e-Newsletter | April 16, 2021

The Museum is fortunate to have in its collection a stunning hand-made scrap book about early aviation at Plum Island. The information and photographs were compiled by Bartlett Gould, a lifelong pilot fascinated with aviation history, especially the “early birds.” His wife, Margaret Bean Gould, a former secretary for the Historical Society of Old Newbury, assembled the volume in 1979 and calligraphed the story of Plum Island’s aviation in 1910. All captions below are taken directly from the scrapbook.

The “Heavier-Than-Air” Craft of Plum Island

Recipe for Flying: Mix a thousand feet of lumber            With a million yards of luck; Take a hundred yards of canvas            And a billion miles of pluck, Get a barrel of indifference,            With a tank of gasoline, And a field by some big city            Where you surely will be seen; Rig a queer new-fangled rudder            Turn it shipshape with a wheel Get a thousand-dollar motor            And some nerves of finest steel. Get your picture in the paper,            Say you’re “not quite ready yet,” And if you should take a tumble –            Why, just light a cigarette When the whole thing’s put together            Call it your new aeroplane. And if you don’t succeed at first,            Why fly, fly again. This poem, appearing in the Newburyport Daily News on March 22, 1910, captured the country’s fascination with the novelty of aviation. The idea of flying “heavier-than-air” craft enchanted, baffled, intrigued, frightened and inspired people. A mere six years after the Wright Brother’s historic flight in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, William Starling Burgess, a well-respected yacht builder from Marblehead, MA, threw his proverbial hat in the ring and attempted to design his own “aeroplane.” Burgess, born in Boson in 1878, was enthralled with the new technology of aeronautics and bent his engineering mind to developing a biplane to rival the Wright Brothers’. In this early decade of flight, precious few crafts had successfully flown any significant distance and the attempts often ended in disaster. Still, the lure of that untapped frontier of sky travel was too strong to outweigh the risks.

W. Starling Burgess, left, and Augustus M. Herring, right. All images from the collections of the Museum of Old Newbury.

Burgess and his partner in design, Augustus Moore Herring, tested the Herring-Burgess prototype in February of 1910 on the frozen Chebacco Lake in Hamilton, MA.   As it turned out, they completed the first successful flight in New England that day. With “nerves of the finest steel” Herring, as pilot, managed to lift the heavy contraption off the ice and fly for over forty feet before landing heavily.   This history-making feat only whetted the pair’s appetite for what was possible. They sold the first biplane model, which had been damaged in the flight, and went to work creating a new and improved version.   As naval architect turned aeronautics engineer, Burgess identified Plum Island as the ideal location for flight.   Flat, open, and far away from development, the marshes became a permanent site for testing new designs throughout 1910. (These grounds are about two miles southeast from the current Plum Island Airport.)    He built a number of models and was constantly refitting, repairing and altering the crafts. Many early flights were either unsuccessful in taking off or ended in crashes. The planes that were damaged were sent back down to Burgess's Marblehead shipyard.

The second Herring-Burgess biplane was brought to Plum Island in April, 1910. The hangar, which you see in the background, was located one and two-tenths miles from Plum Island center. This airplane never did fly really well.

Within a few months, Burgess's partnership with Herring deteriorated and instead he formed a new business relationship with wealthy engineer Greely S. Curtis.   They were also joined at the Plum Island aviation grounds by two new pilots, A. L. Pfitzner and William Hilliard, who along with Burgess, risked their lives regularly in order to experiment with techniques and find out if the new models were successful. Pfitzner and Hilliard became integral in the design process and the group helped push the limits of aeronautical technology to new heights.

In the late spring of 1910, Alexander L. Pfitzner joined the organization. He helped redesign the Herring-Burgess, eliminating the fins and incorporating sliding wing tips for lateral control. Although completely inexperienced, he acted as his own test pilot.

Throughout the summer of 1910, the trials drew hundreds of spectators and inspired numerous articles in the Daily News and the Boston Globe. People would ride the trolly or walk out to the marsh. They were astounded and fascinated by such an entirely novel scene, brave, daring men conquering the sky in heavier-than-air contraptions of wood and canvas.

On May 21, 1910, the Daily News article entitled “Short Flights Made at Island” recounts:   After an interval of several days, aeroplane experiments were resumed at the Plum Island aviation grounds yesterday afternoon. “Bill” Hilliard being the pilot. Several fast turns were made along the meadow and several “jumps” were made. Mr. Hilliard is fast becoming acquainted with the machine and his enthusiasm continues unabated. As soon as he feels that it is feasible, he will attempt a flight of considerable distance.

By September, all the hard work and experimentation had paid off. The Burgess-Curtis Model B, No. 3 was considered an elite craft in the national field of aviation.   Another Daily News article from the fall describes the specifications of the plane:   “The Indian V motor is the most powerful in the field, being 65 horse-power. The biplane itself is light, weighing only 600 to 650 pounds and in… short flights taken by William Hilliard… it has shown speed qualities [that are] highly impressive.” After the summer season of 1910, Burgess moved his test flights to elsewhere and the Plum Island aviation grounds went quiet. It was not until the late 1920s that aeronautic activities resumed, this time at the site of the current Plum Island airport. It grew very quickly in the 1930s, growing to three hangers, offices, flight school, a café and an asphalt runway.

William Hilliard and Joseph Shoemaker bought Herring-Burgess biplane No. 3. After Hilliard had taught himself to fly during the summer, he found it necessary to remove the fins and adopt ailerons for later control.

So, remember, as you visit the beach this summer, how some of the earliest successful flights in the country were made on our Great Marsh in 1910.

The Herring-Burgess #2 in the air. The pilot was probably Herring, who flew the biplane several times, the longest flight being 400 yards. Burgess made one short flight of 75 feet.

