Chasing Seaplane History!

[Waco1148]

Hey Kittyhawk! Great news that the airplane is being rebuilt. My dad, Lyman Rice, was a pilot in the Laconia area-we had a grass airstrip in the back yard up on Parade Road, where Petal Pushers is now. Bill Harmon was an airline pilot who flew various antiques in his off time. He had just rebuilt the Kittyhawk back about 1972 or so, and gave us a flyby at the house on Parade Road, when the engine quit. He said, "I ran out of altitude, airspeed, and ideas, all at the same time." He had a forced landing in the field next door and the floats tripped in the tall grass, damaging the airplane. I don't think he ever got around to work on it again, at least not much. Ironically, we had been at the house and had just headed back to our camp over in Moultonborough, so missed all the excitement. Bill is in Raymond, NH and would be glad to talk to you.

I'm attaching a picture of the airplane with Jane Steady, a Laconia girl who got her license in 1945. The image was loaned to me by Diane Cooper at the Laconia airport. I found Jane Steady Hood's obituary online-she passed away in 2003.

My interest in old airplanes is that I've just done a book on "Bob Fogg and New Hampshire's Golden Age of Aviation," covering the seaplane base at the Weirs 1912-1953, but I didn't really go into the base that was on Paugus Bay, although I am interested. Thanks for your comments about the Bleriot and Curtiss aircraft on Dan Hold Pond-I've confirmed that the owner of the estate on the pond, James Albert Brackett, owned both airplanes, but don't yet know how much they actually flew.

[KittyHawk]

What a great picture, and one I'll copy for the scrapbook I am building along with the restoration of NC975M. Having such a beautiful photo of the Kitty Hawk and Jane together is perfect!

The picture is probably from the mid to late 1940's, as the Kitty Hawk has the smaller 125 hp B-5 Kinner engine installed. Bill Harmon and Paschal rebuilt it and installed a larger Kinner R-56 of 160 hp in the early 1950's. It looked very different with the larger engine and a wooden propeller. Probably performed much better, too.

Trying to get some more info from Bill Harmon. Thanks for the bit about the incident. Yes, the Kitty Hawk took quite a whack when she hit the ground. Enough so the the wings cracked, the floats are smashed and the fuselage steel tubing is bent. All in all, it will be a fun restoration!

You're probably right about Bill Muzzey, though it is a shame, as he was the owner who flew the daylights out of NC975M, ride-hopping sightseers for several years from Paugus Bay.

You've given me a few leads to run down, too. We'll see where they go. Many thanks for sharing the photo. Wonder if Jane Steady pursued a flying career or stuck with pleasure flying.

[KittyHawk]

I was copied in on an email thread from you which ran to Dick Jackson, looking for stories on this Kitty Hawk - my thanks to you for pursuing the investigation further for me!

New wing spars for all 4 wing panels are roughed out. A local specialty cabinet mill with a huge CNC pin router cut out the pockets - the time consuming part of the job. A few hours of finish trimming and drilling and we'll be building wings instead of tearing them apart - a sure sign of progress.

The original wings were built by Bill Harmon for the Kitty Hawk's owner at the time, a Mr. Champlin. It is a shame we can't save even one for the restoration - they were beautiful. Here's a photo of the upper panels after being in storage from 1973-2011.

The second shot is NC975M with her first owner, the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, VA. W&M started one of the first college flight training programs for students and faculty at Scott Airfield, VA, using two Kitty Hawks and several other planes for instructing and commercial flights. The deepening Depression forced the flight school to close around 1934. That's the William and Mary college crest on the aft fuselage. The Kitty Hawk came from the factory a dark green with gold trim, the College's school colors. Right now, I'm considering dark blue with orange accents done in a 1930's art deco style.

Thanks again - and let's keep searching! Bill Harmon is the only owner we've found to date. Champlin and Paschley are two names I would like to trace and contact for their side of this story. Blue skies!

[Waco1148]

Sorry to say, Bill Champlin has passed away several years ago. I'm not having any luck finding an obituary but he would be pushing 100 if he were still around. He was the operator of Skyhaven airport in both Rochester and in Laconia, back in the 1940s, so perhaps owned the airplane for hopping passengers.

[KittyHawk]

Yes, Bill Champlin was the owner of NC975M, hiring a young Bill Harmon as a pilot/mechanic to work on rebuilding the Kitty Hawk and to fly for him at Skyhaven Air Service. From what I read from Bill Harmon, the Kitty Hawk and Bill Champlin gave him a leg up in flying which led to a tremendous career as a pilot for American Airlines.

