aviation

FRED J. WISEMAN: HOMETOWN BIRD-MAN

Jeff Elliott 2 Comments

Set your time machine for Santa Rosa, 1910; there was no better time during the early 20th century to live here. Even now, it’s an absolute pleasure to read the old newspapers and watch that year’s adventures unwind.

It was an election year and that always charged the air electric, particularly over at the Press Democrat where politics was something of a blood sport. There were four sensational murder/attempted murder cases, one which occurred during the performance of a play and one which was dramatically reenacted in court (more on that later). It was the year for Halley’s Comet and for a week or so it seemed that almost everyone was holding a “comet party,” sprawling on their lawn after dark in their nightgowns (more on that later, too).

But more than anything else, it was the year when Fred J. Wiseman and his airplane mesmerized the town. Over forty articles about him appeared in the local papers that year alone, many to report that the machine was being repaired, moved somewhere, or something was supposed to happen but didn’t. When the public even wants to hear about what you didn’t do, congratulations; you have achieved celebrity status beyond today’s Kardashians.

Even without Wiseman’s boost, Santa Rosa joined the rest of the country in going plane crazy that year. So wrought the brothers Wright that barely a week went by without newspapers reporting a flight record being broken or a plucky aviator barely escaping death by plummet. Sunday editions offered poems about flying, features about industrious children building gliders that were surely destined to break their limbs, photo spreads of dinky aircraft silhouettes flying in the distance and silly essays about impossible things, such as someday there would be trans-oceanic voyages by air (at 100 miles an hour!) or that wars would be fought by armies of bird-men.

Americans were hungry to participate by watching all that record-setting (and maybe plummeting) but opportunities were few. The first public West Coast flying exhibition came in Los Angeles during January, 1910. There French aviator Louis Paulhan flew for 35 minutes under ideal conditions, even bravely venturing out over the ocean. Others flying at that show included Charles Hamilton (more later) and aircraft designer Glenn Curtiss. Also: An Army officer in a dirigible tried to drop dummy bombs on a target, always a crowd favorite. The “air meet” moved to the Bay Area a week later, promoted by William Randolph Hearst – stop by an Examiner office for a half-price admission coupon – but Paulhan was the only pilot who flew. Weather was bad with 30 knot gusts; after a two day wait he finally made an eight minute hop when winds calmed at sunset, yet there were still 20,000 waiting to see that moment. Such was the fascination.

A few weeks later, the Santa Rosa Chamber of Commerce announced “initial steps were taken for holding a big aviation meet here at an early date…There will be at least three major flights scheduled for each day, one of which will be a cross country flights and back, with Petaluma, Healdsburg or Sonoma as the objective point. There will be at least three aviators present.” It was just big talk by a couple of promoters and nothing came of it, but there are a few details worth noting.

First, Chamber of Commerce President Ernest L. Finley seemed enthusiastic about the idea, judging by the article in the Press Democrat, which was edited and published by Ernest L. Finley. Was he the same Ernest L. Finley who wrote a 1905 editorial declaring that “the so-called flying machine [will never be] useful for any practical purpose”? Why yes, he was.

The only aviator apparently contacted about participating in the Santa Rosa air meet was Frank Johnson, a portly San Francisco clubman who was just learning to fly – somewhat. Johnson had purchased a Curtiss biplane for $8,000 at the Los Angeles exhibition but sold it a few months later after dropping it into San Francisco Bay. The SF Call wryly noted he had “other harrowing adventures in which his aeroplane crashed into fences and chased crowds of spectators around the field.” Perhaps it was a good thing that there was no air meet here for him to exhibit his skill at terrorizing audiences and general mishaps.

It’s also interesting that the PD article did not include any local “bird-men.” Charles Hamilton flew at the LA exhibition and elsewhere as the main demonstration pilot for Glenn Curtiss’ biplanes, but he was well known in Santa Rosa as a parachuting balloonist in prior years and in 1910 bought a home nearby. More significantly there was no mention of Blaine Selvage, who apparently made the first controlled flight in California (and probably the West Coast) a few months earlier in Eureka, an event covered in the Press Democrat. Selvage was still in the area with his custom-built plane. And, of course, Wiseman was not named as a flyer; just a day before the PD mentioned the planned air meet, an item appeared on the front page of the paper noting that he had given up auto racing and “will henceforth devote his time and attention to aeronautics.”

