Contents of the Collection
The Becvar Family Aviation Collection primarily documents George Becvar's involvement in the aviation industry in the Pacific Northwest in the early 20th century. The collection consists of George Becvar's pilot logbook, a map, and a scrapbook.
The pilot logbook for George Becvar dated 1927-1931 covers Becvar's flight training and career as a transport pilot.
The scrapbook was assembled by Robert G. Becvar in 1987 to preserve the "story of his father's [George's] involvement in aviation" and focuses on primarily 1927-1929. Written by Robert, the narrative is primarily about George, but also includes his brothers, Lou and Chuck Becvar. It is interspersed with black-and-white photographs of the Becvar men as well as other pilots and mechanics, and various aircraft, including the Waco (OH) 10 bought by George and his brothers for the company, Kent Flying Service, a Ryan M-1 mailplane, and a September 1927 shot of Charles Lindbergh's plane, The Spirit of St. Louis, when Lindbergh visited Portland, Oregon.
The scrapbook also includes clippings, correspondence, including from Tex Rankin of the Rankin School of Flying, pilot and mechanic licenses, aviator certificates, invoices and bills of sale for aircraft, and Kent Flying Service ephemera, including two ticket stubs for a flight. At the end of the scrapbook are four photographs depicting the 1978-1990 construction of a Steen Skybolt.
Also included in the collection is a map documenting the airfields between southern Oregon and Washington, dated 1930. The map includes elevation profiles of beacons and landing sites as well as diagrams of 25 airfields and airports.
Dates
- Creation: 1927-1990
Creator
- Becvar, Robert (Compiler, Person)
Language of Materials
All materials are in English.
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research and is accessible in the Dahlberg Research Center by appointment. For more information contact us.
Conditions Governing Use
The Museum of Flight (TMOF) Archives is the owner of the physical materials in the archives and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. Written permission must be obtained from TMOF archives before any publication use. TMOF does not necessarily hold copyright to all of the materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from copyright owners. Consult repository for more details.
Biographical Note: George Becvar
George Becvar was born in Denver, Colorado on September 30, 1906 to Charles Becvar, Sr., an immigrant from Bohemia (in the modern Czech Republic). The family (which included George's brothers Lou and Chuck) eventually moved to Seattle, Washington and settled on a small farm outside of Kent, Washington.
The family settled into their farm, and their father also worked as a machinist, a trade he had learned in Bohemia. The boys also developed an interest in machinery, and eventually turned this interest into a fascination with flight. George signed up for the full course at the Rankin School of Flying in Portland, Oregon in August 1927, and completed his training in October. He then created the Kent Flying Service, which trained new pilots, made deliveries, and dropped advertisements from the air. The three Becvar brothers ended up joining the Boeing Company in the 1930s, and they all retired in the 1970s, having collectively accumulated nearly 105 years of service at Boeing.
Source:
Biography derived from collection materials.
Extent
0.25 Cubic Feet (1 2-inch letter size document box, 1 oversize folder (30x40"))
Abstract
George Becvar (1909-1990) was born in Denver, Colorado and with his brothers Lou (1908-1984) and Chuck (1904-1986) started Kent Flying Service which ran from approximately 1927-1930 in Kent, Washington. The collection consists of the pilot logbook for George Becvar and a scrapbook that primarily covers George Becvar's 1927-1931 flying career.
Accruals
No further accruals are expected.
Separated Materials
The following items were separated from the archival component and are kept in Objects storage:
- Pair of goggles
- Boots
- Helmet
Processing Information
The scrapbook has been disassembled for preservation purposes, however original order has been retained.
Subject
- Becvar, Chuck, Jr., 1904-1986 (Person)
- Becvar, George, 1906-1990 (Person)
- Becvar, Lou, 1908-1984 (Person)
- Kent Flying Service (Organization)
- Lindbergh, Charles A. (Charles Augustus), 1902-1974 (Person)
- Munter Field (Kent, Wash.) (Organization)
- Pacific Air Transport (Organization)
- Rankin, John Gilbert "Tex", 1894-1947 (Other, Person)
- Rankin School of Flying (Organization)
- Ryan NYP "Spirit of St Louis" (Organization)
- Waco (OH) (Organization)
Genre / Form
- aerial photographs
- brochures
- certificates
- clippings (information artifacts)
- correspondence
- logs (records)
- photographic prints
- scrapbooks
Geographic
Topical
- Title
- Guide to the Becvar Family Aviation Collection
- Status
- Completed Level 3
- Author
- L. Zaborowski, J. Parent, N. Davis
- Date
- 2014, 2018, 2024
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- English
- Edition statement
- 3rd Edition
Revision Statements
- 2018: This finding aid was revised to reflect updated DACS and Museum of Flight standards.
- 2018 November : Finding aid migrated to ArchivesSpace.
- 2024 October: Map added to collection.
Repository Details
Part of the The Museum of Flight Archives Repository
9404 East Marginal Way South
Seattle Washington 98108-4097
206-764-7874
curator@museumofflight.org