October 14, 1910
British aviation pioneer Claude Grahame-White (1879-1959) captured the attention of numerous Americans when he piloted a plane in the skies above Washington, D.C. This flight took place during a year that had already marked a few other major milestones for him and his airborne ambitions.
In April of that year, for example, Grahame-White became one of the first people to qualify as a pilot in England when he was awarded Royal Aero Club certificate No. 6. His celebrity status was made even stronger that same month when he took part in a widely publicized air race from London to Manchester. While French aviator Louis Paulhan (1883-193) won that competition, Grahame-White still received favorable publicity for his own performance during the race and especially for becoming the first British pilot to fly a plane at night.
Grahame-White’s flight in Washington during his trip to the United States that fall proved to be similarly memorable. Hundreds of people in the nation’s capital on that Friday witnessed this flight of more than six miles (9.7 kilometers). The flight began at Benning Race Track, a horseracing and motorsport venue in northeast Washington. (This location is now the site of Mayfair Mansions Apartments.)
The Associated Press (AP) recounted what subsequently happened as Grahame-White maneuvered his aircraft on a journey that would end up in the immediate vicinity of the White House. AP reported, “On the way thither at a height of nearly 500 feet [152.4 meters], he circled the dome of the Capitol and passed the lofty Washington Monument level with the apex.”
The accompanying photo depicts Grahame-White getting ready to complete his flight with a landing on West Executive Avenue in northwest Washington. The State, War, and Navy Building (now known as the Eisenhower Executive Office Building) can be seen to the left and that is the West Wing of the White House on the right side.
In describing this part of the flight, AP emphasized what could have gone horribly wrong if Grahame-While had messed up when touching down on the narrow street. This news service stated, “He landed between the great building of the state, war, and navy departments and the low structure of the executive offices in a space where the slightest deviation from his course would have impaled him up on the spikes of the iron fence around the White House grounds at his right or against the granite wall at his left.”
William Howard Taft (1857-1930), the U.S. president at the time, was not at the White House to welcome Grahame-White after he safely landed. Several other public officials, however, showed up to greet the world-famous pilot. These officials included George Dewey (1837-1917), the U.S. Navy admiral who earned considerable acclaim for his victory at the Battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish-American War in 1898. “I am proud to welcome you,” proclaimed Dewey while shaking hands with Grahame-White.
An hour later, Graham-White returned to his plane and flew back to Benning Race Track. Headlines in various newspapers across the country reflected the wide-ranging fascination with his excursion to the president’s official residence. “English Aviator Surprises the Washingtonians,” announced a headline in that day’s edition of the Marion Star in Ohio. A headline in the next day’s edition of the Connecticut-based Norwich Bulletin stated, “Bird-Man at White House Door.”
Photo: Public Domain
For more information on Claude Grahame-White, please check out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claude_Grahame-White
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