Fred J. Wiseman was already somewhat a local hero for his winning record in auto racing; as an exhibition driver for a San Francisco dealership, the 34 year-old Wiseman had raced the powerful Stoddard-Dayton automobiles sold by his boss throughout Northern California and Nevada to much acclaim. But his attendance at the Los Angeles air meet that January cemented his ambitions to take up flying and to build an aircraft with his long-time racing partner and mechanic, Jean Peters (AKA J. W. Peters, Julian Pierre and John Peters). Funding the venture was a $10,000 investment by Ben Noonan, an old Santa Rosa friend and former business partner of Wiseman’s as well as a race champ in his own right, having won the California Grand Prize Race a year earlier (Wiseman came in third). If they succeeded, it would be a sound investment; there was lots of money to be made in exhibition flying in those days. Louis Paulhan was reportedly earning $250,000 a year for appearances, the equivalent of over $6 million today.

Working under a tent in a pasture – appropriately, about a mile northeast of today’s Sonoma County Airport – they began assembling the flying machine the pair had started designing in San Francisco. About six weeks later their first test flight occurred.

Fred J. Wiseman and Jean Peters working on their aircraft at the Laughlin ranch, 1910. PHOTO: National Air and Space Museum

The Press Democrat printed a lengthy description of that version of their aircraft that will probably be of interest to historians (although not without mistakes; what they called “macadamite” was probably phenolic, for example, and poor Jean Peters was cleaved in twain, ID’ed simultaneously as “Julian Pierre and M. W. Peters”). The PD also erred in writing they were building a “Farman biplane.” Today it’s recognized that they ended up mixing features from Farman, Curtiss, and the Wright brother’s designs. Given that the Wrights were already suing Curtiss for patent infringement, the hybrid Peters-Wiseman plane had the potential to win any competition for Aeroplane Most Likely To End Up In Court.

Again the PD jumped the gun and promised the plane would fly a few weeks later at the Rose Carnival and they did participate, of sorts – but that’s getting ahead of our story. For this installment we’ll leave Fred soaring over the fields of Windsor to the delight of neighboring farmers. “Frequently the humming of the motor which is attached to the propeller of the flying machine has been heard of recent days,” reported the Press Democrat, “and the people there have been on the tiptoe of expectancy awaiting the time when the big machine would be lifted into the air.” If not a single other thing happened in 1910 worth remembering, that alone made it a terrific year.

WANT AN AVIATION MEET IN THIS CITY
Special Meeting of the Directors of the Chamber of Commerce to Be Held This Afternoon

Edward Foley and Archie Levy, two well-known amusement agents, are here trying to arrange for an aviation meet. If given the proper encouragement they will bring Johnson, who operates a Curtiss biplane, and at an early date give a meet lasting two days.

[..]

– Press Democrat, February 1, 1910
INITIAL STEPS TAKEN TO HOLD AVIATION MEET IN SANTA ROSA AT AN EARLY DATE
The Chamber of Commerce Appoints Committee to Make All the Necessary Plans and Arrangements

VARIED PROGRAM IS BEING PLANNED
There Will Be Three Major Flights Each Day, One Being a Cross Country, and in Addition Efforts Will Be Made to Secure Dirigible Balloon

At a meeting of the Chamber of Commerce held Thursday evening, the initial steps were taken for holding a big aviation meet here at an early date. After a lengthy discussion of the matter, President Ernest L. Finley was authorized to name a committee to handle the proposition and sign all necessary contracts, when in its judgement, a satisfactory agreement with the aviators shall have been arrived at. The committee consists of…The committee will begin work at once, and unless something unexpected happens in the meanwhile, complete details will be forthcoming inside of the next few days.

Varying programs will be arranged for each day, and it is possible that prizes may be offered for special achievements. There will be at least three major flights scheduled for each day, one of which will be a cross country flights and back, with Petaluma, Healdsburg or Sonoma as the objective point. There will be at least three aviators present. In addition to Frank Johnson and his Curtiss biplane, an attempt is to be made to have Roy Knabenshue and his big dirigible balloon take place in the meet. The arrangements now under contemplation provide for a two-day’s meet some time this month and as soon as can be properly provided for. The meet is sure to draw an immense crowd, as Johnson will not show at any other point within a hundred miles of Santa Rosa, with the single exception of Sacramento.

