September 17, 1908, Summerall Field, Fort Myer, Virginia – 1LT Thomas E. Selfridge accompanied Orville Wright on a trial flight of the Wright Brothers’ “aeroplane” that resulted in another milestone in history and a first in military aviation.
Trials at Ft. Myer began on 3d September 1908 and on the 17th, the trial ended in a crash of the machine as one of the propellers hit a guy wire forcing a nose down contact. Orville suffered a few broken ribs, a broken leg. LT Selfridge was thrown against one of the uprights and had a fractured skull. Unfortunately, he passed.
The photo below shows the aeroplane & Orville Wright & 1LT Selfridge before takeoff
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A graduate of West Point, LT Selfridge is laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery.
If he had been wearing protective headgear, he may have survived the crash.
Posted 3 years, 4 months ago at 10:27 pm. Add a comment
If you’ve been reading my blog, you’ll recall that I’ve recently sent out a mailing of over 300 solicitations / invites for personalized notecards, Christmas cards and the JFK meets BG Wm P. Yarborough.
The phone rang this morning and a voice at the other end asked if I could produce a different version of the collage with the description of what appears on the back of the card appearing where it could be read….
This is my initial and latest take on it
Just an FYI, the response from the mailing has been “minimal” but encouraging — perhaps they’re also accounting for the beginning of the growing red dots on the map — (see the earlier post about Clustr Maps)
Posted 4 years, 2 months ago at 11:30 pm. Add a comment
As the first female army officer to earn a star as a Brigadier General was laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery, the Presidential Salute Battery of the 3d Infantry Regiment – “The Old Guard” carried out their mission with dispatch in the cool weather of the day.
Off in the distance one could hear the music of the US Army Band as the final honors ceremony continued. I watched as the notes of TAPS began to echo up to the hill where we were, the soldiers immediately snapped to attention and saluted one last time to this historic officer of the US Army.
Posted 4 years, 3 months ago at 11:00 pm. Add a comment
One of the hidden gems in the National Park System and in the Washington DC area — it’s over 100 years old and one of my favorite places to photograph and explore and relax — it’s away from the crowds and the 14 plus acres of ponds are filled with the work of nature (with a little help from the park rangers) — known for the waterlilies that grace the ponds, there are also lotus that are rather majestic.
It was begun by a Federal officer returning from the US Civil War. The park has a rather interesting background — if you check out my website, you’ll find a small selection of the numerous photographs I’ve collected there since 2003. Many people who are lifetime residents of the Washington, DC area have never visited this wonderful place.
Posted 4 years, 4 months ago at 12:02 pm. Add a comment
