The First Airplane to Fly Over Washington

In October 1910, publisher William Randolph Hearst offered an aviation prize of $50,000 for the first person to fly across the continental United States in under thirty days.  The Wright brothers’ inaugural flight was just seven years prior, so planes were still being developed into something functional in 1910, and a transcontinental flight in thirty days may as well have been flying to the moon.

At least three people took Hearst up on his offer. One of those individuals, Calbraith Rodgers, was the first private individual to buy a Wright airplane. Rodgers’ plane could fly 50 MPH at an altitude of 1,000 feet.

Rodgers amassed a hefty crew, with an entire train trailing his flight and enough spare parts to rebuild the plane four times. He also gained the sponsorship of J. Ogden Armour and, in return, named the plane after Armour’s new soft drink, the Vin Fiz. Rodgers began his journey on September 17, 1911, in Brooklyn, New York.

On October 8, Rodgers left Chicago and got a bit lost, only making it to Joliet that day. The next morning, he left Joliet at 8:40 AM, left Streator at 11:45 AM, and left Washburn at 12:17 PM.

At 12:40 PM, October 9, 1911, a loud buzzing sound was heard in Washington from the north, and soon Rodgers’ plane could be seen coming down the tracks of the Chicago & Alton railroad.  The plane made a westerly turn near the depot on Wood Street, then continued along the path of the TP&W tracks toward East Peoria.  Following about fifteen minutes behind was the supply train which included sleeping quarters and a baggage car.

Washingtonians heard about the plane’s visit, and by the time it arrived, a large throng gathered at the depot, with many more residents watching from their front porches. At the depot, the train stopped for a bit and handed out souvenir promotional flyers to some of the crowd, which read, “Greetings from the sky. Rodgers in the Vin Fiz Flyer. From New York to Los Angeles for Hearst $50,000 ocean to ocean flight.”

Rodgers continued and landed the Vin Fiz into the Pacific Ocean on December 10, 1911, missing the prize deadline by several weeks.  His sponsor rewarded him with a gift of $20,000 for his efforts.

Along the trip, Rodgers crashed sixteen times, once causing a three-week hospital stay for a concussion and spinal injury.  Only two original parts of the plane remained when he landed in the Pacific. All others had to be replaced along the way.

The Vin Fiz was acquired by the Smithsonian Institute in 1934 and is currently on display at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.