Columbia University Aero Club
The Aero Club of Columbia University (or Columbia University Aero Club) was formed in November 1908. Reportedly, was the first collegiate aero club and the first collegiate club to have a member produce a power-driven machine. May have been a founding member of the American Intercollegiate Association of Aero Clubs, 30 Apr. 1910, though another account lists Tufts University instead.
Formed by engineering student Grover Cleveland Loening at Columbia University. Initial officers included president Robert Ludlow Fowler, Jr.; Loening, 1st vice president; George Henry Warren, Jr., 2nd vice president and librarian; and Harold Augustus Content, secretary-treasurer. 20 active members in February 1909. Jay Gould considered to be one of the club's organizers, entered a heavier-then-air glider built by himself, Harold Content, and other club members, in the aeronautic carnival held by the West Hudson Aero Club in May 1909. Philip Wilcox, president, 1911. The club's adviser was Prof. William H. Burr, head of the civil engineering department. Under Burr's direction, Wilcox was reportedly the first collegian to produce a power-driven aeroplane. Wilcox made several short flights in the machine, which resembled a Farman, several times at Mineola, apparently in 1910, until wrecking the craft and severely injuring himself.
Sources
- 1909 NYT 2 & 7 Feb.; 1909 Boston Daily Globe, 26 May; 1909 Atlanta Constitution, 27 May; 1909 Motor Cyclopaedia YB110 Misc.; 1910 NYT 1 May, 23 June; 1910 Brooklyn Daily Eagle Almanac 316; 1911 NYT 8 May; 83 Proceedings NY State Historical Assoc. 382 (1985)
| Organization names | Aero Club of Columbia University (or Columbia University Aero Club) |
|---|---|
| Entity type | |
| Country | US |
| City | New York City, New York |
| Affiliated with | |
| Scope | University |
| Started aero | 1908 |
| Ended aero | |
| Keywords | |
| Key people | |
| Wikidata id |
- Address: Columbia University
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