James DeWitt Hill
Encyclopedia
James DeWitt Hill was an early US air mail pilot, who died while attempting one of the first transatlantic flights, with Lloyd W. Bertaud
in a Fokker F.VIIA monoplane
named Old Glory.
, Pennsylvania
and graduated with honours from Scottdale High School. He studied mechanical engineering at Lafayette College
, Easton
, Pennsylvania
but he quit the course after a year. He subsequently studied civil engineering at Cornell University
, Ithaca
, New York
but he was unable to complete that course because of ill-health.
, in order to study flying thoroughly. He was issued land plane certificate No. 234 by the Aero Club of America
. Between 1915 and 1924 Hill pursued a career as an aircraft instructor, test pilot and aircraft sales representative in several different locations in the central and eastern United States.
on 1 July 1924. On 1 July 1925, he was one of the pilots who inaugurated the first New York
to Chicago
night air mail service.
was approached to be the co-pilot for an attempt at the first flight from New York
to Paris
, France
, flying the Wright-Bellanca WB-2 Columbia
. When Bertaud was displaced to make way for Charles Levine, the chairman of the board of directors of the Columbia Aircraft Corp
, he sought an injunction to prevent Levine and pilot Clarence Chamberlain from attempting the flight. Although the injunction was lifted, this was only after Charles Lindbergh
had made the first New York to Paris flight on 20-21 May 1927, thereby winning the Orteig Prize
. Chamberlain and Levine subsequently flew Columbia from New York
to Eisleben
, Germany
on 4-6 June 1927.
Bertaud's dropping from the crew of Columbia spurred him to make his own attempt at a transatlantic flight, this time from New York to Rome
, Italy
and Hill agreed to join him. William Randolph Hearst
agreed to sponsor the attempt, through his paper the New York Daily Mirror
; the paper's editor Philip A. Payne accompanied the two pilots on the flight.
The three took off, with Hill at the controls, in Old Glory, a Fokker F.VIIA monoplane, from Old Orchard Beach, Maine
at 12.23pm EST
on 6 September 1927. At 3.57am and 4.03am distress signals from the aircraft were received by radio; its estimated position was then 960km east of Cape Race
, Newfoundland (it had last been sighted by the steamship California at 11.57pm the previous day, 563km east of Cape Race.) On 12 September, the SS Kyle
found substantial amounts of wreckage from the aircraft, but no trace was ever found of Bertaud, Hill or Payne.
In 1928, the Ontario Surveyor General named a number of lakes in the northwest of the province to honour aviators who had perished during 1927, mainly in attempting oceanic flights. These include Bertaud Lake (50.90°N 90.71°W), Hill Lake (50.56°N 90.77°W) and Payne Lake (50.85°N 90.54°W).
Lloyd W. Bertaud
Lloyd W. Bertaud was an American aviator. Bertaud was selected to be the copilot in the WB-2 Columbia attempting the transatlantic crossing for the Orteig Prize in 1927. Aircraft owner Charles Levine wanted to fly in his place, and a injunction by Bertaud against Levine prevented the flight...
in a Fokker F.VIIA monoplane
Monoplane
A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with one main set of wing surfaces, in contrast to a biplane or triplane. Since the late 1930s it has been the most common form for a fixed wing aircraft.-Types of monoplane:...
named Old Glory.
Early life and education
Hill was born and grew up in ScottdaleScottdale, Pennsylvania
Scottdale is a borough in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, southeast of Pittsburgh. Scottdale is the home of the Southmoreland Scotties. Early in the 20th century, Scottdale was the center of the Frick coke interests...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
and graduated with honours from Scottdale High School. He studied mechanical engineering at Lafayette College
Lafayette College
Lafayette College is a private coeducational liberal arts and engineering college located in Easton, Pennsylvania, USA. The school, founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter,son of General Andrew Porter of Norristown and citizens of Easton, first began holding classes in 1832...
, Easton
Easton, Pennsylvania
Easton is a city in Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 26,800 as of the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Northampton County....
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
but he quit the course after a year. He subsequently studied civil engineering at Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
, Ithaca
Ithaca, New York
The city of Ithaca, is a city in upstate New York and the county seat of Tompkins County, as well as the largest community in the Ithaca-Tompkins County metropolitan area...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
but he was unable to complete that course because of ill-health.
Aviator
Hill appears to have had some experience of flying before he enrolled in the autumn of 1912 in Glenn Curtiss Flying SchoolGlenn Curtiss
Glenn Hammond Curtiss was an American aviation pioneer and a founder of the U.S. aircraft industry. He began his career as a bicycle then motorcycle builder and racer, later also manufacturing engines for airships as early as 1906...
, in order to study flying thoroughly. He was issued land plane certificate No. 234 by the Aero Club of America
Aero Club of America
The Aero Club of America was a social club formed in 1905 by Charles Glidden and others to promote aviation in America. It was the parent organization of numerous state chapters, the first being the Aero Club of New England. It thrived until 1923, when it transformed into the National Aeronautic...