– Press Democrat, February 4, 1910
WISEMAN AIMS TO RISE IN THE WORLD
Well Known Driver Quits Automobiling and Will Devote Time and Attention to Aeronautics

Fred Wiseman, well known in this city as a daring automobilists, [sic] has severed his connection with the firm of W. J. Leavitt and Company of San Francisco and will henceforth devote his time and attention to aeronautics.

In conjunction with a number of other enthusiasts, Mr. Wiseman is now engaged in the construction of a Farman biplane, which it is expected be completed inside of a couple of months. A new and improved motor is a feature expected to work wonders in connection with the machine now in process of construction.

Associated with Mr. Wiseman are several Santa Rosans, who have likewise become interested in the new form of locomotion. They claim to have a machine that will surprise all comers, and say their motor has many advantages over any now in use.

– Press Democrat, February 3, 1910

BIG AERO-PLANE ARRIVES TO BE FINISHED HERE
The Peters-Wiseman Machine Will Soon Be Used

The Peters-Wiseman aeroplane, upon which Fred Wiseman, Julian Pierre and M. W. Peters have been working since last October, was brought up from San Francisco yesterday by freight and unloaded at Mark West station, a few miles north of this city. There it will be re-assembled and its construction completed. The machine is housed in a huge tent that has been erected for the purpose on the Laughlin ranch, and when finished will be tested in the broad field adjoining which is admirable adapted to the purpose.

The machine is about forty-five feet long and thirty-six feet wide, and is of the biplane type. Accompanying the outfit are several mechanicians [sic], all of whom are enthusiastic in their predictions as to what the machine will accomplish. Julian Pierre is in charge and under no circumstances will visitors be admitted to see the aeroplane or even allowed in the field where the tent is located. As near as can be learned, the first test is expected to take place about two weeks from date.

– Press Democrat, March 2, 1910
SANTA ROSA’S BIRD-MEN SUCCESSFULLY TOUR THE SKY IN THEIR OWN AEROPLANE
Triumph of Flight Crowns Many Months of Labor, Experiment and Study by Wiseman and Peters

THEY’LL FLY AGAIN IN CARNIVAL WEEK
Bi-plane of Local Aviators Will Be Shown to the Crowds that Come to Santa Rosa in the First Week of May

Following several minor tests the Wiseman-Peters bi-plane made a perfect flight on Friday night in the big pasture field at the Laughlin ranch at Mark West, several miles from this city, where it has been assembled since the middle of March. Not only was the bi-plane built in Sonoma county, but the genius of Santa Rosa boys has achieved a triumph. They have a machine that won’t stay on the ground, and in the air is perfectly under control of the aviator.

As stated Friday night was really the first big test, the others having been principally to tension the mechanism. Twice on Friday night Aviators Wiseman and Peters circled the big field, soaring to a height of fifty feet, not attempting to fly high, however. This is but a foretaste of what may be expected. People in the neighborhood saw something Friday they had never seen before, and are loud in their praise of the achievement of the energetic young men who have done so nobly.

Will Fly at Carnival Time

 Thousands of people will be delighted and interested to know that the Wiseman-Peters bi-plane will fly here at Rose Carnival time, and will be a special feature for Sunday afternoon, May 8, the day following the fiesta. In the meantime other tests will be made, and it is especially requested that people refrain from going to the Laughlin ranch to see the machine as in doing so they will only be hindering the finishing touches. Naturally everybody is excited and interested but the aviators and designers say they cannot explain things to the people just now as they have no time. People will have plenty of opportunities to inspect the machine as it will be on public exhibition here during carnival week and all parts will be then explained.

 Worked Industriously

It was on October 17, 1909, that Wiseman and Peters got their heads together and commenced the actual construction of the bi-plane, which is now an assured fact, and is claimed by experts to be possibly the most perfect one in existence. At the time both were employed in the automobile business of J. W. Leavitt and Co., of San Francisco, both fearless as auto racers, and both well skilled in mechanical art. From October until January 1 of the present year they worked with automobiles during the day and spent their nights evolving their ideas in connection with the bi-plane and in the manufacture of parts. In January they severed their connection with the automobile business to devote their entire attention to the construction of their airship.

They took in the aviation meets in San Francisco and Los Angeles, examined carefully and intelligently the mechanism of the machines used there, and upon a comparison of notes determined to manufacture a bi-plane which would eclipse any of the great machines used in flights in either of those cities.

