Bellefonte is known for their Victorian Homes but true history happened here and should not be forgotten. The American Philatelic Society celebrated the heroic era of the pioneer air mail pilots with the dedication of a monument in their honor. The granite monument, erected at the confluence of Logan Branch and Spring Creek, beside the American Philatelic Center (The Match Factory), was the gift of Paul J. Mulvehill, a former pilot with a passion for air mail. From 1919 to 1927 Bellefonte was a major refueling stop for mail traveling from New York to Chicago. Flying the fog-shrouded ridges of the Allegheny Mountains in one of the early biplanes with the most primitive of navigational equipment (one pilot famously used a half-empty whiskey bottle strapped to the dash to tell when his wings were level) was a feat of incredible daring and skill -- six pilots would lose their lives flying what was popularly known as the “hell stretch” between 1919 and 1927.The initial stop on the first scheduled westbound air mail flight was made in Bellefonte by Pilot Leon D. Smith on December 18, 1918. The site for the field was chosen by pioneer aviator Max Miller and was in regular use for air mail until 1925. That site is the present Bellefonte High School on East Bishop St. bellefontearts.org/Smith_pages/Smith_airfield.htm
Posted on: Sun, 09 Nov 2014 21:30:00 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015