Skyhaven owned the Kitty Hawk, rebuilt it and flew passengers from the Lake for just a short time before selling it to Bill Muzzey. Muzzey made real use of her for almost a decade, flying from Paugus Bay Seaplane Base, according to his notes in the airplane logbooks. At the end, Bill had one very tired airframe, which he sold to Bill Harmon and Mr. Pashley.

They rebuilt her over the course of many years, finally flying in 1973 for a total of 4 hours before the engine quit and she went down just past Mr. Lyman Rice's grass strip. Bill Harmon put the pieces in his garage until 2007, when he sold it to a gentleman from CT who moved it into another storage garage.

I found her in 2011 and began restoration in earnest with hopes to fly in 2014 - " Lord willin' and the crick don't rise." Then, we'll head up Lake Winnipesaukee way for a reunion.

[SIKSUKR]

Can't wait. Make sure you make an announcement here when you intend to fly in.

[KittyHawk]

Just completed Jane Rice's book on Bob Fogg and New Hampshire's Golden Age of Aviaiton. Found it on Amazon.com. Found it informative and instructional on several levels. Primarily, it tells of a time in early NE aviation when heroic actions, rescues, sub-arctic adventures, daredevil flying, triumphs and tragedies were apparently the norm for this WWI aviator and his associates. The primitive flyers' world was filled with seemingly insurmountable challenges - which Bob Fogg took on in the normal course of his daily flying world. Great book to glean a better historical perspective about pioneer aviators as well as the times in which they prospered.

Secondly, and of great interest to me, is the intellectual pathway Jane Rice followed to compile and compose each chapter of this book. She brings us along with her while researching and discovering lost facts and archival notes, sleuthing that is intriguing and informative. This makes the book much more than simply a good read about old guys and airplanes hanging out at a neat Lake.

Next question from someone from where we still say "ya'll" - is Weirs pronounced as in its German derivative - "Wires" or is it "Weers"? Just asking. Thanks!

[ApS]

Originally Posted by KittyHawk

Just completed Jane Rice's book on Bob Fogg and New Hampshire's Golden Age of Aviaiton. Found it on Amazon.com. Found it informative and instructional on several levels. Primarily, it tells of a time in early NE aviation when heroic actions, rescues, sub-arctic adventures, daredevil flying, triumphs and tragedies were apparently the norm for this WWI aviator and his associates. The primitive flyers' world was filled with seemingly insurmountable challenges - which Bob Fogg took on in the normal course of his daily flying world. Great book to glean a better historical perspective about pioneer aviators as well as the times in which they prospered.

Secondly, and of great interest to me, is the intellectual pathway Jane Rice followed to compile and compose each chapter of this book. She brings us along with her while researching and discovering lost facts and archival notes, sleuthing that is intriguing and informative. This makes the book much more than simply a good read about old guys and airplanes hanging out at a neat Lake.

Next question from someone from where we still say "ya'll" - is Weirs pronounced as in its German derivative - "Wires" or is it "Weers"? Just asking. Thanks!

"Weird Beach" is still pronounced "Weirs Beach". (Hopes this helps )

Using this source to benefit this forum, I ordered my copy yesterday—and sent it to my Dad in Wolfeboro for his 96th birthday.

[ApS]

Originally Posted by KittyHawk

"...I was copied in on an email thread from you which ran to Dick Jackson, looking for stories on this Kitty Hawk - my thanks to you for pursuing the investigation further for me! ..."

One Internet source you both might consider—abandoned airports of New Hampshire:

http://www.airfields-freeman.com/NH/Airfields_NH.htm

Originally Posted by KittyHawk

"...The original wings were built by Bill Harmon for the Kitty Hawk's owner at the time, a Mr. Champlin. It is a shame we can't save even one for the restoration..."

I don't see why not...

Aircraft have flown with less.



http://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/lo...7-amazing.html

[EJaneHood]

Originally Posted by KittyHawk

What a great picture, and one I'll copy for the scrapbook I am building along with the restoration of NC975M. Having such a beautiful photo of the Kitty Hawk and Jane together is perfect!

The picture is probably from the mid to late 1940's, as the Kitty Hawk has the smaller 125 hp B-5 Kinner engine installed. Bill Harmon and Paschal rebuilt it and installed a larger Kinner R-56 of 160 hp in the early 1950's. It looked very different with the larger engine and a wooden propeller. Probably performed much better, too.

Trying to get some more info from Bill Harmon. Thanks for the bit about the incident. Yes, the Kitty Hawk took quite a whack when she hit the ground. Enough so the the wings cracked, the floats are smashed and the fuselage steel tubing is bent. All in all, it will be a fun restoration!

