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Bound in with Vol. I of the exemplar I transcribed, a holding of the University of Chicago Library, is the following little slip which states the situation well:
Mrs. Henry P. Davison has had this book written by Ralph Paine to show the part played by the Yale Unit in the World War. The book has much that will prove of historical value and it has been suggested that it be sent to various libraries throughout the world. It gives me much pleasure to send you a copy.
Lewis S. Thompson
Red Bank,
New Jersey
The First Yale Unit was a group of twenty-nine Yale college students, almost all of them jocks, who became fascinated by flying, and realizing that World War I would eventually be coming to America, decided to get a hop on everyone else, teach themselves to fly — at the time, a new and very dangerous sport — and thus be ready to serve their country as aviators when the call came. The socially homogeneous group had the advantages of privilege and money: the sport is also a very expensive one, and their patriotic families backed them with a very substantial outlay of funds and the influence of their connections, without which the venture would have been impossible.
Their story has recently been told again (by Marc Wortman, The Millionaires' Unit: The Aristocratic Flyboys Who Fought the Great War and Invented American Air Power, Perseus Books Group, 2006) with the advantages of nearly a century of history since that allowed the author to track the members of the Unit thru their entire career, and to write it more neutrally:
Ralph Paine's earlier book though, by its nature, was able to draw on pretty much all the primary sources — the members of the Unit themselves, their letters, their families, Yale University, and official Navy records — and has preserved to posterity (and subsequent authors) the story of an amazing enterprise of youth and initiative and patriotism. Not only was the First Yale Unit the main seed from which American naval aviation would grow, but many of the members of the First Yale Unit, parlaying their own war record and of course the ever-present influence of their families, went on to become movers in the American government, one of them, Bob Lovett, serving as Secretary of Defense during the Korean War.
Col. Thompson was thus quite right: the book has much of historical value; not only in giving us a portrait of the Unit and its members and chronicling the early days of American naval aviation, but also in its account of some of the inner workings of the air war in 1917‑1918, and touching on the history of France, England, Italy, and Brazil. The author chosen to write the book, Ralph Delahaye Paine, a journalist, was a logical choice: he had written many other books for a popular audience, often on sports or naval matters, and wrote for the Navy during the War.
You may be coming here from the section of my site on French History; chapters more particularly relevant to France — in particular, the heroic resistance of the city of Dunkerque — are marked on this page by ✧ (a symbol you can copy and search for).
To
the memory of
Henry Pomeroy Davison
whose foresight, enthusiasm and faith
made the Yale Unit possible
Vol. I p. ix Foreword |
v | |
New Warfare in the Sky |
1 | |
Trubee Converts his Parents |
11 | |
The Summons to Peacock Point |
22 | |
The Status of Naval Aviation |
30 | |
The Summer at Port Washington |
37 | |
Solos and Strange Adventures |
48 | |
From the Campus to New London |
59 | |
Rolling Down to Palm Beach |
86 | |
The Wags and Some Others |
97 | |
Plane Living and High Flying |
111 | |
Finding a Northern Base |
123 | |
The War and Naval Aviation |
135 | |
The Station at Huntington |
145 | |
Trubee, the Crippled Leader |
157 | |
The Girls' Radio Unit |
172 | |
Au Revoir to the Colonel |
178 | |
Bay Shore and Rockaway |
187 | |
Way Down South in Texas |
203 | |
The Crowd at Hampton Roads |
211 | |
'Bill' Thompson's Hard Luck |
221 | |
Ireland's Job at Morehead City |
231 | |
p. x Erl Gould and Key West |
240 | |
A Test Pilot in Ordnance |
261 | |
In Steam Engineering |
271 | |
With the Second Yale Unit |
289 | |
The Mission to Brazil |
297 |
Vol. II p. v Girding on Their Swords ✧ |
1 | |
The Day's Work on the French Coast ✧ |
19 | |
'Ken' Smith is Lost at Sea ✧ |
31 | |
The Wags at Le Croisic ✧ |
49 | |
Île Tudy and Bombing a Sub ✧ |
59 | |
Farwell Plays a Lone Hand ✧ |
70 | |
The Big Boats at Felixstowe |
74 | |
'Al' Sturtevant's Last Flight |
89 | |
Captain Christiansen's Own Story |
