Steven E. Brackin Prints of Leigh Wade Negatives of Douglas World Cruisers
Contents of the Collection
The Steven E. Brackin Prints of Leigh Wade Negatives of Douglas World Cruisers consists of 45 8x10-inch black-and-white reproduction prints, primarily from negatives in the Leigh Wade Collection housed at McDermott Library, United State Air Force Academy.
The prints were collected and possibly printed by Brackin and provide a glimpse into various aspects of the 1924 around-the-world flight of the Douglas World Cruisers. All four aircraft are represented, as are the pilots. The majority of the prints depict the aircraft, including in flight, at harbor, and parked on the ground. The pilots and other military or official personnel are also depicted. A small number of shots depict ships and tools carried on the aircraft. Many shots are casual snapshots, but some are more formal, such as group portraits or publicity shots.
Seventeen prints are marked as coming from the "Wade Collection," while one is from the "Ogden Collection" and the remainder do not have stamps. There is also a "Museum of Flight Negative Index for SEB numbers" document. It provides a numerical list of SEB (Steven E. Brackin) numbers 1-230 and corresponding photograph with caption. Not all numbers have captions and a majority of the SEB-numbered prints are not included in this collection. Their location is not known. Included in the collection are SEB 26-39, 40-52, 54-57, 59-61, 63-75, 77, 79, 81, 84-85, and 87-93. Many of the prints are affixed to matboard and include captions, likely for use in an exhibit or display at an unidentified organization. Duplication occurs.
Dates
- Creation: 1924
Creator
- Brackin, Steven E. (Former owner, 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.
Historical Note: 1924 Around-the-world flight
In 1924 a team of eight men from the United States Army Air Service completed the first around-the-world flight in four Douglas World Cruisers. The attempt began on April 6, 1924, when the Douglas World Cruisers took off from their official starting point of Sand Point in Seattle, Washington.
The aircraft and crew were:
- Seattle (No.1), Major Frederick L. Martin (1882–1956), pilot and flight commander, and SSgt. Alva L. Harvey (1900–1992), flight mechanic
- Chicago (No.2), Lieutenant Lowell H. Smith (1892–1945), pilot, subsequent flight commander, and 1st Lieutenant Leslie P. Arnold (1893–1961), co-pilot
- Boston/Boston II (No.3), 1st Lieutenant Leigh P. Wade (1897–1991), pilot, and SSgt. Henry H. Ogden (1900–1986), flight mechanic
- New Orleans (No.4) Lieutenant Erik H. Nelson (1888–1970), pilot, and Lieutenant John Harding Jr. (1896–1968), co-pilot
The fliers generally traveled westward, with multiple fueling and maintenance stops in more than 20 countries. After leaving Seattle, the teams headed northwest to Alaska, then across the Pacific Islands to Japan and South Asia, moving across to Europe before crossing the Atlantic Ocean to return to the United States.
The flight was not without difficulties. On April 30, 1924, the lead aircraft, Seattle (No.1), crashed in Alaska, although the crew survived. On August 3, 1924, the Boston (No.3) was forced down and eventually sank near the Faroe Islands. It was replaced by the prototype Douglas World Cruiser, rechristened as Boston II, and rejoined the flight from Pictou, Nova Scotia. The three remaining aircraft landed for the final time in Seattle on September 24, 1924, having successfully completed the first aerial circumnavigation of the world. In total, the flight covered 26,345 miles and took 363 flying hours and over 175 days.
Biographical Note: Steven E. Brackin
Steven E. Brackin (1949-1983) was an aviation photographer and the son of Harl V. Brackin, one of the founders of Pacific Northwest Aviation Historical Foundation, now known as The Museum of Flight.
Extent
0.4 Cubic Feet (1 oversize box (12x18x3 in.))
Processing Information
During processing of the collection, it became evident that many SEB prints had been removed from the Steven E. Brackin Prints of Leigh Wade Negatives of Douglas World Cruisers collection, likely by a past curator. The removed images were gathered together into an artificial commemorative collection for the first around-the-world flight, possibly for use in an exhibit or display. However, the processing archivist retrieved the SEB prints from that collection and returned them to the Steven E. Brackin Prints of Leigh Wade Negatives of Douglas World Cruisers collection to preserve original context.
Subject
- Douglas (Organization)
- Douglas World Cruiser (DWC) "Seattle" (#1) (Organization)
- Douglas World Cruiser (DWC) "Chicago" (#2) (Organization)
- Douglas World Cruiser (DWC) "Boston" (#3) (Organization)
- Douglas World Cruiser (DWC) "New Orleans" (#4) (Organization)
- Smith, Lowell H., 1892-1945 (Person)
- Wade, Leigh, 1896-1991 (Person)
- Title
- Guide to the Steven E. Brackin Prints of Leigh Wade Negatives of Douglas World Cruisers
- Status
- Completed Level 1
- Author
- Jenn Parent
- Date
- 2024 June
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- English
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