Page 25 - Demo

A week-long Aviation Show, billed as the %u201cfirst annual%u201d was held at the Indiana State Fairgrounds from May 27 to June 2, 1929. The show kicked off at a banquet of a thousand people in the Cattle Barn on Monday night, with Indiana Governor Harry G. Leslie, Indianapolis Mayor Lemeul Ertus Slack, and Captain Eddie Rickenbacker as speakers. Brigadier General W. F. Gillmore, of Dayton Ohio, was the Guest of Honor, and Lyman H. Johnson was on hand to represent the Aeronautical Chamber of Commerce. Superior Court Judge Byron K. Elliott was Toastmaster. Guests included William S. %u201cBilly%u201d Brock and Edward F. Schlee who made the eighth non-stop crossing of the Atlantic and attempted a round-the-world flight, aviation pioneer Jimmy Doolittle who served in the military from 1917 to 1959, as well as other notable fliers.The Indianapolis Aviation Show had 23 airplanes on display, including a Flamingo monoplane, a Cessna monoplane, a Curtiss Jenny, and three Wacos. One of the highlights was the diminutive Heath Baby Bullet monoplane, which stood only 4-feet high, weighed a mere 235 pounds empty, and could reach a top speed of 150-miles-per-hour. There was also a glider and almost 50 accessory booths, including displays by the Boy Scouts, Vonnegut Hardware (which sold a variety of model-airplane kits), Westinghouse, and the local Chamber of Commerce. An estimated 25,000 people attended the event, with the Goodyear blimp, The Puritan, entertaining the crowds. The blimp also made an appearance at the Indianapolis 500 Race on Memorial Day. Saturday, the last day of the event, was designated Boy Scouts%u2019 Day, and a closing Aviation Dance was held in Exposition Hall that evening. The Indianapolis Aircraft Association was involved with the event%u2019s planning, with Lee H. Hottel of Capitol Airways as the show manager.There was a cachet specifically produced for the show, which was printed in a different color for each day.For collectors, covers were available with cachets in a different color for each of the seven days. May 27, 1929, blue.