Two Pelham Brothers Lost Their Only Sons in Eerily-Similar Early Aviation Incidents
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Wed., Mar. 11, 2009: Benjamin L. Fairchild's Congressional Campaign in 1894.
Fri., Dec. 7, 2007: Another Biography of Congressman Benjamin Fairchild of Pelham, a Founder of Pelham Heights.
Fri., Apr. 22, 2005: Benjamin L. Fairchild of Pelham Heights -- A Notable Pelham Personage.
Tue., Aug. 15, 2006: Another Biography of Benjamin L. Fairchild of Pelham Heights.
Benjamin Fairchild's brother, John F. Fairchild, was also a notable local resident. He served as Town Engineer for the Town of Pelham for a portion of his career. He also was engineer of the Pelham Heights Company involved with the layout and design of the original Village of Pelham. In addition, he prepared and published two local Atlases that are considered masterpieces of the art of such local atlases. He first published the Atlas of the City of Mount Vernon and the Town of Pelham in 1899. He updated and revised the Atlas in a second edition published in 1908. As with Benjamin L. Fairchild, I have written before about John F. Fairchild a number of times. See, e.g.:
Thur., Feb. 26, 2009: Photograph of John F. Fairchild Published in 1905.
Thu., Dec. 6, 2007: Biography of John F. Fairchild, Engineer of the Pelham Heights Company During the 1890s.
Each of the Fairchild brothers had a single son. Benjamin L. Fairchild had a son named Franklin Crumble Fairchild who became an air cadet in the United States Army. John F. Fairchild, in turn, had a son named Harold L. Fairchild who was a notable young aviator who left his commission as a First Lieutenant in the Connecticut National Guard to become a test pilot for Pratt & Whitney, an affiliate of the United Aircraft and Transport Corporation.
Fifteen years apart, the two sons of the two prominent Village of Pelham citizens and brothers lost their lives in shockingly-similar circumstances. Both were piloting aircraft in an altitude exercise intended to fly the plane straight up to dizzying heights before returning to the ground. Both passed out at the controls of their crafts during such altitude maneuvers. In both cases the aircrafts plummeted nose first directly to the ground, crushing and killing the pilots.
Today's posting to the Historic Pelham Blog documents a little about the short lives of these two young aviation pioneers from Pelham who lost their lives doing what they loved: flying. The end of today's posting includes the text of a number of articles about the lives and deaths of these two young men. Each item is followed by a citation and link to its source.
Air Cadet Franklin Fairchild Who Died in 1918
Franklin Fairchild was born in Pelham in 1885. He attended the "Pelham Grammar School" (unknown if this was the Split Rock School or the Pelhamville School). He later attended the Pelham High School (located in today's Siwanoy Elementary School) and then attended the Hotchkins School at Lakewood, Connecticut. Afterwards, Franklin Fairchild entered Yale college, from which he graduated in June, 1917.
Franklin Fairchild entered U.S. Army officers training camp at Plattsburg, New York, after which he was assigned to the aviation training camp at Princeton, New Jersey as a cadet. Shortly before his death he was transferred to Fort Worth, Texas, where he was training as a Cadet in the Army aviation corps at the time of his death.
On Saturday, February 23, 1918, Cadet Fairchild began his "altitude test" as part of training. A test observer was nearby using "power glasses" to observe the test. Fairchild climbed quickly in his plane to a height of 8,000 feet. According to one account:
"After reaching this height he started to make a spiral descent and everything was proceeding as planned, until within a distance of about 800 feet from the ground. Then Fairchild's body was seen by the observer to lurch forward, as if he had fainted or become ill and then came the fatal plunge to the ground. His aeroplane made a nose first dive to the ground and when it struck Cadet Fairchild was dead. His skull was fractured and both of his legs were broken."
Cadet Fairchild's body was returned to Pelham where a massive military funeral was held on the grounds of his father's home located at 267 Monterey Avenue. The funeral cortege carried his body along streets lined with respectful citizens through Pelham and the City of Mount Vernon. His body was interred in a vault at Woodlawn Cemetery.
