johnporte

As per Glenn Curtiss - Pioneer of Flight (1991), by Cecil R. Roseberry, this photo depicts the christening and launching of the Curtiss Model H Flying Boat "America" on June 22, 1914 in Hammondsport, New York, just adjacent to Keuka Lake. From left to right, aviators John Cyril Porte, George E.A. Hallett, and (builder) Glenn Curtiss stand below 16-year old Miss Katherine Masson. Miss Masson, the daughter of Leon Masson, an official with the Pleasant Valley Wine Company (and granddaughter of Jules Masson), was chosen to christen the America with a bottle of champagne (which proved to be a fitful task). The aircraft's construction by Glenn Curtiss was commissioned by Rodman Wanamaker, the son of department store founder John Wanamaker, in order to compete for the ₤10,000 prize offered by the Daily Mail newspaper for the first non-stop aerial crossing of the Atlantic Ocean. The Curtiss Model H-1 flying boat was Initially known as the "Rodman Wanamaker Transatlantic Flyer," but the name "America" was chosen for the aircraft by Wanamaker. Ultimately, the outbreak of the the First World War would intercede and "America" would never make its planned transatlantic flight. Here's a link to British Pathe newsreel film of the assembly and christening of the America, along with footage of a stubborn bottle of champagne. www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=80471 Another Bain photo of the trio and Miss Masson:

Other Bain/LOC photos of the flying boat, "America": and another Curtiss flying boat:

Other Bain/LOC photos of the flying boat, "America": and other Curtiss flying boats:

great!

Glenn Hammond Curtiss (May 21, 1878 – July 23, 1930) 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 1908 Curtiss joined the Aerial Experiment Association (AEA), a pioneering research group founded by Alexander Graham Bell at Beinn Bhreagh, Nova Scotia to build flying machines. Curtiss rose to fame by making the country's first officially witnessed flight, winning a race at the world's first international air meet in France, and making the first long-distance flight in the U.S. His contributions in designing and building aircraft led to the formation of the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company, now part of Curtiss-Wright Corporation. His company built aircraft for the U.S. Army and Navy, and during the years leading up to World War I, his experiments with seaplanes led to advances in naval aviation. Curtiss civil and military aircraft were predominant in the inter-war and World War II eras. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glenn_Curtiss Lieutenant Commander John Cyril Porte CMG, DSM, Royal Navy (26 February 1884 - 22 October 1919) was a flying boat pioneer associated with the World War I Seaplane Experimental Station at Felixstowe. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Cyril_Porte