Clarence Duncan Chamberlin (November 11, 1893 – October 31, 1976) was an American aviation pioneer. He was the second man to pilot a fixed-wing aircraft across the Atlantic Ocean, from New York to the European mainland, while carrying the first transatlantic passenger.
Early life and education Clarence Duncan Chamberlin was born in the small town of Denison, Iowa, to Elzie "EC" Clarence and Jessie Duncan Chamberlin. "EC" was the local jeweler and the owner of the first automobile in Denison, which was notorious throughout Crawford County for the clattering sounds it emitted while in operation. Maintaining the vehicle was a near constant endeavor, and in this way Chamberlin first developed an interest in all things mechanical. Additionally, he found great delight in using his mechanical skills to repair the clocks and watches that would be brought into his father's jewelry shop on an almost daily basis. It was also in Denison that Chamberlin would see his first airplane, an early pusher type plane, which had put on a show for a Firemen's Convention that had been held in Denison. From that moment on, a desire grew within Chamberlin to one day take to the skies himself.The Chamberlin Collection. Luvaas, Mearl. Archivist. Undated narrative of The Record Flight of Clarence D. Chamberlin
After completing his education in the Denison Public Schools system in 1912, Chamberlin enrolled at the Denison Normal and Business College. While at the school, Chamberlin took college prep courses to help him in his pursuit of a degree in electrical engineering at Iowa State College in Ames, Iowa. In order to pay for those classes, Chamberlin simultaneously worked nights as a tender for the Ft. Dodge, Des Moines, and Southern Railroad Company in the railroad's electrical power sub-station in Ankeny, Iowa. This arrangement forced Chamberlin to live on trains, where he would study, eat, and sleep during travel between work and classes. In 1914, Chamberlin left Denison Normal and Business College as a sophomore in order to run a local Harley-Davidson dealership.
World War I years Under Chamberlin's stewardship, the Harley-Davidson dealership thrived. As the owner of the dealership, he had the opportunity to utilize his mechanical knowledge to both repair and sell the motorcycles. In 1915, he was offered a job by Charles W. Tabor—one of Denison's more prominent citizens—to serve as a chauffeur on a six-month trip throughout the Southwest and into San Francisco for the World's Fair. It was in San Francisco that Chamberlin rediscovered his passion for flying, when he saw an airplane there for the second time—an early-style flying boat that was carrying passengers at $25.00 per head. When he told Tabor of his intention to take a ride on the plane, the latter replied "You can risk your fool neck in one of those some other time, but right now I've got a lot more places on the coast that I want to visit; what's more, I don't intend looking around for another driver to get me back home". While Chamberlin lost this opportunity, his passion for flying was not quieted.
Returning to Denison in 1916, Chamberlin expanded the motorcycle business by adding a line of REO automobiles and Diamond tires to his dealership. In addition to hiring two more staff members, Chamberlin added a service station for cars, motorcycles, and tire repair, with the latter being the most profitable aspect of the business.
In 1917, Chamberlin decided to finally pursue his dream of flying. On Thanksgiving Day, he traveled to Omaha, Nebraska, where he enlisted in the Aviation Section of the United States Army Signal Corps as an aviator. However, he was told that the field of aviation was too crowded at that time, and that he should pursue a career as a military balloonist instead. As Chamberlin wanted to fly airplanes, he declined the offer and returned to Denison, where he waited for a position to open up at the military's flying school. Chamberlin's dream of becoming an aviator would finally materialize on March 16, 1918, when he received orders to report to the School of Military Aeronautics at Champaign, Illinois, where the Aviation Ground School had been established at the University of Illinois. Following his time at the Ground School, Chamberlin reported to Chanute Field, where he continued his aviation education. His flying ability progressed rapidly under the tutelage of his military instructors. On July 15, 1918, Chamberlin received a commission as a second lieutenant in the Army Signal Corps. Soon after his promotion, he became an instructor himself until November 1, 1918, when he received orders to proceed to Hoboken, New Jersey, where he would await his deployment overseas. However, when he arrived at Hoboken on November 11, Chamberlin was notified that the World War I had ended that day.