Harold L. Fairchild Who Died in 1933
Harold L. Fairchild, the son of John F. Fairchild and Mary Welch Fairchild, was born April 29, 1908 in Pelham Heights. Clearly he was a young boy wonder.
During his high school days Lieut. Fairchild was an honor student. He graduated from Pelham Memorial High School with highest honors in 1924 at the tender age of sixteen. He was awarded five prizes for scholastic ability, included among which was the coveted school flag given the graduate who has maintained the highest four-year average in State Board of Regents examinations.
Because of his youth he was unable to enter the Massachusetts Institute of Technology that year. He remained at the high school for another year, taking a post graduate course. He entered college in 1925 and was graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with the class of 1929. He took up aviation at Brook and Kelly fields in Texas. He was a member of the 118th Observation Squadron of the Connecticut National Guard.
Lieutenant Fairchild received his commission as second lieutenant at Brook Field in 1929. He was advanced to First Lieutenant in the Connecticut National Guard. In July, 1930, Harold Fairchild joined the Aeronautical Research Department of Pratt & Whitney Co., at Hartford, Connecticut, one of the component companies of the United Aircraft Corporation. He quickly became an aeronautics expert, a respected aviator, and a test pilot for the company.
In January 1931, Fairchild narrowly missed death or serious injury when the engine of the plane he was flying failed. He tried to bank to miss nearby buildings, but realized the plane would not clear the structures. He turned sharply and brought the plane down in a field across a nearby river, landing unhurt.
On Monday, April 10, 1933, Fairchild took off from Rentchler Field in East Hartford at 2 p.m. He was assigned to perform a high altitude flight and had both a parachute and supplemental oxygen equipment. He circled the field, "settled the ship" and began a rapid ascent. He continued upward until out of sight. The next seen of him was when his airplane, with motor running full, suddenly broke through a cloud at about 3,000 feet, spinning around and around and then plunged directly to the ground, killing him instantly.
Investigators concluded that Fairchild lost consciousness from lack of oxygen while still climbing at about 35,000 feet. Apparently his supplemental oxygen had failed. He never regained consciousness to permit him to attempt a leap from the plane with his parachute. According to one account:
"The gasoline tank of the plane was smashed and the motor and propeller were buried three feet in the earth. The young flyer's body was found crushed to death in the fuselage. It took more than an hour for mechanics to cut away the metal which pinned Fairchild to the fuselage. The instrument board was broken and the data sheets which test pilots usually carry strapped on their right leg to record observations, was missing. Other portions of the plane indicated that when the pilot lost consciousness the plane was still set for upward climbing."
Young Harold Fairchild was only 24 years old at the time of his death. Shortly after his death, the Pratt & Whitney Aircraft Company of Hartford, Connecticut created the Harold L. Fairchild Trophy as a memorial to the young aviator. The Fairchild Trophy was presented annually to the winner of the National Guard altitude race -- a flight to the height of a mile and return -- the aviator making the fastest time to be the winner.
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Below are a number of articles regarding Franklin Fairchild and his cousin, Harold L. Fairchild.
"Cadet Franklin Fairchild, Son of Congressman, Killed In An Aeroplane Fall At Fort Worth
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City and Section Mourns Death of Student Aviator -- Graduate of Yale and Had Attended Plattsburg Camp -- Bereaved Father Goes to Washington to Arrange For Return of the Body, to Reach Here Probably in Time for Funeral Services on Friday at Pelham Heights.
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This city and vicinity, which is a part of the 24th congressional district, was shocked late Saturday afternoon when word was received of the death of Franklin Fairchild, the only son of Congressman Benjamin L. Fairchild, at Evenman Field, near Fort Worth, Texas, Saturday morning. Word of his death first reached this section when a telegram was received by Congressman Fairchild at his home in Pelham. He left at once for Washington, D. C., upon receipt of the sad news.