Two airplanes at Plum Island. The Burgess-Pfitzner is at the left.

Editor's note: Another amazing story from Madison Vlass. We wish our colleague and good friend a fond farewell and much success and happiness in her new role as site manager for the Phillips House and Gedney House in Salem and the Quincy House in Quincy. Fear not, we plan to invite her to be a guest contributor in future issues of 98 High. Inconsistencies in spelling of names, etc., are from the historical record and not a typographical error.

Representing this year's Garden Tour theme of "Sowing the Seeds: A Season of Renewal," the above image comes from a cover of one of Peter Henderson's seed and flower catalogs. Henderson is regarded by many as the "Father of American Horticulture" and was also an avid gardener, writer and seed saver. Watch here for his full story next week.

Best Deal in Town: Join the Museum of Old Newbury and Get 2-for-1 Tickets to the 42nd Annual Garden Tour Saturday, June 12 and Sunday, June 13, 2021

Become a Museum of Old Newbury member ($40) and receive 2-for-1 "Sowing the Seeds" A Season of Renewal" Garden Tour ticket pricing! Colleen Turner Secino, manager of marketing and membership engagement for the MOON, explains, "This is a terrific deal. Not only do these new members get to bring a friend with them to this year's Garden Tour, but they also enjoy the myriad museum programs and events for the coming year." It's easy as 1-2-3. Click here. Press "Select a Date" and choose the day you wish to attend (Saturday or Sunday). Note: you are welcome both days, but to purchase tickets you need to pick one of the days. Secino continues, "Next, choose one of the pricing levels, 'Members,' 'Non-Members' or 'Become a Member.' Then complete your information as prompted. " When you select "Become a Member," a second confirmation email will follow (requesting your mailing address so that we can send you your membership card and welcome letter outlining member benefits). For all tickets purchased, access to the 2021 COVID-safe, in-person Garden Tour digital booklet, including garden locations and directions, as well as a listing of all nearby restaurants, featuring several "Garden Tour" discounts, will be sent Friday, June 11, 2021. Early bird tickets now on sale! Click here to purchase.

Learn about upcoming programs, register, find Zoom links and catch up on previous presentations here.

Miss a Recent MOON Program? Watch here.

Thanks to the wonder of the Zoom platform, all of our programs are recorded and available online shortly after presentation. Visit our website for upcoming events, previous recordings, including the four 2020 Virtual Garden Tours, our Annual Meeting, children's and holiday programs, as well as all episodes of "Yeat Yeat, Don't Tell Me!" In lieu of a printed program book, we will be featuring monthly events here, as well as maintaining a complete list on our website: www.NewburyHistory.org. All of our virtual programs are free, however donations are gratefully accepted to help defray speaker fees.

May Programs Added! It's not too late to register for "China's Rocket Man" on Thursday, April 22, 2021

REGISTER: Thursday, April 22, 2021 @ 7:00 p.m. The Governor's Academy student symposia concludes with China's Rocket Man: A Deportee from the US Launches China into Space. Presented online by Tianyu Fang, '20, this program serves as a cautionary tale for our time. Register here.

REGISTER: Thursday, May 6, 2021 @ 3:00 p.m. (Rain date: Friday, May 7, 2021 @ 3:00 p.m.) Historian, author and 12th generation Newburyport-er Ghlee Woodworth will lead a COVID-safe walking tour through Old Hill Burying Ground. This is an in-person event. Masks are required and we request attendees maintain a social distance of 6', as recommended by state COVID guidelines.  LIMIT: 20 Register here.

REGISTER: Thursday, May 20, 2021 @ 7:00 p.m. Lucinda A. Brockway is the Program Director for Cultural Resources at The Trustees of Reservations where she is responsible for 112 properties and 25,000 acres of Massachusetts cultural landscape. Join us for her online presentation, Cushing House Garden: A Closer Look, when she shares the history, restoration and evolution of the MOON's Cushing House Garden. Register here.

Zoom in at Noon Today! Jack Santos, Custom House Maritime Museum, and Colleen Turner Secino, Museum of Old Newbury, dig deep into the research files for today's episode of "Yeat Yeat, Don't Tell Me!" Zoom in today by clicking here: Friday, April 16, 2021 @ noon. A combination of NPR's Wait Wait, Don't Tell Me!, Jeopardy! and Stump Trivia, "Yeat Yeat, Don't Tell Me!" is a whole new take on Q&A game shows using the Zoom platform. Visit www.NewburyHistory.org for the Zoom link to future shows.

Puzzle Me This... Map of West Newbury, County of Essex. Surveyed and drawn by Philander Anderson, 1830. From the collections of the Museum of Old Newbury. Click on the image to begin.

Something is Always Cooking at the Museum Hot and creamy crab dip, does it get any better? This recipe from Joan Kenny is a snap to put together. Serve with pita chips or toasted baguette? Yes, please! Crab Dip 1/2 pound Maryland crabmeat, picked clean 1 8-ounce package cream cheese 1/2 cup sour cream 2 tablespoons mayonnaise 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce 1/2 tablespoon dry mustard 1/4 cup grated cheddar cheese Pinch of garlic salt Sprinkle of paprika for garnish Mix cream cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, mustard and garlic salt. Add enough milk to make a creamy consistency. Stir in half the grated cheese and all of the crabmeat. Pour into a greased 1-quart casserole and top with remaining cheese. Bake for 30 minutes at 325ºF, until mixture is bubbly and browned on top. Recipe from: "Cushing House Cooks" book – $25 – Order.

During this difficult period of COVID-19, we rely on your support more than ever. We continue to develop new, online programs for you to enjoy and keep us connected and look forward to in-person events as protocols for safety loosen. We hope, if you are able, that you will consider a donation to the museum. Thank you for your continued support.

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