Charles Lindbergh visited El Paso September 24, 1927. These articles ran in the Times the day of his arrival. I will post the articles about his visit tomorrow.
September 24, 1927
Thousands Will Pay Honor To America’s Greatest Flying Ace Here Today __ EXPECTED ARRIVAL AT FT. BLISS AT 2 __ From Here Colonel Will fly To Santa Fe To Make A Short Stop In New Mexico __ Today is Lindbergh
Day, when El Paso pays honor to America’s greatest flying ace, who in
33 hours of a day and a night in May leaped into world-wide fame. The
city is athrill with the Lindbergh spirit: a deep feeling of which the flags and decorations give only a partial manifestation. Lindbergh
will be welcomed by the largest crowd ever seen in El Paso. It will not
be entirely an El Paso crowd. All yesterday and last night visitors
were arriving by train and autos. More will come in this morning.
Deming, Silver City, Tycoon, Las Cruces, nearly every place in a wide
radius in New Mexico and Texas are sending big delegations. Col. Lindbergh
is scheduled to arrive at Fort Bliss flying field at 2 o’clock this
afternoon. With his famous plane, “”The Spirit of St. Louis,” he will
circle the city, making a point of flying over Beaumont hospital
grounds, so that disabled veterans will have opportunity to see him. He
will then fly to the field, where he will land and his plane will be
parked safely in an enclosure especially provided. A department of
commerce plane will fly in half an hour before Lindbergh. Mayor R.E. Thomason will be the only one to shake hands with Lindbergh at the field. Gov. Dan Moody was expected, but is unable to leave Austin. It
is requested by Mayor Thomason, and the committee that all residence
along the line of parade be decorated. In addition, it is expected that
business houses generally will decorate. Several thousand school
children with flags will stand in the four blocks reserved for them,
two east and two west of St. Vrain on Montana street, and wave flags as Lindbergh passes by. There will be only 10 cars in the parade, all of them driven by ex-aviators. The first car, with Lindbergh,
will be driven by George M. Stiller. Others in the car will be Don
Thompson, the colonel’s aide while here; Mayor Thomas, Myrtil Coblentz,
general committee chairman, and R.H.E. Stevenson, marshal. Distinguished
visitors will occupy the other nine cars, which will be H.O. Bostrom,
Earl Weisiger, James Carey, Fred Wilson, C.L. Strain, J.T. Ringland and
Earl C. Cochran. A change was made in the original line of parade
so that wives of army offices, whose husbands are at Marfa, might have
opportunity to view it. Lindbergh
will go from the landing field through the 82nd field artillery
headquarters, and than to Beaumont hospital, where he will make a brief
talk to the veterans. This will be the only stop. It is estimated that the parade will take about an hour, so that he will arrive at the High school stadium about 3 o’clock. Lindbergh
will make a 12 to 15 minute talk at the stadium. Amplifiers have been
put in so that he can be heard not only over the stadium, but beyond it. After speaking at the stadium, Colonel Lindbergh
will be taken to the Hotel Paso del Norte. A special suite has been
arranged for him and artistically decorated. All the rooms in the Lindbergh wing of the hotel have been set apart for the colonel, his attendants and distinguished visitors. At 4:30 o’clock Col. Lindbergh
will meet reporters for an interview. From the interviews he has given
in other cities, it is evident that commercial aviation is the one
thing nearest his heart and on which he talks, most freely. Personal
questions do not appeal to him. Following this interview, Col. Lindbergh
will have opportunity for rest until the banquet in his honor at Hotel
Hussman at 7 o’clock. Mayor Thomason will be toastmaster. Lindbergh
will speak about 15 minutes. The total time allowed for speeches and
the musical features of the entertainment is 50 minutes. There will be
many distinguished guests at the banquet, but on account of the limited
time, they will do little more than bow acknowledgements to their
introductions. Miss Elizabeth Garrett and Charles J. Andrews will
sing at the banquet. Prof. Talavera, violinist, will play as will a
Mexican orchestra under the leadership of Prof. Fernando Cabello. El Paso will present Lindbergh
with a Mexican zarape and a Mexican sombrero, commemorative of his
visit to the southwest. “This will be the only formal gift
presentation,” said Mayor Thomason. At 9 o’clock Lindbergh
will retire, according to the strict schedule which he follows while on
his trip. He flies to El Paso from Tucson, stopping at Lordsburg. It
had been planned that he would fly from El Paso to Fort Worth, stopping
at Abilene, but getting in a day of rest either here or elsewhere. It is part of Lindbergh
plan, however, to make a stop in every one of the 48 states. He found
the New Mexico people did not consider that the brief stay at Lordsburg
fulfilled this condition. So he will give up his expected day of rest
and sometime tomorrow morning will fly from El Paso to Santa Fe. Thence
he will go on to Fort Worth. In the plane with Lindbergh
are the pilot, Lieut. Philip R. Love, who trained with him at Brooks
and Kelly fields and later flew on the same air mail route; Donald E.
Keyhoe, who represents the department of commerce and the Guggenheim
fund; and C.C. Miadmint, one of the Wright company’s staff of field
engineers. El Paso is one of the 75 cities which Lindbergh
is visiting on his trip. He was given a continuous ovation on the
Pacific coast, just before coming to El Paso. He visited San Francisco,
Los Angeles and San Diego. He is especially anxious to increase
interest in various cities, so that suitable airports will be provided
and plans made for the extension of the air mail service and passenger
air traffic. In interviews in other cities he has emphasized the need
for improving the safety rather than the speed factors of airplanes.
Comments