You're probably right about Bill Muzzey, though it is a shame, as he was the owner who flew the daylights out of NC975M, ride-hopping sightseers for several years from Paugus Bay.

You've given me a few leads to run down, too. We'll see where they go. Many thanks for sharing the photo. Wonder if Jane Steady pursued a flying career or stuck with pleasure flying.

Jane was my grandmother... she didn't pursue a career in flying, though she enjoyed it very much. She obtained a degree in mathematics from Colby College and worked for Sloan-Kettering before raising four children in NYC/PA before retiring back to NH. Flight and astronomy remained among her top interests throughout her life.

Edit to add: She got her pilot's license in 1945, when she was sixteen & was married in 1948 ... so the photo would likely have been sometime during those years -- just to verify as I noted you were discussing dates.

This photo was such a treat to find -- none of us in the family had seen it before!

[SIKSUKR]

Love seeing conections being made through the internet.Great photo by the way of your grandmother.Does she have relatives in NH?I know a Paul Steady.

[ApS]

Two photos of NC975M appear at http://www.airfields-freeman.com/VA/...VA_Hampton.htm. (Middle of the page).

This photo below shows a landing-light attached at the wing root in 1932. The other is the same as one previously published here, but apparently from a different source. Starting the engine when afloat was tricky.

[KittyHawk]

Originally Posted by EJaneHood

Jane was my grandmother... she didn't pursue a career in flying, though she enjoyed it very much. She obtained a degree in mathematics from Colby College and worked for Sloan-Kettering before raising four children in NYC/PA before retiring back to NH. Flight and astronomy remained among her top interests throughout her life.

Edit to add: She got her pilot's license in 1945, when she was sixteen & was married in 1948 ... so the photo would likely have been sometime during those years -- just to verify as I noted you were discussing dates.

This photo was such a treat to find -- none of us in the family had seen it before!

EJaneHood: Many thanks for checking in regarding Jane Steady Hood's photo with Kitty Hawk NC975M. I have to say that Jane has one of the most charming, wholesome, beautiful expressions, captured in that one photo. She must have been a wonderful lady!

You mentioned another photo of her in goggles and helmet. Is it also taken with this Kitty Hawk? Sure would be great if you could post it on this forum. Lots of interested folks here! Bob Coolbaugh

[KittyHawk]

Folks: I know posts are few and far between, apologies. I really have been hard at work on the restoration of NC975M, the Kitty Hawk which flew for decades from Paugus Bay. She's in the final, though lengthy stages of covering, painting and assembly right now. I will try to post a few current photos. Trying to get her flying towards the end of this year or early next. Patience and perseverance.

[KittyHawk]

This is one of the 4 wing panels in the early stages of covering. The wings will be the last to be painted this summer. Using nitrate and butyrate dope as the New Haven factory originally did in 1931. The Kitty Hawk fuselage in the background was just prior to its turn in the paint booth. It is now getting the Kinner engine installed and plumbed.

[EJaneHood]

Originally Posted by Waco1148

Hey Kittyhawk! Great news that the airplane is being rebuilt. My dad, Lyman Rice, was a pilot in the Laconia area-we had a grass airstrip in the back yard up on Parade Road, where Petal Pushers is now. Bill Harmon was an airline pilot who flew various antiques in his off time. He had just rebuilt the Kittyhawk back about 1972 or so, and gave us a flyby at the house on Parade Road, when the engine quit. He said, "I ran out of altitude, airspeed, and ideas, all at the same time." He had a forced landing in the field next door and the floats tripped in the tall grass, damaging the airplane. I don't think he ever got around to work on it again, at least not much. Ironically, we had been at the house and had just headed back to our camp over in Moultonborough, so missed all the excitement. Bill is in Raymond, NH and would be glad to talk to you.

I'm attaching a picture of the airplane with Jane Steady, a Laconia girl who got her license in 1945. The image was loaned to me by Diane Cooper at the Laconia airport. I found Jane Steady Hood's obituary online-she passed away in 2003.

My interest in old airplanes is that I've just done a book on "Bob Fogg and New Hampshire's Golden Age of Aviation," covering the seaplane base at the Weirs 1912-1953, but I didn't really go into the base that was on Paugus Bay, although I am interested. Thanks for your comments about the Bleriot and Curtiss aircraft on Dan Hold Pond-I've confirmed that the owner of the estate on the pond, James Albert Brackett, owned both airplanes, but don't yet know how much they actually flew.

Thank you SO much for posting this! Jane Steady, later Jane Steady Hood, is my grandmother and while we do have one stellar shot of her in a cockpit with her goggles on, NONE of us had ever seen this before!