The congressman's son was a cadet in the aviation corps in training near Fort Worth, and although all details have not as yet been received, it is said that he was flying in an aeroplane at Evenman Field, a short distance away from Forth Worth when suddenly something went wrong with the engine and the plane fell to the ground killing Cadet Fairchild almost instantly. His death made the 47th in the aviation department at Fort Worth up to February 23rd.
Franklin Fairchild, who was 33 years of age, was born in Pelham and attended the Pelham Grammar school. He later attended the Pelham high school, and then went to the Hotchkins school at Lakewood, Conn. Afterwards, he entered Yale college, from where he graduated last June. He was at the officers training camp at Plattsburg, N. Y., after which he was assigned to the aviation training camp at Princeton, N. J., as a cadet. Several month[s] ago he was transferred to Fort Worth, Texas, where he met his death Saturday afternoon.
Word was received here today that from Washington, D. C., Congressman Fairchild sent orders to Fort Worth to have the body of his son sent north and it is now on the way. The time of the arrival of the body is not at this time certain, but it is expected that it will reach in time to hold the funeral services probably Friday from the congressman's residence, 267 Monterey avenue, Pelham Heights.
The flags on the Pelham high, the Siwanoy and the Hutchinson schools of the town of Pelham have been placed at half mast out of respect for Cadet Fairchild. Mention of the young man's death was made at the First M. E. church of this city last evening by Rev. Otho F. Bartholow who offered prayer and extended the sympathy of the church to the bereaved father.
Cadet Fairchild's mother died several years ago, and his only survivor is his father.
The Mount Vernon city officials today ordered the flag at the Soldier's monument at half mast out of respect for Cadet Fairchild."
Source: Cadet Franklin Fairchild, Son of Congressman, Killed In An Aeroplane Fall At Fort Worth, The Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY], Feb. 25, 1918, p. 1, cols. 1-2.
"Five Aviators Killed in Southern Camps; Horace Higginbotham, Football Star, a Victim
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FORT WORTH, Texas ,Feb. 23. -- Franklin Fairchild, an American flying Cadet, was killed this afternoon when his airplane fell near Eveman Field. Fairchild came here from Pelham, N. Y., on Feb. 1. He was the son of Representative Benjamin L. Fairchild of Westchester and New York City. . . ."
Source: Five Aviators Killed in Southern Camps; Horace Higginbotham, Football Star, a Victim, N. Y. Times, Feb. 24, 1918.
"People Pay Tribute to Dead Aviator as Fairchild Cortege Passes in Business Section
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Funeral services for Cadet Franklin Crumble Fairchild of the United States Aviation Corps and son of Congressman Benjamin L. Fairchild, who met his death last Saturday morning at Evenman Field near Fort Worth, Texas were held yesterday afternoon from his late home, the Fairchild Homestead, 267 Monterey avenue, Pelham Heights.
The services which were conducted by Rev. Lewis Gaston Leary, pastor of the Huguenot Presbyterian Church, of Pelham Manor, were attended by about five hundred friends of both the deceased and the bereaved father. Almost every municipality in Westchester County was represented. Officials from Mount Vernon, Yonkers, White Plains, New Rochelle, and a large number of villages of the county were in attendance.
Rev. Dr. Leary said that one of the stars in the service flag of the town of Pelham now would be a gold star, and that Franklin Fairchild was the first resident of Pelham to give his life for his country. He read a most impressive eulogy written by the deceased's companions at Fort Worth, Texas, which was brought to Pelham Heights by Major Cusman Hartwell in charge of the Fort Worth Aviation camp. He also read the prayer that was said at the funeral of Mrs. Benjamin L. Fairchild, 16 years ago.
The casket which was covered with khaki cloth and bore a silver plate bearing the name of the deceased and the dates of his birth and death. The body reposed in state in the large drawing room in the southeast corner of the Homestead. The room was banked on all sides with a great number of floral tributes. Over the casket was a silk American flag which had been sent by the officials of the City of Mount Vernon. With the flag was white streamer bearing the following 'Franklin crumble Fairchild' 'So that my life be brave, what though not long,' which is from an old sonnet by Drummond.