Their knowledge of machinery and years of experience in the auto business was just the thing, particularly in the matter of engine construction. A San Francisco firm turned out the engine they designed. Then Wiseman and Peters rebuilt it and triumphed in the construction of an engine developing fifty horse power and weighing 148 pounds, including propeller, gasoline and dual Bosch system.

Some idea of the fine points of construction can be gained when it is stated that in the manufacture of the sockets the builders have sixty-three different patterns on them and own them all, and have applied for patents. The sockets are made of Macadamite, which is stronger and lighter and looks like aluminum.

The Wood Work

The woodwork is all laminated, two, three and four piece, and is cut tapered to the wind. The ribs of the bi-plane are three lamination making the ribs about a quarter of an inch thick and half an inch wide. Yet one of these ribs is so strong that a big man can stand on it and it will not bend.

The cloth is the best that can be procured anywhere in the world, and is manufactured specially for the purpose for which it is used.

The Wiring System

Three different styles of wiring have been employed in the construction of the bi-plane, similar to the network of wires one finds in a piano. In the network of wires in the airship there are 585 wires. The turnbuckles of different sizes are made of macadamite. The smallest turn buckle will stand a test of 1,150 pounds pressure; the middle one will not yield at a pressure of 1,940 pounds, and the largest one will not break at 4,000 pounds pressure. Before they got the kind of turn buckle they wanted for the machine Wiseman and Peters made hundreds of them and threw them away.

The wheels re manufactured after the most approved style of workmanship for the purpose for which they are intended.

In the rear of the bi-plane a light skid is used. The skid is of hickory which on the rear kite acts as wheels.

The plane in front works alternately with the plane in the rear kite. In case the driver wishes to rise he raises the plane in front and that drops the one in the rear and the machine ascends. In balancing on a curve or turn or in a current of air he manipulates the controls with his shoulders.

The seat is situated in front of the engine. There is an attachment in reach of the foot of the aviator by which he can control the height area of flight and speed.

The total weight of the Wiseman-Peters bi-plane is 670 pounds. Five gallons of gasoline and three gallons of oil are sufficient for a twenty-mile flight.

All California Material

In the construction of the Wiseman-Peters bi-plane all the material used is California product with the exception of the cloth and propeller. The cloth and propeller were secured in a foreign country. In the selection of the wood used over thirty thousand feet of lumber was gone over and the selection made. Fred Wiseman has had entire charge of the construction work. In conjunction with Mr. Peters, and with the assistance of Don Prentiss they have carried out their design to a triumphant finish and Santa Rosa can well be proud of the fact that a Santa Rosa boy has figured so prominently in the invention. Ben Noonan is the general manager and treasurer of the company, Wiseman and Peters are aviators, and Don Prentiss is the secretary of the concern. All are deserving of the warmest congratulations.

Wiseman and Peters are in San Francisco now selecting lumber for the construction of another bi-plane for use in case of accident.

Second American Machine

Another important feature about the Wiseman-Peters bi-plane is that it is practically the second American machine built outside of the Wright and Curtiss machines.

– Press Democrat, April 23, 1910
HUGE BI-PLANE MAKES SUCCESSFUL FLIGHTS
Wiseman and Peters Both Make Trips Into Air

The huge flying machine which was recently taken to the Laughlin ranch near Mark West station has been making successful flights into the air for several nights past. This is a great distinction for Santa Rosa boys Fred J. Wiseman, the racing automobile driver, is one of the aviators who has been making the flights and Peters, the mechanician, has also been seated in the big bird machine when it soared into the atmosphere.

Residents of the vicinity have been much interested in the maneuverings of the big flying machine, and have matched its dainty evolutions in the air. The flights which have been made have been extremely successful, and demonstrate that the activities of the young men connected with the trials have been along proper lines.

Don Prentiss, when seen Saturday morning, would not admit nor deny that flights have been made, but from the people residing in the vicinity it is learned that on Friday evening the big machine was frequently in the air with its burden of humanity, handling the levers.

Frequently the humming of the motor which is attached to the propeller of the flying machine has been heard of recent days, and the people there have been on the tiptoe of expectancy awaiting the time when the big machine would be lifted into the air and perform evolutions. On Friday evening the residents had the satisfaction of witnessing the flight and of seeing the macine in maneuvering and turning in the air, indicating how easily it is controlled.