101 | |
Gosport and Scotland |
119 | |
Gates Goes to Dunkirk ✧ |
140 | |
Flying over the Enemy's Lines ✧ |
149 | |
Lovett and the Northern Bombing Group ✧ |
168 | |
Curtis Read Pays the Price ✧ |
190 | |
Petulant Pilgrims to Italy |
213 | |
Hopping over the Alps |
232 | |
Bartow Read at Porto Corsini |
242 | |
With McIlwaine, Beach, and Ames |
251 | |
Dave Ingalls, the Naval Ace |
267 | |
The Killingholme Patrols |
293 | |
p. vi 'Di' Gates is Shot Down |
313 | |
A Prisoner in Germany |
329 | |
Kenneth MacLeish's Path to Glory |
350 |
Mr. Henry Pomeroy Davison |
Vol. I p. xi Mr. Henry Pomeroy Davison |
Frontispiece |
Mrs. Davison |
16 |
Trubee Davison landing at Peacock Point, 1916 |
16 |
Part of the Port Washington Crowd in 1916 |
28 |
The Original Group of 1916, Taken at Palm Beach |
32 |
Bob Lovett |
38 |
Huntington Race Crew |
38 |
The Floating Hangar at Port Washington, 1916 |
44 |
At Work in the Floating Hangar, 1916 |
44 |
H‑16 |
50 |
New Hangars at Port Washington |
50 |
Time for Oranges |
56 |
Bob Lovett and Harry Davison in a 'Red Bug' |
56 |
The 'Twin' |
62 |
Rest Hour at Palm Beach |
62 |
The Lewis Gun Mounted on the 'Twin' |
70 |
Waiting a Turn to Fly |
70 |
Oliver James |
76 |
The Test Stand |
76 |
The Runways and Shop at West Palm Beach |
82 |
Entire Personnel of Unit at Palm Beach |
86 |
The Big Chiefs: Lieutenant McDonnell, Colonel p. xiiThompson, Dr. McAlpin, Radio Stewart, Foster Rockwell |
90 |
Curt Read, Ella, and Trubee Davison Leaving the Salt Air |
92 |
Beginning a Flight at Palm Beach |
92 |
The 'Mary Ann' |
94 |
The Lewis Gun Mounted on an F Boat at Palm Beach |
94 |
The Regular Navy Contingent at Palm Beach |
98 |
The 'Wag' Crew; Bob Lovett, Instructor |
104 |
Colonel Thompson and the 'Loot' |
112 |
Chip McIlwaine |
120 |
Sully, 'Big Boots,' and Fred Golder |
120 |
The Huntington Hangars |
126 |
The Main House at Huntington |
130 |
Albert Ditman and his Police Dog |
130 |
The Runways at Huntington |
136 |
Curt Read |
140 |
'Biltmore' |
146 |
A Burgess-Dunne |
148 |
An R‑6 |
148 |
The 'Whileaway' |
150 |
Ready to Count the Bounces of a Returning Soloist |
154 |
Testimonial to F. Trubee Davison |
156 |
Tents at Huntington |
174 |
p. xiii The Huntington Shop |
174 |
At Huntington |
178 |
Allan Ames and Erl Gould Fixing Machine-Gun Targets at Huntington |
188 |
Graham Brush and Reg Coombe Starting on a Target Flight at Huntington |
188 |
Personnel at Bayshore |
192 |
R‑6 Taking off at Rockaway |
196 |
Blimp Hangar, Rockaway |
196 |
U. S. Navy Blimp |
200 |
Crashed N‑9 |
200 |
Number 7 Crew at Palm Beach; 'Di' Gates, Instructor |
208 |
Number 6 Crew at Palm Beach; Trubee Davison, Instructor |
218 |
The Crew of the 'Mary Ann' at Palm Beach |
224 |
'Di' Gates and Dave Ingalls in an F Boat |
234 |
Erl Gould, Bill Rockefeller, at Huntington |
242 |
Rear Admiral W. B. Fletcher Visiting Erl Gould at Key West |
248 |
The Upper Beach, Naval Air Station, Key West |
248 |
An F Boat at Palm Beach |
258 |
The Crew of Number 8 at Palm Beach; Caleb Bragg, Instructor |
266 |
Roll-Call at Palm Beach |
274 |
Al Sturtevant and Bart Read, at Huntington |
286 |
F. Trubee Davison |
Vol. II p. vii F. Trubee Davison |
Frontispiece |
Rear Admiral William Sowden Sims, U. S. Navy |
2 |
Rear Admiral H. I. Cone |
8 |
U. S. N. Aviation Training Station at Moutchic, France |
14 |
Landon's Plane on the Branch of Croix-de‑Vie |
32 |
Smith, Landon, Walker, and Coombe at Le Croisic |
32 |
Henry Landon |
50 |
Freddie Beach and George Moseley |
50 |
United States Battleship at Brest |
62 |
German Sub in Action |
78 |
Albert Dillon Sturtevant |
90 |
Yale Varsity Crew, 1915 |
98 |
Results of Two Crashes at Dunkirk |
142 |
Dugout for Civilians at Dunkirk |
144 |
Results of a Hun Bomb on a House One Hundred Yards from Officers' Quarters, Dunkirk |
144 |
Awaiting Return of Patrol, Dunkirk |
148 |
Erecting Hangar near Dunkirk |
148 |
Scout Machine Starting out on Patrol from Dunkirk |
150 |
Fifteen-Inch German Gun 'Loegenboom' which Fired on Dunkirk |
156 |
Offices and Sick-Bay, Dunkirk |
160 |
C. O.'s Office, Dunkirk |
160 |
p. viii Bob Lovett, Visiting Senators, and a Caproni |
168 |
Some of Bob's Bombs and Observers |
168 |
Mole and Harbor Entrance, Zeebrugge |
174 |
Explosion at Zeebrugge |
182 |
Station at Pauillac, France |
186 |
Curtis Seaman Read |
190 |
Over the Alps with Harry Davison |
226 |
Entrance to the Officers' Quarters, St. Inglevert |
238 |
Officers' Quarters, St. Inglevert |
238 |
Macchi 5 Taking off at Porto Corsini |
242 |
Bart Read's Squadron in Italy |
