Ralph A. Newcomb Early California Aviation Photograph Collection

The Ralph A. Newcomb Early California Aviation Photograph Collection is comprised of materials collected by Newcomb during his time in the early days of aviation while living in California. The collection dates from 1910 to 2006 and consists of photographic materials, as well as a small number of textual documents.

Most notable in the collection are the 206 black-and-white photographs, 96 negatives, and numerous postcards that relate to Newcomb’s personal and professional relationships with aviators dating from 1910 to 1919. There are pictures of the aviation pioneer Robert G. Fowler, whom Newcomb worked closely with as Fowler’s personal mechanic on his 1911 North America transcontinental flight. There are also pictures of other aviators, such as Ruth Wightman, Walter Brookins, Lawrence W. Brown, and Florence Seidell. Many of the images depict Newcomb with these associates.

Ruth Wightman is heavily represented throughout the collection. The images illustrate Wightman’s interests in autocar racing, aviation, and bullfighting. Newcomb and Wightman were close friends and are pictured together in social settings, along with him near her while she is seated at the controls of a hydroplane. There is a booklet from Tahiti that Newcomb acquired on a visit to Wightman at her home in Papeete, Tahiti. Included are images of Wightman with her mother, Lulu Wightman, and other companions. There are pictures of her in automobiles and aircraft. The collection contains a group of negatives featuring a series of bullfights, Wightman with a close female companion, along with Wightman’s husband Gouverneur Morris IV. The images were taken during their travels to Spain in 1925, where Wightman was trained in the practice of bullfighting.

In addition to the images related to Wightman, other aviators and aviation scenes are also depicted, such as the airfield in Griffith Park, Los Angeles, California where Newcomb and Brookins ran an aviation business. There are images of aircraft taking off and landing in the airfield, as well as aerial views of Griffith Park. In addition, there are aerial photographs that Newcomb captured of Los Angeles, Glendale, San Fransico, and Balboa, California taken in the early 1900s.

Lastly, there are images of airplane crashes, assorted aircraft (like the Wright Co. Model B plane), and a selection of automobiles and motorcycles. There are also numerous photographs of Newcomb and others posing with dogs. Most of the photographs in the collection are vintage prints, though there are 17 8x10” black-and-white modern contact prints created from some of the negatives. The prints range in size and the negatives are all medium format.

Another aspect of the visual materials series are postcards dating from 1911 to 1915, which feature Fowler’s flights and other aviators working in the United States, such as Silas Christofferson. Also, there is a grouping of postcards depicting French aviators and their aircraft.

The small number of textual documents in the collection range from 1911 to 2006. The bulk of the documents provide insight on Newcomb’s relationship with Fowler through correspondence, flight plans, and clippings. There is also a draft of a scenario for a film coauthored by Newcomb titled “The Conquest of a Dirigible in Modern Warfare.” In addition, there is a copy of the Annual Report of the Isthmian Canal Commission, 1910, which is possibly related to Fowler’s flight over the Isthmus of Panama in 1913.

Finally, the remainder of the collection consists of correspondence files of Del Meyers, an aviation historian. The files, which date from 2005-2006, document his interest in Newcomb, as well as the use of aviation images and Meyer’s membership with the publisher World War I Aeroplanes, Inc.

Digital Materials: The vintage prints, negatives, and documents have been digitized from this collection.