Lindbergh Plane (Exhibition)

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Exist Dates

1934 January 15 - 1955

Biographical or Historical Note

abstract
Exhibition. Opened in January 15, 1934 and closed in 1955. Located in Section 10, Floor 1 in the Hall of Ocean Life at the American Museum of Natural History. The Lindbergh Plane featured Tingmissartoq, the Wright-powered Lockheed Sirius seaplane flown by Charles and Anne Lindbergh as well as equipment, items, and maps used on their journeys.

Summary

The Lindbergh Plane at the American Museum of Natural History featured Tingmissartoq, the Wright-powered Lockheed Sirius seaplane flown by Charles and Anne Lindbergh as well as equipment, items, and maps used on their journeys. While intended as a temporary exhibition, the seaplane remained on view in the Hall of Ocean Life for over twenty years. The plane was donated to the Museum by Charles and Anne Lindbergh and was 27-feet long with a 750 horsepower, 9-cylinder, Wright cyclone engine. It was suspended from the ceiling in a manner to give the illusion of flight. The installation of the plane in the Hall of Ocean Life was supervised by Charles Lindbergh and Museum Director George H. Sherwood; suspension of the plane from the ceiling was conducted by Jake Schrope (5), and the installation of the 400 items in display cases was supervised by Harold E. Anthony and Roy Chapman Andrews (1, p. 1-2). The exhibition of the Lindbergh Plane overlapped with the installation of William Beebe's Bathysphere (2, 1934, p. 9). In 1937 about half of the accessory material was removed from the exhibition and placed in storage, and the plane's position was adjusted so that it no longer blocked the Hall of Ocean Life's Coral Reef Group (2, 1937 p. 40). The Museum had planned to install the plane in a planned Geographic Hall (3), however, it remained in the Hall of Ocean Life until 1955 when it was transferred to the Air Force Museum in Dayton, OH, followed by a move to the Smithsonian Institution's Air and Space Museum in 1959, where it remains as of 2018 (4).

The display cases featured (1, p. 1-4):

*"Emergency Equipment for Land Travel"

*Equipment for forced landings on land or water

*Flying equipment and clothing for Arctic expedition

*Maps and navigational equipment

*An outboard motor

*Water-proof, shock-proof emergency radio set

*A rubber boat and sled

*Fishing gear

*First aid equipment and protective gear

This is a condensed summary of the exhibition. For additional information, see Sources and/or Related Resources.

Sources

    (1) Davison, F. Trubee. "Explanatory Statement by F. Trubee Davison, President of the American Museum of Natural History, on Opening of Lindbergh Exhibit." January 15, 1934. Departmental Records. DR 101. American Museum of Natural History Library.
    (2) American Museum of Natural History. Annual Reports. New York: American Museum of Natural History, 1934-1937.
    (3) "Lindbergh's Plane Goes on View Today." New York Times, January 15, 1934.
    (4) National Air and Space Museum. "Lockheed Sirius Tingmiassartoq." accessed February 7, 2018, https://airandspace.si.edu/collection-objects/lockheed-sirius-tingmissartoq-charles-lindbergh
    (5) "Famous Plane on Public View." New York Sun, January 15, 1934.

Chronology

  • 1933 December 21: Charles and Anne Lindbergh present the plane Tingmissartoq and related equipment to the Museum
  • 1934 January 15: After a week of installation, the Hall of Ocean Life reopens with the new Lindbergh Plane exhibition
  • 1937: Approximately half of the 400 objects of "accessory material" are removed, and the plane's display position is adjusted so as not to block to the Coral Reef Group)
  • 1955: The plane is transferred from the American Museum of Natural History to the Air Force Museum in Dayton, OH

Terms

localDescription
temporary exhibition
localDescription
enhanced
place
New YorkExternal link
AMNH: Section 10, Floor 1.

Related Corporate, Personal, and Family Names

American Museum of Natural History. Irma and Paul Milstein Family Hall of Ocean Life.
Lindbergh Plane was exhibited in hall 1934 January 15 - 1955, then called the Hall of Ocean Life (1, 1934)
Andrews, Roy Chapman 1884-1960
Supervised installation of nearly 400 objects in exhibit with Harold E. Anthony (5)
Anthony, H. E. (Harold Elmer) 1890-1970
Supervised installation of nearly 400 objects in exhibit with Roy Chapman Andrews (5)
Lindbergh, Anne Morrow, 1906-2001External link
Donated plane and equipment (1, 1934)
Lindbergh, Charles A. (Charles Augustus), 1902-1974External link
Donated plane and equipment (1, 1934)
National Air and Space MuseumExternal link
Plane transferred to Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum in 1959 and current home as of 2018 (4)
Schrope, Jake
In charge of suspension of plane from ceiling (5)
Sherwood, George Herbert, 1876-1937
Directed assembly of ship for exhibit (3)

Related Resources

American Museum of Natural History. Annual Reports. New York: American Museum of Natural History, 1934: 2, 9, 68.
American Museum of Natural History. Annual Reports. New York: American Museum of Natural History, 1937:38, 40
American Museum of Natural History, General Guide to the Exhibition Halls of the American Museum of Natural History. New York: American Museum of Natural History, 1934-1953.
American Museum of Natural History Research Library Digital Special Collections
Images of exhibition on view in Hall of Ocean Life
American Museum of Natural History Special Collections photographic drawers
Repository: AMNH Special Collections. [Black and white photo prints of exhibition in preparation and on view]
American Museum of Natural History Special Collections vertical files
Repository: AMNH Special Collections. [News articles, print-out from Smithsonian website]

Written by: Clare O'Dowd
Last modified: 2018 October 3


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