During the services, Congressman Fairchild was seated on the balcony attended by his brother-in-law and sister, Dr. and Mrs. Crumble. He bore up well under the strain until the conclusion of the service.
After a lapse of a half hour, the body was carried from the house to the hearse. The pall bearers were Lieutenant Edward Bridgman of the Royal Flying Corps, Lieutenant Clarfi Hopkins, U.S.R., Merle W. Whipple, U.S.N.R.S., Dennison Lambert, Howard Michener, Rensalear Crumbie, and John Landon, all of which were class mates of the deceased at Yale.
In proceeding from the house to the hearse the casket passed in review before a provisional company of the Third Battalion of the 22d Engineers, N.Y.G. of Mount Vernon, the Home Defense Leagues of North Pelha, Pelham and Pelham Manor, all standing at salute. At the entrance of the house stood the firing squad from Fort Slocum.
One car was required for the floral pieces. This followed by a car containing the firing squad of Fort Slocum, consisting of Sergeant Frank M. Arnold, bugler Thomas Willhite and privates J. C. Gilmore, A. T. Retz, W. J. Donovan, R. C. Greathouse, H. F. Starling, P. Ritter and E. J. Toner.
Then came a company of about fifty men made up from the different units of the third battalion, 22d Engineers, N.Y.G., of Mount Vernon, under command of Captain F. Irving Hull, of Company M. Major James P. Hayes had asked for volunteers from the battalion to make up six squads.
No formal invitation had been extended to the New York Guard to attend the services, but the commanding officer thought that this would be a way of showing a mark of honor to Cadet Fairchild who had fallen in the service of his country. Assembly was at the local armory at 1.30 o'clock, after which the soldiers hiked to Pelham under Captain Hull and proceeded to the Fairchild home.
Next in the cortege were about 35 members of the Pelham Heights Home Defense League in command of Captain Morgan, then came a squad of the Home Defense Police of Pelham Manor in charge of Captain H. D. Myrick and then about 35 members of the North Pelham Home Defense League in command of Captain J. D. W. Weiss. The soldiers and Home Defense Leagues were followed by the hearse. Then came the automobiles with the mourners.
The home military escort continued from the Fairchild Homestead through the Boulevard, Pelham Heights to East Third street. At the Mount Vernon City line the guard and Home Defense League stood and [sic] both sides of the roadway at salute while the cortege passed between the files. The hearse and autos now continued through East Third street this city to South Fourth avenue thence to First street then to White Plains avenue to Woodlawn Cemetery.
Altho the funeral was an hour late in passing through Mount Vernon, on both sides of East Third street to South Fourt avenue, people waited to pay their last respects to the Pelham aviator. At the corner of Third street and at Second street and South Fourt avenue and again at First street and South Fourth avenue, large numbers of the residents of this city gathered. Women bowed their heads and men raised their hats as the hearse passed. And traffic had to be kept open by the police.
Upon arriving at Woodlawn Cemetery the body was placed in the receiving vault with full military honors, the suad of the Sixth Company of Fort Slocum firing the regulation salute conferring the complete honors paid by the United States Army.
Through Major Cusman Hartwell, who is in charge of the aviation department at Fort Worth and who came north with the body, the facts of how Cadet Fairchild met his death were learned. Cadet Fairchild had a promising future as an aviator. Last Saturday morning he took his altitude test and had succeeded in soaring into the skies a distance of 8,000 feet. This was accomplished in a manner which won him great praise from the observer who was watching him through powerful glasses. After reaching this height he started to make a spiral descent and everything was proceeding as planned, until within a distance of about 800 feet from the ground. Then Fairchild's body was seen by the observer to lurch forward, as if he had fainted or become ill and then came the fatal plunge to the ground. His aeroplane made a nose first drive to the ground and when it struck Cadet Fairchild was dead. His skull was fractured and both of his legs were broken. Major Hartwell returned to his duties at Fort Worth, Texas last evening. The funeral was attended by evening. The funeral was attended by Representative Addision Smith, of Idaho, who came from Washington, D. C."
