HARRY BINGHAM BROWN 1883-1954

Harry Brown with Passenger in his plane Photo courtesy of Paul McWhorter, 7-14-07 Curator of Old Picture.com

 

LAPHAM jumps from Harry Brown's plane at Oakwood Heights. from CHIRP, JANUARY, 1948 - CLEVELAND, OHIO - NUMBER 37 courtesy of Steve Remington - CollectAir

 

Harry Bingham Brown with passenger Isabel Patterson of Vancouver after breaking an American altitude record ( 5300 ft) at Staten Island, NY. Library of Congress Collection, 7-15-07

What? New Members!      Harry Bingham Brown first sees the light of day the morning of October 9, 1883, just a year and 56 days after the EB Secretary emerges, which makes Brown some 63 years or so. It is at Walpole, N. H., where said Brown still holds forth. It say here he is a "farmer."      From 1911 to 1912 he is on experimental work in Washington. Here he makes an unofficial height record for two men of 5300 feet at the Oakwood Heights meet of the Aeronautical Society. The other "man" is Miss Isabella Patterson who comes all the way from Vancouver, B. C., for the sensation. George Beatty is also there, and Cecil Peoli, Charles K. Hamilton and Ruth Law, so Brown is in good company. To demonstrate the military aspect of the airplane he flies Pvt. R. G. Sharotts, S. C., New York National Guard, to make observations and drop notes in tubes attached to small parachutes. Another passenger is rifleman Dillon Hoffman who shot toy balloons in the air.      About September 20 Rodman Law demonstrates the Stevens' 'chute from Brown's plane, Stevens having become manager of the team. At October 12 meet of the Society, Law makes a 500-foot drop from the Brown plane with the Stevens pack and Hoffman goes into his balloon-shooting demonstrations. Kemmerle, Weeks, Ruth Law and George Beatty are the other pilots.      On January 1, 1913, or the night before, Brown flies for 58 minutes over New York with another jumper, Lapham, drops at a third meet of the Aeronautical Society at Oakwood Heights, May 30-June 1, 1913, under the late Leo's management. From there Brown and Lapham go to the Halifax exposition. All in all, Brown barnstorms in the United States, the West Indies and the provinces for four years and then does some flying in the movie "Perils of Pauline" with Pearl White.      The summer of 1914 he quits flying, gets married and goes into business in Jamaica Plain, Mass. Finally, he returns to Walpole and buys a farm. from CHIRP - APRIL, 1947 - PESCO, CLEVELAND, OHIO - NUMBER 35 courtesy of Steve Remington - CollectAir

 

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES via email from David R. Proper, 6-21-07 Hello, from Keene,      According to local history sources, Harry B. Brown made the first flight over Keene in 1912, and, following his "retirement" in 1914, lived in Walpole, N. H., not a great distance from Keene. I'm preparing something of an aviation and airport "history" of Keene, and would like to learn more about Brown. I wish I could locate Keene newspaper reports of his flight, etc., but that's perhaps too much to expect. Any information about Brown with respect to his flights in this neighborhood would be sincerely appreciated. Editor's Notes: I thank David for this information regarding that first flight. If you can help him to gain even more of the story, please contact me. I will forward your message to him. Thank you very much.

 

Harry B. Brown died in 1954 From The Early Birds of Aviation Roster of Members January 1, 1993   Editor's Note: If you have any information on this Early Bird, please contact me. E-mail to Ralph Cooper   Back