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By 1915, pioneer aviator Art Smith was as celebrated as any movie star might be today. He thrilled audiences with his barnstorming feats, doing "death spirals," sky writing, "loop-the-loops," and night flights using phosphorus fireworks. He was a consummate showman and had he not died in 1926, his name probably would be familiar to most Americans. He glamorized and popularized aviation while testing the boundaries of aeronautical principles.
As a boy he longed to fly before he had ever seen an airplane. His parents believed in him, and he was fortunate to have a best friend named Al Wertman who helped him build an airplane. His fame spread around the globe and in 1916, the Japanese offered him $10,000 for a series of exhibitions. His flying skills inspired a young Wiley Post to a life of aviation. After Smith's death, when Lindbergh flew over Fort Wayne and dipped his wings, he gave credit to the "Bird Boy" Art Smith.
The story of this rising star in American aviation is one of adventure, romance, scandal and history. Using Smith's own autobiographical writings, the story is also a factual account of events in early aviation. The book includes photographs and postcards in Art Smith's own handwriting mailed to Al Wertman.
List of contents
Table of ContentsPreface 1 Blue Skies-1909
2 The Mortgage-1910
3 The "Smash-up Kid"-1910
4 The Birdboy-1910
5 Midwestern Flights-1911
6 New Heights-1911
7 Not on Calhoun Street-1912
8 Elopement-1912
9 Hometown Celebrity-1913
10 Fame-1913-1914
11 The San Francisco Exposition-1915
12 King of the Air-1915
13 San Diego, Other Towns, and Headlines-1915
14 A Celebrity in Japan-1916
15 Scandal, Surgery, and Business-1916-1917
16 A Second Trip to Japan-1917
17 World War I and Military Preparedness-1917-1921
18 The Mail Service and Ohio Lights-1921-1926
19 Tributes-1926-1928
20 Smith Field and Beyond-1926 to the Present
21 An Unknown Love-1995
22 Letters-1923-1926
23 A Final Word
Notes Bibliography Index
About the author
Rachel Sherwood Roberts of Auburn, Indiana, has written a number of cover stories for Traces of Indiana. Her work has appeared in regional and national publications. For fifteen years, Roberts wrote the "View and Review" column for the Evening Star in Auburn.