Source: People Pay Tribute to Dead Aviator as Fairchild Cortege Passes in Business Section, The Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY], Mar. 2, 1918, p. 4, cols. 3-4.
"HAROLD FAIRCHILD AIR CORPS LIEUT.
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Pelham Youth Receives Flight Diploma; Will Take Up Aviation Research Work.
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Harold Fairchild, son of Major John F. Fairchild of Pelham Heights, was graduated on Saturday at the Air Corps Advanced Flying School at Kelly Field, Texas, with the rank of 2nd Lieutenant. Next month he will join the Aeronautical Research Department of Pratt & Whitney Co., at Hartford, Conn., one of the component companies of the United Aircraft Corporation.
Lieut. Fairchild was a member of the 1929 class at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. During the last year he has been a cadet at the Army Flying Schools at Brooks Field and Kelly Field, Texas."
HAROLD FAIRCHILD AIR CORPS LIEUT., The Pelham Sun, Jun. 27, 1930, Section 2, p. 8, col. 7.
"HAROLD FAIRCHILD ESCAPES INJURY IN PLANE CRASH
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Lieut. Harold Fairchild, son of Major John F. Fairchild of Pelham Heights, cleverly averted a serious crack up when his airplane was forced to land because of motor trouble in an experimental flight at Hartford, Conn. recently. The plane was damaged but Lieut. Fairchild escaped injury. The flier had just cleared the ground in his take-off when the motor began to miss badly and then stopped entirely. The pilot attempted to bank for a turn over the hangars, but being unable to do so he turned his machine sharply and headed across the Connecticut river. It was only by skillful piloting that Fairchild was able to land his machine on the opposite shore of the river, narrowly avoiding several trees and buildings.
Lieut. Fairchild is a graduate of the Massachusetts School of Technology and the Brooks and Kelly Flying Fields, and recently resigned his commission in the Connecticut National Guard Squadron as he expects to receive an assignment to a mid-western field within a short time."
Source: HAROLD FAIRCHILD ESCAPES INJURY IN PLANE CRASH, The Pelham Sun, Jan. 16, 1931, Vol. 21, No. 42, p. 1, col. 2.
"THE LATE LIEUT. HAROLD FAIRCHILD."
The Pelham Sun, Apr. 14, 1933, Vol. 24, No. 4, p. 1, cols. 3-4.
NOTE: Click Image To Enlarge.
"LIEUT. FAIRCHILD DIED IN PLANE CRASH MONDAY
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Lost Consciousness After Attaining Height Believed to Be 35,000 Feet, While Testing Plane.
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Son of Major John F. Fairchild Was Expert Aviator and Authority on Aeronautical Mechanics.
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Lieut Harold Fairchild, 24, son of Maj. John F. Fairchild, of Monterey avenue, former town engineer, was killed on Monday when an airplane he was testing crashed after having attained an altitude of 35,000 feet. The accident occurred at Easthampton, Conn., near Hartford, where the young flier had been employed as a test pilot for the United Aircraft and Transport Corporation. Lieut. Fairchild was known as an exceptionally able aviator.
Fairchild took off from Rentchler Field in East Hartford at 2 p.m. He circled the field, settled the ship and rose again. He continued upward until out of sight. The next seen of him was when his airplane, with motor running full, suddenly broke through a cloud at about 3,000 feet, spinning around and around and then plunged directly to the ground.
Flyers who had been associated with Lieut. Fairchild expressed a belief that the pilot lost consciousness in the rarefied atmosphere through failure of his oxygen supply. They believed he would have made an attempt to leave the plane by parachute if he had been conscious. He was practiced in the use of a parachute. They attached no unusual significance to the fact that there was no fire after the ship struck. With the magneto system the danger of fire is less than under the old battery system. The gasoline tank of the plane was smashed and the motor and propeller were buried three feet in the earth. The young flyer's body was found crushed to death in the fuselage. It took more than an hour for mechanics to cut away the metal which pinned Fairchild to the fuselage. The instrument board was broken and the data sheets which test pilots usually carry strapped on their right leg to record observations, was missing. Other portions of the plane indicated that when the pilot lost con-
(Continued on Page Five)
LIEUT. FAIRCHILD KILLED IN CRASH
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(Continued from Page One)
sciousness the plane was still set for upward climbing.
