Wings Over Oregon : 50 Years of Commercial Aviation
"In 1925 the United States Post Office began to contract with private firms to carry the mail by air. Northwest transportation pioneer Vern C. Gorst organized Pacific Air Transport. On January 27, 1926, he was awarded Contract Air Mail Route No. 8 -- Seattle to Los Angeles, the longest route in the country at that time.
The era of commercial aviation was initiated when CAM-8's inaugural flights landed at Newel Barber Field at the fairgrounds in Medford on September 15th 1926.
The bi-plane "Portland" piloted by Vernon Bookwalter landed first, at 8:38 AM, flying in from Pearson Field in Vancouver, WA (Portland, Oregon's airfield). A. D. Starbuck came in from Crissey Field, San Francisco two minutes later. Among those participating in the first flight ceremonies in Medford were: Mayor Alendorfer; Seely Hall, company director in charge of the airport; and Postmaster William J. Warner who arrived in the sidecar of mail courier Ernest Scott's motorcycle. The northbound mailbags were put aboard the "Portland" for Bookwalter's return trip. Pouches of southbound mail went into the Ryan M-1 monoplane "Medford" to be piloted over the Siskiyou Mountains by R. B. "Pat" Patterson. A crowd of opening day Jackson County fairgoers watched the departures.
Imprinted on this commemorative cover are replicas of both the P.A.T. first flight cachet and the unique auxiliary cachet supplied in 1926 by the Chamber of Commerce. After being cancelled with a special one-day only slogan cancel, this cover was flown from the Medford Airport in a vintage aircraft on the morning of September 15, 1976. In conjunction with the 50th anniversary flight ceremonies there was a USPS philatelic sales station and an airmail exhibit by the Southern Oregon Philatelic Society at the airport. The Wings Over Oregon airport aviation display will be held on the 19th.
WINGS OVER OREGON Cachet Co-Sponsors: Greater Medford Chamber of Commerce and the Southern Oregon Philatelic Society"
-- complete text from the vintage original print on card stock inserts in each cover.
You can own a piece of this Medford and Pacific Northwest history for your collection.
