Paul Redfern (24 February 1902 – August 1927?) was an American
musician
A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who wri ...
and
pilot
An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...
.
In August 1927, Redfern became the first person to fly solo across the
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...
and the first to fly nonstop from North to
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...
He has never been found or heard from since he was observed flying inland over
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
. Redfern's flight was twelve weeks after
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...
made his historic flight from
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
to
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
. In 1929, Lindbergh came close to skimming the sands of the
Sea Island, Georgia, beach Redfern took off from and dropped carnations in his fellow flyer's honor. If Redfern had reached his final destination,
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
,
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
, his flight would have outdistanced Lindbergh. Redfern had an alternative landing site (Recite) planned if his fuel ran too low, but it is unknown whether he pursued that alternative or decided to continue on to Rio, where thousands awaited his arrival, including the
President of Brazil
The president of Brazil ( pt, Presidente do Brasil), officially the president of the Federative Republic of Brazil ( pt, Presidente da República Federativa do Brasil) or simply the ''President of the Republic'', is the head of state and head o ...
and movie star
Clara Bow
Clara Gordon Bow (; July 29, 1905 – September 27, 1965) was an American actress who rose to stardom during the silent film era of the 1920s and successfully made the transition to "talkies" in 1929. Her appearance as a plucky shopgirl in the ...
.
Biography
Paul Rinaldo Redfern was born in 1902 to Blanche Myrtle Redfern and Dr. Frederick Coachefer Redfern
[ in ]Rochester, New York
Rochester () is a City (New York), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, the county seat, seat of Monroe County, New York, Monroe County, and the fourth-most populous in the state after New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffalo, ...
. His uncles were Richard S. Redfern and Edwin C. Redfern. As a teenager, Paul lived in Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-largest city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the city ...
, where his father was a dean at Benedict College and an advocate for black rights who advised Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
on poverty in the South. His mother taught English at Benedict and represented South Carolina as a delegate at national political conventions. Paul was a mechanical and musical prodigy. He was planning to go to MIT, but after building several planes, he was asked by the U.S. government at age 16 to go to New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
to be a production inspector for the Army Air Corps Army Air Corps may refer to the following army aviation corps:
* Army Air Corps (United Kingdom), the army aviation element of the British Army
* Philippine Army Air Corps (1935–1941)
* United States Army Air Corps (1926–1942), or its p ...
at the Standard Aircraft Corporation
The Standard Aircraft Corporation was an American aircraft manufacturer, founded in Plainfield, New Jersey, in 1916
Standard Aircraft anticipated American entry into World War I, despite an expressed policy of isolationism. The same year it was f ...
. Upon returning to South Carolina, he became a barnstormer at air shows and started the first airport in Columbia, South Carolina. He married Gertrude Hildebrand in Toledo, Ohio
Toledo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lucas County, Ohio, United States. A major Midwestern United States port city, Toledo is the fourth-most populous city in the state of Ohio, after Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati, and according ...
, in 1925.
Flight and disappearance
In August 1927, Redfern attempted to fly from Brunswick, Georgia
Brunswick () is a city in and the county seat of Glynn County in the U.S. state of Georgia. As the primary urban and economic center of the lower southeast portion of Georgia, it is the second-largest urban area on the Georgia coastline after Sa ...
, to Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
in a Stinson SM-1 Detroiter NX-773 nicknamed the ''Port of Brunswick''. He was spotted by the Norwegian freighter ''Christian Krogh'' a few hundred miles off the coast of South America, after dropping a message asking for the ship to be turned in the direction of the nearest land, and when nearing Venezuela he was spotted by a fisherman just off the coast and then later by others in towns and outposts in Venezuela. He failed to arrive in Rio de Janeiro, and over the years more than a dozen search parties were organized. Missionaries and people visiting tribes living in the jungle reported on a white man living among the Indians, but he was never found, and no credible evidence documenting that he somehow survived the flight exists.
In September 1927, George Henry Hamilton Tate
George Henry Hamilton Tate (April 30, 1894 – December 24, 1953) was a British-born American zoologist and botanist, who worked as a mammalogist for the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. In his lifetime he wrote several book ...