From the descriptions given of the aerial flights, the machine is in every way an unqualified success, and much is expected of it in the future. It is most likely that the machine will be exhibited here during the carnival and probable that flights will be arranged for the afternoon of Sunday, May 8, the day following the carnival.

The machines is known as the Wiseman-Peters bi-plane, and the young men have been building the machine at the place where the flights were made since the first part of March. At that time the parts of the machine were packed in boxes and at the ranch the machine has been assembled and gotten into splendid working condition. It is one of the strongest flying machines on the market, and its dimensions are about thirty-four by forty-four feet.

Associated with Wiseman and Peters are Don C. Prentiss and Ben Noonan of this city. They have made a great success of their undertaking.

The huge bird-like machine was off the ground for quite a goodly length of time Friday evening, and this performance was repeated many times.

– Santa Rosa Republican, April 23, 1910

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THE FIRST AIRMAN OF THE REDWOOD EMPIRE

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The sun was going down and there was a winter storm approaching, so there would be no do-overs that November day. Friends who had gathered in the field watched as the 24 year-old man took his seat in front of the controls and revved his home-built engine to a roar. Then, according to a local newspaper, “the machine dragged itself over the rough ground for a distance and then evenly ascended.” It was the first airplane flight north of the Golden Gate, and one of the first anywhere on the West Coast. The pilot/designer was Blaine G. Selvage, and his accomplishment is completely forgotten today. And so is he.

That first flight took place November 16, 1909, outside of Eureka. Selvage flew three-quarters of a mile in a minute and a half, an average speed of 30MPH. He might have gone farther, had he more than a gallon of gasoline in his tank.

The most significant aspect of his flight was that he demonstrated control of the aircraft by flying in a circle almost back to his starting point; most first-time pilots barely managed to keep the thing wobbling along in a straight line. The man who might have made the first California flight ten weeks earlier, Glenn Martin (of later Lockheed Martin fame) flew just 100 feet in Santa Ana, barely above the height of clotheslines.

All of these pioneer California aviators – Martin, Selvage, and a bit later, Fred J. Wiseman – were building their aircraft without blueprints, without experienced help, and never having actually seen a plane in flight except for grainy films shown at nickelodeons. What they did share was a brain fever that they could take some wire, bits of wood, a little canvas and a gasoline motor – common items you could find in any garage or around any farm – and somehow end up with a machine that would fly you through the air.

While Martin and most other Americans were trying to copy the Wright Brother’s biplane, Selvage had built the sort of single wing plane that they were making in France. An aviation-enthusiast magazine of the time described it as a “combination of a Bleriot and Antoinette,” which probably meant that it looked much like the actual 1909 Bleriot shown in modern-day flight in the video here, except that his plane had a longer wingspan. More technical details about his aircraft can be found in the articles transcribed below.

A few days after his premiere flight, the Press Democrat reprinted in full an account from the Eureka Herald. The PD had previously claimed that Selvage would be making his first flights from Santa Rosa, and the reprinted article included a preface that Selvage was “formerly a well known Santa Rosa boy.” Selvage and several brothers were rooming together here in recent years and working as laborers; they were probably among the men struggling to rescue the injured and extinguish the fires after the Great Earthquake of 1906.*

Selvage told a local paper that he had a lucrative offer in Southern California for exhibition flights, and might enter a $10,000 Los Angeles competition. Whether he did either is unknown, but about six months later, on June 5, 1910, he was back in Eureka to make arrangements for exhibition flights on the Fourth of July. He said he had been in Oakland, where he made “a number of flights” and was “studying aeronautics and experimenting in aviation.”

Oakland was exactly where you’d expect to find someone like Selvage in 1910. That year it was the hub of all things aeronautical in the Bay Area, with local pilots operating from an old racetrack in nearby Alameda. “The most successful flights which have taken place in Alameda County, Ca., have been made by Blaine Selvage in a monoplane, which he built himself,” an item in Aircraft magazine noted that September. “Three times on the same day he flew several miles and returned to the starting place without the slightest hitch.” The magazine also reported, “Selvage’s ambition is to be the first aviator to fly across San Francisco Bay.”

Being the first to make a transbay flight was apparently a dream of many aviators at the Alameda airfield that autumn. A pilot named Ivy Baldwin twice told the Oakland Tribune that he was about to make the crossing, but his durned Curtiss biplane happened to be in the shop. There were rumors of a $1000 prize offered by an unnamed San Francisco club. New achievements in aviation were reported prominently in this era, but I’m unable to find a story describing the first transbay flight in either Oakland or San Francisco newspapers – probably because all interest in that fizzled as aviation in California suddenly made a quantum leap forward.

