Alan Ramsay Hawley
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Alan Ramsay Hawley (July 29, 1864 – February 16, 1938) was one of the early aviators in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. In 1910, he won the national race with his balloon '' America II'' alongside his aide and life-long friend
Augustus Post Augustus Thomas Post Jr. (8 December 1873 – 4 October 1952) was an American adventurer who distinguished himself as an automotive pioneer, balloonist, early aviator, writer, actor, musician and lecturer. Post pursued an interest in transp ...
. Hawley was the first passenger to fly in an airplane from
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
to
Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, in May 1916. He was the president of the
Aero Club of America The Aero Club of America was a social club formed in 1905 by Charles Jasper Glidden and Augustus Post, among others, to promote aviation in America. It was the parent organization of numerous state chapters, the first being the Aero Club of New ...
from 1913 to 1918.


Biography

He was born on 29 July 1869 in
Perth Amboy, New Jersey Perth Amboy is a city (New Jersey), city in Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County, New Jersey. Perth Amboy is part of the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 55,4 ...
, to Peter William Radcliffe Hawley (1829–1884) and Isabella Meritt (1838–1904). He attended the Trinity School in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
before becoming a
stockbroker A stockbroker is a regulated broker, broker-dealer, or registered investment adviser (in the United States) who may provide financial advisory and investment management services and execute transactions such as the purchase or sale of stocks an ...
with his brother, William Hawley, until he retired in 1912. On January 1, 1907, he ascended with Major James C. McCoy in a balloon '' Orient'' in
St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...
. On April 22, 1907, he ascended over in his balloon with Arthur T. Atherolt. He entered the 1910 Gordon Bennett International Balloon Race with
Augustus Post Augustus Thomas Post Jr. (8 December 1873 – 4 October 1952) was an American adventurer who distinguished himself as an automotive pioneer, balloonist, early aviator, writer, actor, musician and lecturer. Post pursued an interest in transp ...
and they left the grounds of the Aero Club of
St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
at 5:45 p.m. on Monday, October 17, 1910, in their balloon '' America II''. The balloon had been specially constructed in France for this race and was owned by Major James C. McCoy. During the flight they took watches of three hours each, "one sleeping and one watching the statiscopes, aneroid, and other instruments" (sic). A recording barograph (altimeter) kept a precise log of their altitude during the flight. They reached altitudes of 5,000 meters (16400 ft) above the altitude of St. Louis, their 0 altitude reference point. St. Louis is at 140 meters (465 ft) above sea level. 46 hours later, at 3:45 p.m. on Wednesday, 19 October they landed in the middle of the wilderness in Quebec, Canada, about north of
Chicoutimi Chicoutimi () is the most populous borough (arrondissement) of the city of Saguenay in Quebec, Canada. It is situated at the confluence of the Saguenay and Chicoutimi rivers. During the 20th century, it became the main administrative and com ...
. They had been forced to land because of a storm. They were on a hillside at some altitude and had traveled 1887.6 kilometers (1,173 mi) from St. Louis. They had traveled at an average of 50 kilometres per hour (30 miles per hour). The next day they traveled south towards the last inhabited area they had passed over. Hawley was slowed by an ankle twisted just after landing. For the next three days they walked, sleeping under their blankets at night and eating a bare minimum of food. They eventually came upon a trapper's hut, at the edge of Lake St. John, which was not occupied at that moment. They rested there for a day, after which two
French Canadian French Canadians (referred to as Canadiens mainly before the twentieth century; french: Canadiens français, ; feminine form: , ), or Franco-Canadians (french: Franco-Canadiens), refers to either an ethnic group who trace their ancestry to Fren ...
men out on a hunting trip arrived and agreed to help them. The trappers took them to
Saint-Ambroise-de-Kildare, Quebec Saint-Ambroise-de-Kildare is a municipality (Quebec), municipality in the Lanaudière region of Quebec, Canada, part of the Joliette Regional County Municipality. History In 1803, the geographic township of Kildare was proclaimed, named after th ...
. Once there, they sent telegrams to family and the Aero Club to let them know they were alright. The message Hawley sent to his brother read: "Landed in wilderness week ago, fifty miles north of
Chicoutimi Chicoutimi () is the most populous borough (arrondissement) of the city of Saguenay in Quebec, Canada. It is situated at the confluence of the Saguenay and Chicoutimi rivers. During the 20th century, it became the main administrative and com ...
. Both well —Alan." Their telegrams ended searches which had various parties had started, looking for them around the
Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...
. Clifford B. Harman, a wealthy amateur aeronaut and aviator, had offered $1,000 to anyone who found Hawley and Post, dead or alive. On the evening before their telegrams were sent, Harmon had increased the reward to $7,000. He died of
coronary thrombosis Coronary thrombosis is defined as the formation of a blood clot inside a blood vessel of the heart. This blood clot may then restrict blood flow within the heart, leading to heart tissue damage, or a myocardial infarction, also known as a heart at ...
on February 16, 1938, at age 73 at his home, 400
Park Avenue Park Avenue is a wide New York City boulevard which carries north and southbound traffic in the boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx. For most of the road's length in Manhattan, it runs parallel to Madison Avenue to the west and Lexington Av ...
.


References


Further reading

* ''Flying'', volume VII, number 11. December 1918. Published by Flying Association, New York. * ''A Record Voyage in the Air'' by August Post. In Robert U. Johnson editor, ''
The Century Magazine ''The Century Magazine'' was an illustrated monthly magazine first published in the United States in 1881 by The Century Company of New York City, which had been bought in that year by Roswell Smith and renamed by him after the Century Associatio ...
.'' Vol ??. Pages 451 to 470. Published by
The Century Company The Century Company was an American publishing company, founded in 1881. History It was originally a subsidiary of Charles Scribner's Sons, named Scribners and Company, but was bought by Roswell Smith and renamed by him after the Century Associ ...
, New York. * ''City Of Flight: The History of Aviation in St. Louis'' by James J. Horgan. The Patrice Press. * ''Blue Ribbon Of The Air, The Gordon Bennett Races'' by Henry Serrano Villard. Smithsonian Institution Press.


External links


History of air mail in the United States

wdhawley.org
– Website detailing the life and art of Alan's sister,
Wilhelmina Douglas Hawley Wilhelmina Douglas Hawley (1860-1958) was an American painter who emigrated to the Netherlands. Biography Hawley was born in Perth Amboy, New Jersey on July 13, 1860. She studied at the Cooper Union Women's Art School and the Art Students Leagu ...
. {{DEFAULTSORT:Hawley, Alan Ramsay 1869 births 1938 deaths American aviation record holders American aviators American stockbrokers Balloon flight record holders Members of the Early Birds of Aviation People from Perth Amboy, New Jersey Trinity School (New York City) alumni