Lieutenant Fairchild was born April 29, 1908 in Pelham Heights, the son of Major John F. Fairchild and Mrs. Mary Welch Fairchild. He was a member of the family which had been associated with the development of the Pelhams for many years. His uncle is Ben L. Fairchild of Monterey avenue, former Congressman from the 24th District, whose only son was killed at Kelly Field, in a similar accident during the war.
During his high school days Lieut. Fairchild was an honor pupil. He graduated with highest honors in 1924. He was then 16 years old. He was awarded five prizes for scholastic ability, included among which was the coveted school flag given the graduate who has maintained the highest four-year average in State Board of Regents examinations.
Because of his youth he was unable to enter the Massachusetts Institute of Technology that year and he remained at the high school for another year, taking a post graduate course. He entered college in 1925 and was graduated with the class of 1929. He took up aviation at Brook and Kelly fields in Texas. He was a member of the 118th Observation Squadron of the Connecticut National Guard.
Lieut. Fairchild received his commission as second lieutenant at Brook Field in 1929. He was advanced to First Lieutenant in the Connecticut National Guard recently.
Lieut. Fairchild is survived by his father and a sister, who is the wife of the Rev. John J. Gebhard of Harrington Park, N. J.
Eight officers of the 118th Conservation Squadron, flying associates of Lieut. Fairchild were pall bearers at his funeral, which took place at the home of his sister, Mrs. T. W. Gebhard of Harrington Park, N. J., at 2:30 o'clock yesterday.
A delegation of 26 of his associates of the research division of the United Aircraft and Transport Corporation, the National Guard Squadron and other close friends from Hartford attended.
Three ministers conducted the services. Rev. Wallace H. Finch pastor of Chester Hill M. E. Church of Mount Vernon was in charge, assisted by John G. Gebhard and Captain David A. Kennedy, chaplain of the squadron here.
The burial services will take place at Kensico this morning.
Former Congressman Ben L. Fairchild and Mrs. Fairchild left Pelham yesterday morning to attend the funeral services of their nephew. George J. Mead, vice-president and director of the research division of United Aircraft, represented the aircraft company officials."
Source: LIEUT. FAIRCHILD DIED IN PLANE CRASH MONDAY, The Pelham Sun, Apr. 14, 1933, Vol. 24, No. 4, p. 1, cols. 3-4 & p. 5, cols. 5-6.
"WRECK OF AIRPLANE IN WHICH LIEUT. HAROLD
FAIRCHILD WAS KILLED AT EASTHAMPTON,
CONN. -- Hartford Courant Photo"
The Pelham Sun, Apr. 14, 1933, Vol. 24, No. 4,
p. 1, cols. 3-4 & p. 5, cols. 5-6. NOTE: Click Image To Enlarge.
"LIEUT. HAROLD FAIRCHILD
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A life full of promise in the flowering of its early manhood, came to a tragic end on Monday, when Lieut. Harold Fairchild, came hurtling down through the skies in an airplane out of control. From the dizzy height, believed to have been 35,000 feet, the intrepid airman suddenly came face to face with the mastery of the Universe.
Losing consciousness in the rarified atmosphere at such a height perhaps through the failure of his oxygen supply in some manner impossible to determine, the plane whirled wildly downward to crash among the rocks of a wooded ravine. A crushed and broken body was all that remained beside the wreck of the plane. He had never regained consciousness.
Two men, brothers, are left to mourn the loss of their only sons -- death coming to Franklyn Fairchild, son of former Congressman Ben L. Fairchild, at Kelly Field, during the Great War, and now Harold Fairchild, son of Major John F. Fairchild, is added to the long list of those who have sacrificed themselves in the cause of aviation.