246 |
Bart, Pilots, and Italian Plane |
246 |
French Mechanics Spad Squadron at St. Pol, Dunkirk |
252 |
Freddie Beach and 'Di' Gates Getting Ready for Patrol |
252 |
German Destroyer and Sub Hit by Allied Bomb in Bruges Harbor |
256 |
Allied Bombing, Bruges |
262 |
Germans Inspecting 'Dud' English Bomb |
262 |
Anti-Aircraft at Bruges |
268 |
German Concrete Submarine Shelters, Bruges |
268 |
German Hangar Destroyed by Allied Bombs |
274 |
German Sheds |
274 |
German Destroyers at Bruges |
280 |
German Destroyer Shelter at Bruges, Struck by British Bombs |
286 |
German Concrete Dugouts on the Mole, Zeebrugge |
286 |
p. ix Handley-Page down at Bruges |
290 |
German Wounded |
290 |
Personnel at Killingholme |
294 |
'Doc' McAlpin at Killingholme |
298 |
Lawrence's Plane on Patrol from Killingholme |
298 |
An F‑5 L |
302 |
Zeppelin Shot down by English Planes in the North Sea |
306 |
Machine-Gun Target at Dunkirk Station |
314 |
German Seaplanes |
320 |
'Di' Gates, C. O. at Dunkirk |
330 |
American Prisoners of War in Germany |
330 |
Kenneth MacLeish |
350 |
Ken MacLeish's Grave at Schoore, Belgium |
364 |
The edition transcribed here was the first and I believe only edition, Cambridge, Printed at The Riverside Press, 1925. That year's copyright (by Kate T. Davison) was not renewed in 1952 or 1953 as required by the then law in order to be maintained, and the book is thus in the public domain: details here on the copyright law involved.
In the print edition, the 132 illustrations, all photographs, are placed on their own high-quality glossy pages, often very near the text to which they relate. The placement was not optimal, however, and I've taken advantage of the flexibility offered by the Web to move some of them to what I feel are better places. Their original placement is given in the table above, but the links are of course to the new location. In one instance (the 'Biltmore' on p146 of Vol. I) the subject of the photo is never mentioned in the text; and 'Big Boots' (Vol. I, p120) is similarly unidentified.
It is also to be regretted in some cases that the source of the photographs was not given by the author.
For citation and indexing purposes, the pagination is shown in the right margin of the text at the page turns (like at the end of this line); p57 these are also local anchors. Sticklers for total accuracy will of course find the anchor at its exact place in the sourcecode.
In addition, I've inserted a number of other local anchors: whatever links might be required to accommodate the author's own cross-references, as well as a few others for my own purposes. If in turn you have a website and would like to target a link to some specific passage of the text, please let me know: I'll be glad to insert a local anchor there as well.
As almost always, I retyped the text by hand rather than scanning it — not only to minimize errors prior to proofreading, but as an opportunity for me to become intimately familiar with the work, an exercise I heartily recommend: Qui scribit, bis legit. (Well-meaning attempts to get me to scan text, if successful, would merely turn me into some kind of machine: gambit declined.)
My transcription has been minutely proofread. In the table of contents above, the sections are shown on blue backgrounds, indicating that I believe the text of them to be completely errorfree; a red background would mean that the page had not been proofread. As elsewhere onsite, the header bar at the top of each chapter's webpage will remind you with the same color scheme.
The printed book was very well proofread, except for foreign words and names, which are frequently garbled. I marked the typographical errors, when important (or unavoidable because inside a link), with a bullet like this;º and when trivial, with a dotted underscore like this: as elsewhere on my site, glide your cursor over the bullet or the underscored words to read what was actually printed. Similarly, bullets before measurements provide conversions to metric, e.g., 10 miles.
A number of odd spellings, curious turns of phrase, etc. have been marked <!‑‑ sic in the sourcecode, just to confirm that they were checked.
Any overlooked mistakes, please drop me a line, of course: especially if you have a copy of the printed book in front of you.
The icon I use to indicate this subsite is the vignette on the cover of each volume of the book, colors as little changed as possible.
Images with borders lead to more information.
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Site updated: 11 Sep 13