JAMES HARTNESS 1861-1934

JAMES HARTNESS & CHARLES LINDBERGH July 30, 1927 A Meeting in Springfield, Vt. Photo courtesy of Hartness House, 12-20-05

 

ONLINE RESOURCES      If you search for " James Hartness" +aviation, using the Google search engine, (12-20-05), you will find about 41 links.

Hartness House - History, Observatory and Museum Springfield Vermont      This page on the Hartness House website offers a very comprehensive history of the man and his works and is a good starting point. Included is a section on his longtime activity in the field of aviation. Included are a number of interesting photographs, including several which show Hartness himself, and links to other informative sites. You can access the site by clicking on the title above.      If time permits, I suggest that you visit the homepage of Hartness House, which is currently being operated as a Bed & Breakfast. You can access that page by clicking on the name above.

James Hartness      "James Hartness (1861-1934) was an inventor, company president, aviator, and governor of Vermont; he was a man of endless curiosity and innovation. He was awarded patents for numerous inventions, including lathes, sundials, and telescopes      The preceeding quotation from the website serves to introduce the reader to the many accomplishments of James Hartness. The following quotation offers more details as to his experiences and an aviator and specifically as a student of Howard Reinhart. "At age 53, in 1914, Hartness purchased his own Wright Flyer. The Flyer was still being developed, was inherently unstable, and personally risky, but he was determined to master this new technology. He developed an airfield outside of Springfield, Vermont, and took flight instruction from the aviator Howard Reinhart, a friend of the Wright brothers. James Hartness became one of the first certified pilots in the United States. But aviation was not just a hobby; he serving in an advisory capacity in the development and manufacture of airplanes for the army during WWI."       You can access the site by clicking on the title above.

 

 

James Hartness died in 1934.   If you have any information on this pioneer aviator please contact me. E-mail to Ralph Cooper

 

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