. Between 1915 and 1924 Hill pursued a career as an aircraft instructor, test pilot and aircraft sales representative in several different locations in the central and eastern United States.
Air mail pilot
Hill joined the US Air Mail ServiceAirmails of the United States
Airmails of the United States or U.S. Air Mail relates to the servicing of flown mails by the U.S. postal system within the United States, its possessions, and/or territories, marked as "Via Air Mail" , appropriately franked, and afforded any then existing class or sub-class of U.S...
on 1 July 1924. On 1 July 1925, he was one of the pilots who inaugurated the first New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
night air mail service.
Attempted transatlantic flight
In the spring of 1927 Hill's fellow air mail pilot and friend Lloyd W. BertaudLloyd W. Bertaud
Lloyd W. Bertaud was an American aviator. Bertaud was selected to be the copilot in the WB-2 Columbia attempting the transatlantic crossing for the Orteig Prize in 1927. Aircraft owner Charles Levine wanted to fly in his place, and a injunction by Bertaud against Levine prevented the flight...
was approached to be the co-pilot for an attempt at the first flight from New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, flying the Wright-Bellanca WB-2 Columbia
Wright-Bellanca WB-2
The Wright-Bellanca WB-2, named Columbia, Miss Columbia, and later Maple Leaf, was the second in a series of aircraft designed by Giuseppe Mario Bellanca, initially for Wright Aeronautical then later Columbia Aircraft Corp.-Development:...
. When Bertaud was displaced to make way for Charles Levine, the chairman of the board of directors of the Columbia Aircraft Corp
Columbia Aircraft Corp
The Columbia Aircraft Corp was a United States aircraft manufacturer, which was active between 1927 and 1947.-Formation and operations:Columbia Aircraft was founded in December 1927 by Charles A. Levine as chairman and the aircraft designer Giuseppe Mario Bellanca as president. The initial name...
, he sought an injunction to prevent Levine and pilot Clarence Chamberlain from attempting the flight. Although the injunction was lifted, this was only after Charles Lindbergh
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...
had made the first New York to Paris flight on 20-21 May 1927, thereby winning the Orteig Prize
Orteig Prize
The Orteig Prize was a $25,000 reward offered on May 19, 1919, by New York hotel owner Raymond Orteig to the first allied aviator to fly non-stop from New York City to Paris or vice-versa. On offer for five years, it attracted no competitors...
. Chamberlain and Levine subsequently flew Columbia from New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
to Eisleben
Eisleben
Eisleben is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is famous as the hometown of Martin Luther, hence its official name is Lutherstadt Eisleben. As of 2005, Eisleben had a population of 24,552...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
on 4-6 June 1927.
Bertaud's dropping from the crew of Columbia spurred him to make his own attempt at a transatlantic flight, this time from New York to Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and Hill agreed to join him. William Randolph Hearst
William Randolph Hearst
William Randolph Hearst was an American business magnate and leading newspaper publisher. Hearst entered the publishing business in 1887, after taking control of The San Francisco Examiner from his father...
agreed to sponsor the attempt, through his paper the New York Daily Mirror
New York Daily Mirror
The New York Daily Mirror was an American morning tabloid newspaper first published on June 24, 1924, in New York City by the William Randolph Hearst organization as a contrast to their mainstream broadsheets, the Evening Journal and New York American, later consolidated into the New York Journal...
; the paper's editor Philip A. Payne accompanied the two pilots on the flight.
The three took off, with Hill at the controls, in Old Glory, a Fokker F.VIIA monoplane, from Old Orchard Beach, Maine
Old Orchard Beach, Maine
Old Orchard Beach is a town and census-designated place in York County, Maine, United States. The population was 8,856 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Portland–South Portland–Biddeford, Maine Metropolitan Statistical Area....
at 12.23pm EST
Eastern Standard Time
Eastern Standard Time may refer to:*North American Eastern Time Zone, UTC-5*Australian Eastern Standard Time, UTC+10*An album by Hip Hop group Kooley High...
on 6 September 1927. At 3.57am and 4.03am distress signals from the aircraft were received by radio; its estimated position was then 960km east of Cape Race
Cape Race
Cape Race is a point of land located at the southeastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland, Canada. Its name is thought to come from the original Portuguese name for this cape, "Raso", or "bare"...
, Newfoundland (it had last been sighted by the steamship California at 11.57pm the previous day, 563km east of Cape Race.) On 12 September, the SS Kyle
SS Kyle
The SS Kyle is a 220 foot sailing vessel that is currently couched in the harbour of the Town of Harbour Grace, Newfoundland and Labrador. It ran ashore in February of 1967 and has remained in that state since...
found substantial amounts of wreckage from the aircraft, but no trace was ever found of Bertaud, Hill or Payne.
In 1928, the Ontario Surveyor General named a number of lakes in the northwest of the province to honour aviators who had perished during 1927, mainly in attempting oceanic flights. These include Bertaud Lake (50.90°N 90.71°W), Hill Lake (50.56°N 90.77°W) and Payne Lake (50.85°N 90.54°W).