Bodiford’s Brown County Histories: Pioneer Aviators Visit Brownwood: 1912 – 1914  

Written by Carl Bodiford – One of the defining moments of twentieth century American history occurred on December 17, 1903 when Orville Wright made the first powered flight. That twelve second 120 foot flight placed Orville and his brother Wilbur among the greatest innovators in history. A Frenchman named Louis Paulhan was the first aviator to fly in Texas when on February 18, 1910 he made a flight in south Houston. By 1910, the number of aviators and airplanes began to increase rapidly. But flying was not only dangerous, it was also quite expensive. Consequently, these daredevils of the clouds sought locations to demonstrate the miracle of flight. For a brief moment, Brownwood became a place where the new age of flight was on display.  

First Powered Flight December 17, 1903 

Kill Devil Hills near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina

By our twenty –first century standards, powered flight was slow in capturing the imagination of ordinary Americans.  Then during forty – nine days in the fall of 1911, Calbraith Perry Rogers, flying the Vin Fiz Flyer (a popular carbonated grape drink) made the first transcontinental flight. His well – publicized flight brought aviation into popular culture. While none of his twenty–three stops in Texas were in Brownwood, The Daily Bulletin provided daily reports regarding progress of the flight.

Herman F. Westig was the barnstormer who first brought aviation to Brownwood. On February 5, 1912, Herman and his mechanic brother Ernest gave a large crowd of 2,000 persons their first view of the miracle of flight. This was quite a turn out considering that the total population of Brownwood at that time was slightly less than 7,000 persons. The Daily Bulletin reported that the Wright “B” Flyer used the “ Commons at the north end of town” for landing and take – off. The paper reported that the “people were unwilling to pay” and “preferred to watch.”  Consequently, the exhibition was rather short in duration.  The reporter called the display “disappointing” because Westig never flew higher than forty feet. It is possible that the pilot chose to fly at this dangerous altitude, where there is little room for error, in an evidently vain attempt to get the attraction of paying customers. The Daily Bulletin February 6, 1912, p. 3.      

“First Airplane in Brownwood” 1912 (Brownwood folder) in Southwest Special

Collections Library Texas Tech University

At the Free Fall Fair held in Brownwood October 7^th through the 10^th in 1913, attendees were witness to history when aviator Lester Miller of Dallas carried mail between the post offices of Brownwood and Comanche. The Postal Service had been experimenting with air mail delivery since 1911, but because of a reluctance of Congress to appropriate needed funds for a broader program, Post Master General Frank Hitchcock opted to invite county fairs to fund the demonstrations. The Free Fall Fair was chosen as one of thirty – one fairs authorized to dispatch the mails. Deliveries were made on each of the three days, but on the last day the pilot Miller flying at an altitude of 3,000 feet narrowly avoided death when his fuel line ruptured. The hushed crowd watched in amazement as the aircraft glided silently, slowly and finally to a safe landing in a hayfield. The Daily Bulletin, October 8, 9, and 11,1913.

Members of the Free Fall Fair Committee recognized the potential financial gain presented by aerial exhibitions. Curiosity regarding new aviation technology combined with the thrill of danger, would likely draw thousands into Brownwood. The potential for fatalities was a well – known reality. Between 1910 and 1914, a conservative estimate of 109 pilots and passengers died in the United States alone from airplane accidents. The dangers of aviation were made all too real when readers of the Bulletin were informed in September 1914 that Weldon B. Cooke, who had been contracted to perform at the Free Fall Fair, had been killed while attempting acrobatics in Pueblo, Colorado. The Daily Bulletin, September 17, 1914. Fortunately, organizers had the day before already contracted with Katherine Stinson to perform at the fair.  

Katherine was the ideal person to increase attendance at the fair. Promoted as a sixteen year old “Flying School Girl,” Katherine was in fact age twenty – one when she earned her flying certificate in 1912 and rapidly gained respect for her skill and courage in the air. She was one of the few aviators who could accomplish an aerial loop; a feat she successfully completed fifty consecutive times without mishap.  At Katherine’s urging, the Stinson family (mother, sister and two brothers) had moved with Katherine to San Antonio and opened a flying school. The advertisement for the 1914 Free Fall Fair announced Stinson’s plan to attempt to set a new altitude record and offered rides charging twenty – five dollars per passenger. In 1914, this amount was astronomical and was roughly equivalent to a weeks’ salary for the average worker. The Daily Bulletin, September 16, 1914.p.2

Promotional Photograph of Katherine Stinson      

The Daily Bulletin, September 26, 1914, p. 6.

Scheduling problems prevented Katherine from making an appearance at the three – day fair. Marjorie, her nineteen year old sister, who had earned her certificate only months before gave attendees at the fair an exciting show. Between October 8^th and 10^th, Marjorie made three flights and while her aerobatics lacked some the flair displayed by the more skilled Katherine, she nevertheless impressed the crowd. Marjorie, who was reportedly the “youngest aviatrix in the world” won the hearts of those she met. The Bulletin described her as; 

“a pretty little brunette, quick witted, laughing and cheerful, but stern as the German army when it comes to the requirements of her flights.”

Marjorie Stinson 1914

“An excellent aviation field” was prepared near the “Bicycle Park” on the south side of Brownwood at the west end of Coggin Avenue. The Wright biplane flown by Marjorie weighed slightly more than 1,300 pounds and averaged a speed between thirty and fifty miles an hour. Marjorie warned potential spectators not to crowd “near the machine” saying “I don’t want to cut off sombody’s head or damage my machine either.” The local Boy Scout troop served as crowd control during the exhibitions.  

Marjorie and Katherine Stinson

Marjorie awed the crowds with figure eights, flying over all sections of the city and reaching an altitude of 1,000 feet above the dome of the courthouse. Her efforts were appraised by critics as much better than those of Lester Miller in the previous year. On the last day of the fair, Marjorie narrowly avoided a serious accident due to treacherous winds. Many spectators turned away as the “plucky little girl… almost plunged to her death” over Pecan Bayou. But all ended well and everyone enjoyed the show.  The Daily Bulletin, October 6 – 10, 1914.        

But for both the organizers of local fairs and the aviators, the financial gain from these aviation extravaganzas only barely exceeded the cost. Local planners questioned if the benefit gained by these air shows justified the high base fee charged by these flyers while the pilots struggled to garner sufficient income to pay high maintenance and transportation costs.    

Only days after the closing of the 1914 event, the Bulletin reported a suggestion to “let the aeroplane flight be eliminated” from the Free Fall Fair for the next year and that the money be used to “provide a free dinner” for everyone attending the fair. The writer argued that;

“Aeroplane flights are becoming common. Every county fair has had them and everyone has seen them. For the money at the disposal of the Free Fall Fair committee, it is impossible to secure an aviator who will risk his life in making exhibition flights…. As a drawing card there could be no comparison between an aeroplane flight and a free dinner.” The Daily Bulletin, October 12, 1914.

During the remaining years, the program committee dropped the aviation exhibitions and also eliminated the motorcycle race, balloon ascension and parachute act. But despite these omissions, fair attendance increased. The change may have been caused by the fact that all visitors were treated to a sumptuous free meal.  

Research for this article suggests two truisms concerning our behavior that has remained unchanged over the last century. First, we love new gadgets for a moment and then soon grow weary and long for the next “cool” invention. And secondly, we do love our food … don’t we.