, sponsored by the American Museum of Natural History
The American Museum of Natural History (abbreviated as AMNH) is a natural history museum on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. In Theodore Roosevelt Park, across the street from Central Park, the museum complex comprises 26 inter ...
, went to look for Redfern. Some believed him to still be alive as late as 1932.
In 1935, William LaVarre
William J. LaVarre (1898-1991) was an American geographer, explorer, and journalist known for his books ''Up the Mazaruni for Diamonds'' (1919) and ''Southward ho! A Treasure Hunter in South America'' (1940) and for his anti-communist writings. He ...
who was searching for diamonds in the interior of Suriname heard a story in Drietabbetje about a crippled white man who had fallen from the sky, and was now living with the Amerindians in Paloemeu
Paloemeu or Palumeu is an Amerindian village in the interior of Suriname, situated at the site where the Paloemeu River joins the Tapanahoni River. Most inhabitants of the village are native Tiriyó Amerindians. The remainder belongs to the Wayana ...
. The American consulate sent an expedition to the village, but found nothing.
In 1936, aviator Art Williams claimed he found traces of the Redfern crash in British Guiana
British Guiana was a British colony, part of the mainland British West Indies, which resides on the northern coast of South America. Since 1966 it has been known as the independent nation of Guyana.
The first European to encounter Guiana was S ...
. In the same month, newspaper articles appeared that Refern was living in a little Amerindian village not listed on any map in the Tumuk Humak Mountains
The Tumuk Humak Mountains ( nl, Toemoek-Hoemakgebergte, pt, Serra do Tumucumaque, french: Monts Tumuc Humac) are a mountain range in South America, stretching about east–west in the border area between Brazil in the south and Suriname and F ...
of British Guiana. He was married and had a son, however the Amerindians did not want to part with him. Redfern's father published a joyful reply in the papers, and credited Art Williams as the discoverer of his son. Williams who did not originate the story, discovered that Alfred Harred, a freelance reporter in Suriname, was the origin, and took him to court in Paramaribo
Paramaribo (; ; nicknamed Par'bo) is the capital and largest city of Suriname, located on the banks of the Suriname River in the Paramaribo District. Paramaribo has a population of roughly 241,000 people (2012 census), almost half of Suriname's ...
where Harred admitted that the story was false and that he had been paid to spread the falsehood.
In 1937, the 13th expedition was organized to find out his fate. Now missing for ten years, he could be legally declared dead. In February 1938 Frederick John Fox died while trying to find Redfern. In April 1938 Theodore J. Waldeck believed he found the wreckage of Redfern's plane.
His father died in 1941, still hoping that his son would be found alive. His widow, Gertrude Hillabrand, died in 1981 and was buried in Detroit, Michigan
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...
.[
In 1988 Robert Carlin believed that Redfern had flown over Ciudad Bolivar, Venezuela, only to be killed in a crash in the jungle and that a report that aviator ]Jimmy Angel
James "Jimmie" Crawford Angel (August 1, 1899December 8, 1956) was an American aviator after whom Angel Falls in Venezuela, the tallest waterfall in the world, is named.
Early life
James Crawford Angel was born August 1, 1899, near Cedar Valley, ...
had seen wreckage of Redfern's plane was not bragging, but correct.Flying Magazine Aug 1988 "The Redfern Mystery" by Len Morgan. Accessed October 15, 2018
/ref> Carlin believed the area to be approximately 40 miles NNW of Angel Falls.
See also
*List of people who disappeared
Lists of people who disappeared include those whose current whereabouts are unknown, or whose deaths are unsubstantiated. Many people who disappear are eventually declared dead ''in absentia''. Some of these people were possibly subjected to enfo ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Redfern, Paul
1902 births
1920s missing person cases
American aviators
Aviation accidents and incidents in 1927
Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents
Aviation pioneers
Missing aviators
Missing person cases in Venezuela
Musicians from Columbia, South Carolina
People declared dead in absentia
People from Rochester, New York
Year of death unknown