The first triggering event for this rapid change was the December announcement of a $5000 prize for the first flight from San Francisco’s Tanforan airfield to San Rafael and back – a 60+ mile round trip probably partly over the ocean, which made the 12 mile hop across the quiet waters of the Bay look pipsqueak.

But the big shock was the January 7, 1911 air meet in San Francisco, followed a couple of weeks later by a similar event in Los Angeles. This was not an exhibition of novice pilots like Selvage who were proud to demonstrate that they could circle an airfield and land without crashing; this was a performance by the best aviators in the world flying the best planes. Hubert Latham, who had been one of the first to attempt crossing the English Channel in 1909, flew over downtown San Francisco and became the first pilot to cross through the Golden Gate. The same day James Radley thrilled crowds by looping over the Bay, circling “Goat Island” (Yerba Buena), flying 25 feet above the water around an Oakland-to-SF ferry boat, and buzzed a naval battleship so closely that the Rear Admiral attested he could have shot it down with a rifle, if he were so inclined. (Both Radley and Latham, by the way, were flying monoplanes similar to Selvage’s.)

Perhaps Selvage felt humbled by their honed skills and expensive, high-powered machines, but his career as a pioneer aviator was apparently over. There may be further century-old newspapers and magazines yet to be discovered that will show he continued exhibition flying after the Tanforan event, but the complete absence of any mention in the press after 1910 suggests that he called it quits. Or maybe his plane was repossessed; in August, 1910 he had accepted $500 from a backer that was apparently secured by the plane (in a snarky little front page item, the Oakland Tribune commented, “When in need of hard cash why–mortgage your air ship of course”).

Blaine’s trail is hard to follow over the next forty years. The 1913 Eureka directory shows him working as a machinist, and married in 1916 to a woman named Faye. That marriage appears to have not lasted long; Mrs. Faye Selvage is in Eureka the following year, but not him. We find Blaine next in 1923, working as a machinist in Stockton, then a building contractor in San Mateo, 1938. Selvage returned to Santa Rosa in his final years and operated businesses dealing in concrete. In 1953 he filed for a patent on a “combined wheelbarrow and cement mixer,” still the inventive thinker.

Blaine G. Selvage, unmarried and childless, died here on July 4, 1967, at the age of 81. No obituary for him appeared in either the Santa Rosa or Eureka newspapers. So forgotten was he at death that even his grave was unmarked, and so it still remains.

(RIGHT: Unmarked grave of Blaine G. Selvage, the first to pilot an aircraft north of the Golden Gate. The grave is in Santa Rosa’s Memorial Park Rose section, E-36)

On the 50th anniversary of his first flight in 1969, there were a few mentions in the Eureka Times-Standard. His brother, Harry, was interviewed, and told a newspaper columnist that he remembered Blaine building the aircraft and testing the engine, and being there when his brother took to the air. He mentioned that after 1910, Blaine did not abandon flying entirely; Harry said “he carried passengers in his private flying service, working out of Santa Rosa” (alas, his brother didn’t specify the decade in which that happened). And maybe some of his airman DNA always remained; the mixer part of his wheelbarrow invention was fundamentally the blade of a slow-turning propeller.

*Born in Eureka in 1885, the 1905 Santa Rosa directory lists him as “G. Blaine Selvage,” and his family genealogists state his birth name was Gelespie Blaine Selvage, which is probably a corruption of his grandfather’s name, Guissippe Selvaggi. At some point before 1909, he swapped the middle name and initial and was known as Blaine G. Selvage for the remainder of his life.
WILL MAKE AEROPLANE FLIGHT FROM SANTA ROSA

Blaine Selvage, a well known young mechanic of Eureka, has practically perfected a model of a new aeroplane of his own invention, with which he has already made several successful trial flights in private. Mr. Selvage is planning to bring his machine to Santa Rosa, where he will make his first public exhibition and trial flights.

The machine which Mr. Selvage has built consists of two plane surfaces, both 40 feet in length and six feet wide. These surfaces are connected with light but strong supports and rods of different materials, the machine built along practical lines.

