Brattleboro’s Air Disaster of 1922
In 1922, a big flying event was held on the Retreat Meadows, back when it was still a meadow. The World war had ended and Brattleboro was interested in the potential of aviation for civilians. Pilots flew in for a weekend of events, competitions, and demonstrations at a special aviation event that Governor Hartness, a big fan of flying, helped bring to town. Everything was going fine until late on a Friday afternoon, when disaster struck.
This is the story as it appeared in The Phoenix August 25, 1922. It isn’t hard to imagine how a tragedy such as this would perhaps sour the local citizenry on any plans of aviation or airports for quite a long time.
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AIRPLANE MEET HAS TRAGIC END
Three Passengers Lose Lives When Curtiss Oriole Burns
Were Miss Evelyn Harris and Joseph Trahan and Son – Crowd of About 3,000 Sees Disaster – Inquiry Held.
