1886-1954 |
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from WHO'S WHO IN AMERICAN AERONAUTICS, 1925 |
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ALLAN, A. LIVINGSTON, Commercial Aviation; Born, Bayonne, N. J., Dec. 20, 1886; son of William
George Allan and Nellie (Hancox) Allan; married, Hazel Nettie Nelson, June 10, 1917. Educated: Bayonne High School Aeronautical Activities: Graduated Curtiss Flying School, Hammondsport, N. Y., early in 1915; taught flying in England, Dec. 1915 to June 1916; Chief Civilian Flying Instructor, Air Service, U. S. Army, Aug. 1916 to Dec. 1918; Pilot for Curtiss Aero & Motor Corp. from March 1919 to date. Flying Rating: Aero Club License, Seaplane, No. 42, Expert Land Certificate No. 67; British Empire Certificate No. 2864. War Service: 2nd Lt. R.F.C., 1915-1916; Chief Civilian Flying Instructor, Air Service, U. S. Army, Aug. 1916 to Dec. 1918. Member: Aero Club of America. Present Occupation: Manager and Pilot, Curtiss Flying Station, Atlantic City, N.J. |
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Collection of Jerome N. Goggin, 7-20-08 |
Collection of John Erdman, 4-11-06 |
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April 22, 1921 Collection of Jerome N. Goggin, 7-20-08 I ran across your website while trying to find information on the attached photo and certificate from the Curtiss Flying Station in Atlantic City. The passenger in the photo was my father, William H. Goggin (1896-1964). Thanks to your splendid efforts, I was able to get the information I sought and also compare my dad's photo to that of Elsie Brinton's sent in by John Erdman. From the certificate numbers, it would appear the Curtiss Flying Station was a pretty busy place. My dad's number is 5055 dated April 22, 1921 and Elsie Brinton's appears to be number 6842 dated September 30, 1921. If my assumptions are correct, this amounts to almost 78 paid flights a week. Extrapolating backwards, this means the flights started at least a year and a quarter earlier, or no later than January 1920. Incidentally, At the time of the photo my dad was not quite 25 and unmarried. Elsie Brinton looks pretty cute. I wonder what might have happened if Elsie had taken her flight 23 weeks earlier! Jerome N. Goggin Claremont, NH |
September 30, 1921 Collection of John Erdman, 4-11-06 Some years ago in my flying days in Wilmington DE, I picked up at a fly-in flea market, a framed and matted original photo and "Certificate of Flight" issued by the Curtiss Flying Station in Atlantic City. It apparently was issued as a proof a woman from Philadelphia had made a flight on Sept 30,1921. The certificate is signed by A. L. Allan (pilot) and Herbert Walrath (Manager of the Flying Station). If this is accurate then the bio info I've seen for this Early Bird needs a little correction... A. L. Allan more likely became manager of the Flying Station in Atlantic City in 1921 or after. Not 1920 as stated. Thought not explicitly identified, the people in the photo appear to be Allan, Walrath, and the passenger, Elsie Brinton. The man in the pilot's seat appears to be older than 35 which is the age A L Allan would have been. The 35 yr old with a dark mustache and dressed to impress, is posed standing behind the airplane. I might guess that this is him. The pilot looks to be 50-ish. Also the reason I was surfing and found your web page is because I was trying to identify the airplane type. As it has Curtiss boldly on the side of the cockpit and this was from the Curtiss Flying Service, it's probably a Curtiss airplane . But it's clearly not a JN-4. It seems to be a land (not sea) plane because people are standing and walking behind it. The tandem cockpit is very much further forward than on a JN-4. The pilots head is just about below the leading edge of the upper wing and there's a heavy strut going from the top wing diagonally forward and anchored just in front of the passenger's seat.. Any ideas of what model airplane this might be? I haven't been able to find any photos that would identify it. I went to the library and got a book out about the Curtiss airplanes and still couldn't make an ID, tho the F Boat and the HS-1 were the only two possibilities. So thanks for your prompt ID. A detailed exam of the photo in close up shows indeed that the airplane in question is an F Boat when compared to several other photos including yours. Editor's Note: I thank John for sharing this beautiful and important photograph with us. I was happy to be able to identify the plane as a Curtiss F boat, such as was flown by my father-in-law, Walter E. Lees. |
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September 25, 1921 Collection of Edith C. Ralon, 2-14-11 Are you are still looking at Flight Certificates from Curtiss Flying Station, Atlantic City? My mother Lillie J. Leeds and fellow workers in a law firm, Atlantic City, were offered free flights if they would show up at the air field. Mother's certificate is # 6155 and dated September 25, 1921. She often said she was a schill to entice others to take paid flights over Atlantic City. I still have the certificate signed by aviator A. L. Allan and manager Herbert R or P Walrath. Mother was a single lady of twenty-eight at the time, two years before she married my father. Mother lived til 1983 and traveled by plane from Maryland to Florida and back for ten years winters. Her last trip was 1974. My father did not want to fly, so he traveled by Greyhound bus all those winters, until his last trip was by plane. Edith C. Ralon |
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Collection of John Erdman, 4-11-06 |
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