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A tight squeeze, but the NASA F-15 cockpit fits like a glove at the Antelope Valley Rural Museum aviation display! Thank you NASA, and to MOAH/City of Lancaster, for the delivery today. It looks great!
Bill Rawlings and Jeff Godde installing the recently donated Lancaster and Palmdale train depot signs. They look great!
Harold Mansberger, better known as "Red Dog" with the Allis-Chalmers race tractor. Red Dog's tractor was donated to the AVRM by Cheryle and Larry Stacy along with photos and articles of Red Dog and his tractor. Thank you! The color of the tractor is really the orange color not yellow.
A wonderful memory from September 5, 2016 with Janine Simi. Sheila Denise Sola, Dayle DeBry and Kristi Word.
🚜Auctions, AV Fair Barntober Fest & More AVRM News - mailchi.mp/a81f0c1dc500/newsletter-vol5-no3
A bit grainy, but still an interesting photo. Undated photo, Lancaster, adults, children and dogs in the snow, building a snowman, colorized and original black & white. Milt Stark/AVRM Collection.
Mrs. Bertha Juday, late 1920s, feeding chickens at her home west of Lake Hughes colorized and original black & white. Milt Stark/AVRM Collection.
Walt Primmer/AVRM Collection, colorized.![]()
I know, I know, it's probably not "politically correct" nowadays, but nonetheless, we need to have some humor in our lives these days...![]()
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The Womanless Tea & Fashion Show of Lancaster![]()
March 12 & 13th 1929![]()
Given By American Legion and Business Men![]()
Back row: Ed Kniep, Hugh Griffith?, Abe Schuman, Ted Knoll, Orloe ___, Whidden?, Fred Junge, McAel, Mickey ___, Ted Owean, George Mumaw.![]()
Front row: ___ Lutze, Carl Wester, ___ Culbusen, ___ Forquer?, Earl Shrimp, Carl Jacobsen, ___Borleu, Dad Mumaw, Bill Settle.![]()
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Any corrections or additional names, please let me know (Antelope Valley Rural Museum)! Names as written on the back of the photo by Walt Primmer.
Walt Primmer/AVRM Collection, colorized. 1952 - 1953 B.P.O. Elks #1625 Lancaster, officers and committee chairmen.![]()
Left to right: Charlie Hurd, Jack Reynolds, John Gentry, Bob Kennepohl, Roy Simi, Joe Pollard, George Suter and Bob Ellison. ![]()
Great group of leaders!
From the Walt Primmer/AVRM Collection, colorized. On the back: "Probably the 1915 - 1920 era when Lancaster had a town team. First row: 1. Joy Kelley 2. ? 3. ? 4. Millard Dodge![]()
2nd row: 1. - 6. unknown 7. Clarence Scates 8. A.B. Clark 9. Olen Forquer 10. ? Nicholson."![]()
If you can add any names, please let us know!
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Nice panoramic photo of Quartz Hill circa 1950 - the view from artist Jane Pinheiro's home. Photo taken by Jane Pinheiro.
Thanks to the AVRM directors and other volunteers who came out for the work party at the Museum last Saturday. Sorry not everyone has a photo - we were all very busy! Volunteers included Bill Rawlings, Lynn DuPratt, Kristi Word, Dayle DeBry, Susan Chaisson-Walblom, Karl Peterson, Jeff Godde, John Knapp, G and Janine Simi. What a great group of people! Thanks to all!
Another great photo from Pat Duhart – The 76 Union Oil station at the corner of Sierra Highway and Lancaster Blvd. undated and colorized. Lancaster Station at right in the background. Owner was Frank Fossati, World War II veteran, a Captain in the U.S. Army, Asiatic Pacific Campaign. He married Kathryn Legan in 1941 in Fillmore, CA, worked for Union Oil in Ventura, CA then moved to the Antelope Valley where he owned the station in the photo. In the Valley Times newspaper, January 29, 1947 edition, Fossati received a plaque for “length of service with the Union Oil Company.” ![]()
He was a member of numerous groups including the Knights of Columbus (fourth degree Knight), Elks Club, Italian American Federation, Chamber of Commerce and Palmdale Fin and Feather Club.![]()
Frank was born in 1911 in Colorado and passed away in 2002. He was buried at Bardsdale Cemetery in Fillmore, Ventura Co., CA.
