general aviation,
and the company he
founded went on to lead in the private plane market. Cessna was inducted into the
National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1978.
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 Glider
flight had been proven practical by German and American
engineers. In 1898, Carl Bates, a 14-year-old from Clear
Lake, built and flew the first man-carrying glider in Iowa.
Carl Sterling Bates of Clear Lake stands in front of the
first man-carrying glider in Iowa.
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Bishop
Milton Wright and Susan Catherine Wright lived in Cedar
Rapids from 1878 to 1881. Bishop Wright was a firm disciplinarian
and official in the United Brethren Church. Together they
had four sons and one daughter. Two sons, Orville and Wilbur,
gained worldwide renown for their invention of the "world's
first power-driven, heavier-than-air machine in which man
made free, controlled and sustained flight."
The invention was flown by the Wright brothers at Kitty
Hawk, North Carolina, December 17, 1903. Their "aeroplane"
opened the era of aviation.
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Arthur
J. Hartman piloted Iowa's first "areoplane" flight which
took place on the fairway of the old Burlington Country
Club. The plane rose 10 feet into the air before coming
down so hard that it damaged the undercarriage. According
to records, some 46 flights by 23 aviators were made over
different cities in Iowa during the years between 1910 and
1911.
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One
of the most famous flyers of this early period was William
"Billy" C. Robinson of Grinnell, who was internationally
recognized for piloting mail planes in Canada, and was well-known
in central Iowa as well. His most successful exploit, a
non-stop mail flight from Des Moines to Chicago, was sponsored
by the Des Moines Capital and Chicago Tribune in 1914. Weather
conditions and a fuel shortage cut the flight short, but
Robinson flew a distance of 300 miles, exceeding the American
record by 125 miles. While attempting to break the altitude
record, he crashed and was killed. The engine of the ill-fated
plane is preserved in the museum at Grinnell College.
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In
the early 1920s J. Herman Banning (originally from Oklahoma)
went to Chicago with the dream of becoming a pilot. When
he tried to enter aviation school, no school would admit
him because of his race. So he took lessons from Ray Fisher
of Des Moines and moved to Ames to attend Iowa State College.
Banning became the first black citizen to receive a pilot's
license from the government - number 1324.
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 Glen
Luther Martin (1886-1955), born Jan. 17, 1886, in Macksburg,
Iowa, was one of America's pioneer aircraft builders. Becoming
a leading military plane manufacturer, he developed the
"Martin Bomber." A familiar sight on the battlefront,
it played an important part in the Allied victory in World
War II. Before he turned to manufacturing planes (1910-14),
Martin was also one of the country's best known "barnstormers."
Martin was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame
in 1966.
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