A feature of the machine is an appliance whereby the man controlling the machine can make the aeroplane swing and rock from side to side and turn on an unsteady course, much as a bird in flight. This feature of the machine is now before the patent office at Washington and within a short time Mr. Selvage expects to receive his patents. The course of the aeroplane is determined by a horizontal rudder.

The motor which is now being built for the model machine is being built under the direction of Mr. Selvage. The engine is a four-cylinder motor and is capable of developing 30 horsepower. The feature of the motor is its small size and light weight which will make it adaptable for use by the aeroplane.

– Press Democrat, August 12, 1909

SELVAGE TAKES HIS FIRST FLIGHT IN OWN AEROPLANE

A few days ago the Press Democrat mentioned the achievements of Blaine Selvage, formerly a well known Santa Rosa boy, with his self constructed aeroplane at Eureka. The Eureka Herald gives the following detailed, interesting account of his first flight, which will be read with interest by his many friends here:

In the air for a minute and a half, during which time almost a complete circle was traversed, was the feat performed at the Woods resort on the Arcata road yesterday afternoon at 5:30 o’clock. Mr. Selvage made a genuine test and his machine took to the air as nicely as a Wright machine ever tried to do . Mr. Selvage was in town this morning. Despite his modesty as to his achievement the young man was appreciably proud of his machine and exceedingly gratified at the success he enjoyed late yesterday afternoon.

Had the aeronaut had more gasoline in his machine he would have remained in the air longer. One cylinder of his four-cylindered motor began to miss. The aeronaut concluded that it would be well for him to land before any of the other cylinders refused to work. After landing and an examination of the motor made, it was found that the supply of gasoline had been practically exhausted. But one gallon of gasoline had been put in the tank and a part of this had been used in turning over the motor before a flight was attempted. More gasoline had been ordered sent out bit it did not arrive. Hence Mr. Selvage made his initial flight with a shortage of fuel.

The flight was made in a field to the south of the Woods hotel on the Arcata road. The field is no larger than is required for aeroplane maneuvers. Upon starting, the vertical rudder was put hard over. The machine dragged itself over the rough ground for a distance and then evenly ascended. When a height of 20 feet had been attained Mr. Selvage adjusted his planes [sic] to go no higher. He did not care to seek a high altitude upon the initial flight. The machine answered the levers nicely and gave evidence of having sufficient strength to withstand the strain that it must undergo. The motor behaved nicely until the gasoline was exhausted. With the vertical rudder kept hard over the machine circled about the field and would have returned to the place of beginning had there been plenty of gasoline and a landing not been made.

The Selvage machine is a monoplane. It is 40 feet from end to end of the plane, which extends on either side of the light frame work supporting the motor and affording a seat for the aeronaut. The machine was built in this city at the Pacific garage by Mr. Selvage, he making the motor himself.

Mr. Selvage says that he will not attempt to make another flight for afew days, probably not until the latter part of this week or the first of next week. He wishes to place stronger wheels beneath his machine. He is having wide hubbed wheels made especially for the machine. In landing a considerable strain is put upon the wheels. The landing of last evening came very near putting one of the wheels out of commission. Until this matter is attended to the young man will not attempt to make another flight.

The flight of yesterday afternoon was witnessed by a few invited friends of Mr. Selvage He wished to try out the aeroplane in the presence of a few before permitting the general pubic to know of the time of any intended flight.

– Press Democrat, November 21, 1909

TO FLY AFTER STORM

Blaine Selvage, the young Eurekan who in an aeroplane of his own construction succeeded in flying three-quarters of a mile in a minute and a half last Tuesday night, stated last evening that immediately after the present storm is over he will make another flight out on the Arcata road near Woods’ resort.

Selvage is putting more substantial wheels under his flying machine and the next time he ascends heavenward it will be with the firm resolve to make a record breaking flight.

The inventor states he is confident he could fly over the top of Eureka, and but one thing discourages such an attempt, the possibility of his engine breaking while in mid air which would necessitate a descent to terra firma. House tops to not offer a descent to terra firma. House tops do not offer all that might be required for a place of alightment.

After several more flights in this county, Selvage will be ready to sally forth in search of new fields to conquer, it being his intention to go to Lon Angeles and try for the Harris Gray Otis prize, the millionaire newspaperman in the City of Angels is offering.

Selvage is confident he has infringed on none of the patents awarded to the Wright Brothers or any other aviator, and he has several applications for patent on his machine pending.