Lieut. Fairchild was a brilliant student. At Memorial High School he graduated with honors at 16! His career in aviation was marked with the same degree of brilliance -- a cool, determined nature, of high courage, accompanied with an intellect far above the average. He had achieved distinction in the world of aviation, and had he lived would without a doubt have had a noteworthy career.
Our sympathies go out to the bereaved father, and in many, many Pelham homes, where Major Fairchild and his son are known and respected, the message of sympathy will be repeated in hushed tones."
Source: LIEUT. HAROLD FAIRCHILD, The Pelham Sun, Apr. 14, 1933, Vol. 24, No. 4, p. 2, col. 1.
"THE HAROLD L. FAIRCHILD TROPHY"
Source: Air Race Trophy Is Memorial To Lieut. Fairchild --
THE HAROLD L. FAIRCHILD TROPHY, The Pelham Sun,
Aug. 18, 1933, p. 1, col. 7. NOTE: Click on Image to Enlarge.
THE HAROLD L. FAIRCHILD TROPHY, The Pelham Sun,
Aug. 18, 1933, p. 1, col. 7. NOTE: Click on Image to Enlarge.
"Air Race Trophy Is Memorial To Lieut. Fairchild
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THE HAROLD L. FAIRCHILD TROPHY
Placed in competition by the Pratt & Whitney Aircraft Co., of Hartford, Conn. as a memorial trophy for Harold L. Fairchild, son of Major John F. Fairchild and nephew of Benjamin L. Fairchild, former Congressman, of Pelham Heights. Harold Fairchild was killed in an aeroplane accident on April 10th at Hartford. He was an authority on aeronautics and an expert aviator, making test and experimental flights for the Pratt & Whitney Aircraft Co. He was graduated an honor student from Pelham Memorial High School.
The Fairchild Trophy is presented to the winner of the National Guard altitude race -- a flight to the height of a mile and return -- the aviator making the fastest time to be the winner. It was won by Lieut. Charles L. Wright when competed for this summer at Hartford."
Source: Air Race Trophy Is Memorial To Lieut. Fairchild -- THE HAROLD L. FAIRCHILD TROPHY, The Pelham Sun, Aug. 18, 1933, p. 1, col. 7.
"FAIRCHILD RITES HELD TOMORROW
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Lieutenant Killed In Plane Crash
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PELHAM, April 12. -- Funeral services for Lieutenant Harold Fairchild, son of Major John F. Fairchild, will be held at Harrington Park, N. J., tomorrow at 2:30 P. M. Lieutenant Fairchild was killed Monday when his plane crashed in Marlborough, Conn. after the daring young flyer had attained an altitude of more than six miles.
Services will be conducted by the Rev. Dr. W. H. Finch, pastor of Chester Hill Methodist Episcopal Church of Mount Vernon and the Rev. John Gebhard, Sr., Mount Vernon. The latter's son, the Rev. John Gebhard, Jr., Harrington Park, was a brother-in-law of Lieutenant Fairchild. Major Fairchild and his son had made their home with the Gebhards a few months ago. Interment will be in Kensico Cemetery.
Many classmates of Lieutenant Fairchild and his teachers at Pelham Memorial High School from where he was graduated in 1924, recalled today his brilliance as a student. He was the leading pupil in the graduating class in nearly all courses and received several prizes at the commencement exercises.
In aviation circles he had attained prominence especially for the contributions he made in the research program of the Pratt and Whitney Aircraft Company with which he was associated. He was known as one of the country's most skillful altitude flyers."
Source: FAIRCHILD RITES HELD TOMORROW -- Lieutenant Killed In Plane Crash, The Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY], Apr. 12, 1933, p. 12, col. 3.
Labels: 1918, 1933, aviation, Benjamin L. Fairchild, Franklin Fairchild, Harold L. Fairchild, John Fairchild, Monterey Avenue, Pelham Heights
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