I might have known Glen Settle was involved in the dedication of Carter Field in Lancaster. It was held on Armistice Day, 1930 with an automobile race on tap as well as an aerial display. “Some of the valley residents were starting to fix up antique autos, and Worth Cress and I heard of a 1902 Oldsmobile that was stored in an old barn in Tehachapi," Glen recalled. They purchased the old car for $150, which was quite a bit for two teenaged boys back then! The two of them fixed up the car and were ready to race on the dedication day with the “Olds team.” They won.![]()
“During the air show one of the out-of-town flyers, Mr. Lee Miles, fell in love with our ancient Oldsmobiles and promised me a ride in his Stinson plane if I would let him drive my old car. Naturally, a deal was made, and Lee told me he got a bigger thrill out of driving the 'curved dash' vehicle than he did out of flying – amazing when you consider that during the show he had looped a Ford Tri-motor plane and done several other fancy aerial maneuvers! He was the big star of the show.”![]()
“Some time later Lee called me from Burbank and asked if I could meet him at the Lancaster Airport in my Olds. When he arrived, I was surprised to find he had brought along Amelia Earhart, the famous aviatrix; he wanted to take her for a ride in his “new-found love” – my Olds. They spent an hour driving around; Lee let Amelia drive, and she too was thrilled by driving the relic of the early 20th Century. Lee became one of aviation’s leading racing pilots. Unfortunately, he lost his life in an air race in Wisconsin when he cut a pylon too close and crashed.” (See my previous post on Leland Miles)![]()
Quotes from Glen Settle from the book, “The Antelopes Left and the Settle-ers Came,” by Glen Allen Settle.![]()
Is there a photo out there of Amelia Earhart driving the Oldsmobile?!![]()
Photo: Lee Miles on left, Glen Settle on right.
Thank you to Roland and Pat Duhart for these wonderful photos of Fairmont School. They are colorized and also in black and white...Class photo taken around 1944. Front row l to r: unknown Blessing, Tomi Ann McIver, unknown girl, Paul McIver, Beverly Blessing, Mart "Dick" Hinojosa. Middle row l to r: Carolyn McIver, Roland Duhart (sticking out his tongue!), Regina _______ and unknown boy. Back row l to r: John McIver and George Reynolds. ![]()
2nd photo Fairmont School: front, Roland Duhart. Back l to r: Jim Mettler and John S. Duhart. Photo taken circa 1939 per Roland Duhart.![]()
Thanks Roland and Pat!
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Where this story began was on eBay where I discovered a photo of a group of people at the 2nd Annual California Air Fair in Lancaster dated 1930. Only one member of the group is identified, “Lee Miles at controls.” In the background of the photo is (of course) the desert and a biplane, the Stinson Jr. A newspaper article with this story confirms the trip to Lancaster in November 1930.![]()
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Leland “Lee” Shaw Miles was born in Colorado in 1903. His family moved to California where he attended schools in the San Bernardino area. Lee stretched the truth when signing up for the military. He stated his birthyear as 1901 and enlisted in the Army Air Service in San Francisco, CA. He trained at March Field in Riverside, CA and possibly Kelly Field in San Antonio, Texas.![]()
Early in his flying career, Lee met up with several actors/actresses from the “Hollywood” scene along with a number of pilots in the aviation world. Will Rogers was purportedly the first to contact Lee when he needed to fly to Denver, Colorado. Lee flew the “stars” around the U.S. and also Mexico and Canada.![]()
Lee was the first awardee of the prestigious Louis W. Greve Trophy in 1934 at the National Air Races. He traveled around the U.S. flying in air shows racing and doing dangerous stunts in his plane. From the Citrus Belt Air Meet in the late 1920s: “Lieutenant Miles' night flying will be one of the outstanding events at the air program which will be crowded with thrills.... Perhaps the most spectacular stunt on Miles' program will be a sham air battle, in which he will ignite fireworks and then go through the maneuvers of army pilots, dodging powerful searchlights which will be thrown on his plane---if possible---by operators below.”![]()
Sadly, Lee’s life ended in an air crash in September of 1937. Apparently, one of the fittings connecting the supporting wires that ran between the wing and the fuselage broke and the wing folded. There was no recovering from the rapid roll this caused. There was nothing he could have done.![]()
The memorial service was a simple one, but with many of the aviation world and family in attendance. Lee is interred at Mountain View Cemetery in San Bernardino, CA.
Thank you to Phil Serpico for the donation of the Palmdale Southern Pacific Depot sign to the Antelope Valley Rural Museum along with a sign from Bill Ritter with the last coat of paint used in October 1961 for the depot. The depot was dismantled in October of 1969. Phil is the author of several books on railroading throughout the U.S. This will make a great display in our new Museum along with the Lancaster depot sign donated a few weeks ago. Thank you!
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When this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it or it's been deleted.
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When this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it or it's been deleted.
Thank you to Bill Warford for covering this amazing story! The Lancaster train station sign has been donated to the Antelope Valley Rural Museum thanks to a transfer from retired Quartz Hill High School history teacher, Gene Molino, to railroad aficionado, Bob Alvis, to AVRM founder Bill Rawlings and AVRM curator Dayle DeBry. A perfect "slice of Americana" on the 4th of July! We are extremely fortunate to acquire this lost piece of Antelope Valley history! Thank you to all who were involved. It is truly a treasure!
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