His 40 horse power engine of four cylinders made entirely by himself, Selvage declares to be the greatest factor in his success. A new system of lubrication has been used to advantage in the Selvage engine and even when it is geared to 1000 revolutions per hour the machinery does not become heated.

Other aviators have had considerable trouble with their engines, their machines becoming so heated while working at full speed in the air that long flights are impossible. Selvage thinks he has successfully bridged this gap.

Then again, the Selvage aeroplane is equipped with steering and balancing devices far superior to any yet used. Generally the amateur aviator has trouble on his first flight in keeping the machine right side up, but Selvage did not experience the slightest difficulty from that source in his first dash into the clouds.

The Selvage machine is of the monoplane type used considerably by French aviators, the Wrights are using a biplane.

– The Humboldt Times, November 19, 1909 as reprinted in “Redwood Country” Eureka Times-Standard, November 21, 1969

IS ASKED TO FLY AGAIN

Blaine Selvage, the young machinist of this city who recently made a flight of three-quarters of a mile in a minute and a half in an aeroplane, monoplane type, of his own construction has already received tempting offers for exhibitions in other parts of the state.

There is soon to be a big jubilation in Ventura and Selvage has been offered $500 and all expenses to make flights in that county during the carnival. Selvage has about decided to accept the offer and he is planning to leave Humboldt county soon to keep the engagement.

After Ventura, he told The Times, he would then fly on to Los Angeles to accept the challenge for a $10,000 purse being offered by the publisher of The Los Angeles Times.

[..]

It has been suggested that Mr. Selvage be asked to make a number of flights in this city next Fourth of July or next fair week and something of that nature may be arranged. This winter he wants to go to Southern California where there are flying contests.

Selvage has demonstrated that he has mastered the air in a measure and he will no doubt have more engagements to make exhibition flights that he can attend to hereafter.

– The Humboldt Times, November 23, 1909 as reprinted in “Redwood Country” Eureka Times-Standard, November 21, 1969

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THE VOYAGE OF THE “AER FERVENS”

Jeff Elliott Leave a comment

This item is absolutely stuff ‘n’ nonsense, which raises the question of why it even appeared in the Press Democrat. Certainly stories sometimes had tongue-in-cheek slants; just a few weeks later, for example, W. S. Davis again was in the news, this time as a great fisherman who landed his prize catch at a grocery on the way home. But in my readings, such a completely fantastic yarn is unprecedented in either Santa Rosa paper of this era.

Today we likely can’t unravel all the inside jokes and cultural references here; “Aer Fervens” is elementary Latin for “hot air,” and the general ridicule of aviation may relate to editor Finley’s belief that nothing would ever become of these flying machines, as shown in his op/ed discussed in the following post. Oates is, of course, the first owner of Comstock House, and Davis was his next-door neighbor. Ads in other California newspapers for St. Louis-brewed Budweiser began appearing after the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis, so perhaps the beer was viewed as an exotic import around Santa Rosa at this time.

Santa Rosa Skyship Sails

Last night at 9 o’clock the new skyship “Aer Fervens” mounted to the clouds from the grounds of the residence of its inventor and builder, W. S. Davis; and after steering a zigzag course for a few minutes, just as a carrier pigeon does in geting its bearings, the new craft turned its nose to the southwest and followed a straight course over the hills and toward Bennett Valley.

A “message” was sent to President Roosevelt apprising him of the airship’s flight; and the President responded with congratulations, and the announcement that he had appointed the inventor to the rank and station of “Rarest Admiral” in the navy, and assigned him to the command of the aerial fleet. For many months “Rarest Admiral” Davis had burned the midnight oil in working upon his invention. Last night his efforts were crowned, and he was a proud man as he watched the product of his hands and brain soar among the clouds, and disappear over the hills.

The launching of the skyship was attended by appropriate ceremony. Colonel J. W. Oates, who is financially interested in the enterprise, sang “Up in a Balloon,” and the inventor broke an empty Budweiser bottle over the prow as the vessel mounted skyward. The “Aer Fervens” is equipped with wireless telegraph apparatus, by means of which the following message was sent to those who were waiting:

“Bennett Valley Grange Hall, 10 p. m. — Landed 9:45, good condition. Only ten pages of speech used as fuel. Will present remainder to Judge Barham. As passed over Taylor mountain, saw plainly Jim Hallihan at back door putting out cat, prepariory [sic] for retiring. Goodnight.”

– Press Democrat, July 4, 1905

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