On January 2, 1919, Chamberlin married his sweetheart, Wilda Bogert of Independence, Iowa, whom he met while traveling with Tabor. On July 2, Chamberlin was honorably discharged from military service. By the time of his discharge, he had come to the realization that aviation was something he wanted to do for the rest of his life. To that effect, he ordered a newly-designed airplane by famed aviator Giuseppe Mario Bellanca for $4,000. However, this plane would not be completely constructed or delivered for another 14 months. Therefore, upon the urging of his father, Chamberlin returned to Denison to help run the family jewelry store. Chamberlin soon grew tired of the jewelry business, and so he expanded the store's inventory to include talking machines, which he eventually found himself traveling around the county selling. For all intents and purposes, Chamberlin was content with his life—until one day he heard an airplane flying overhead. Upon running outside to catch a glimpse of the plane, Chamberlin decided that he was not destined to be running a jewelry store or selling talking machines, but that only flying was in his blood. That next spring, Chamberlin closed his bank account and, along with his wife, moved to the Eastern United States to await the delivery of his long-awaited plane.
Aviation career Barnstorming When the Bellanca Model CE airplane finally arrived, Chamberlin discovered that while it had a smaller engine than he had expected, it could still fly faster, land slower, and even carry a passenger along with the pilot. With this plane, he hoped to make a living by barnstorming his way across the country—flying over towns at low altitudes to catch the attention of the citizenry. After landing in an open field near a town after passing overhead multiple times, the townsfolk would oftentimes come out to see the barnstorming pilot, who would then offer them the opportunity to go up in his plane—for a price. He charged $15 per ride for straight and easy flying, but for the more daring who wanted "the works", his price was $25. The Bellanca was ultimately totaled by catching on fire, but since the plane was insured, the company gave him a standard biplane as a replacement. To supplement his income from barnstorming and to help cover his many expenses, Chamberlin worked as a flight instructor, an air-mail pilot, and an aerial photographer. Additionally, he and a partner would buy surplus Army planes, restore them, and then sell them and split the profits. However, all of these sources of income proved barely enough to keep up with his and his wife's expenses.
Endurance record and Orteig Prize
During his years as a barnstormer, Chamberlin had earned a reputation across the country as a hotshot pilot due to his superb performances in several air races around the country. Even a rather spectacular incident in the 1925 New York International Air Races, where he had crashed his plane after striking some telephone wires, served only to enhance his credibility with the American public. Yet Chamberlin aspired to even greater heights of public fame; he wanted to win the Orteig Prize, a $25,000 reward offered by New York hotel owner Raymond Orteig to the first aviator(s) to fly non-stop from New York City to Paris. However, before he could attempt such a flight, Chamberlin needed to show that he could stay up in the air long enough to cover the from New York to Paris. Chamberlin would do this by breaking the endurance record for flight, which at that time was held by Drouhin and Landry of France, who in August 1925 had stayed in the air for 45 hours, 11 minutes, and 59 seconds of continual flight.
On Tuesday, April 12, 1927, Chamberlin, along with friend and fellow aviator Bert Acosta, took off from Roosevelt Field in New York at 9:30 a.m. Loaded with of fuel and other necessities, they flew the Wright-Bellanca WB-2 monoplane (which would later be named Miss Columbia) back and forth over Long Island. While the flight was marred with difficulties, including accidentally-triggered gasoline cut-off valves and a lack of water for the pilots, it ultimately proved successful. On April 14—51 hours, 11 minutes, and 25 seconds after takeoff—Chamberlin and Acosta finally landed, having exceeded the Frenchmen's record by nearly six hours. "The craft had flown approximately 4,100 miles [3,600 nmi; 6,600 km], about 500 miles [430 nmi; 800 km] further than that needed for a New York to Paris flight and the $25,000 Raymond Orteig Prize." However, as Chamberlin so bluntly stated, "Bert and I had won a record, but had not won the right to fly the Bellanca to Paris".
Miss Columbia The Wright-Bellanca WB-2 monoplane—now called Miss Columbia—was designed by Giuseppe Bellanca. He had been commissioned by the Wright Aeronautical Corporation to produce a plane for their new J-5 Whirlwind engine. After breaking the endurance record for flight in 1927, Chamberlin would go on to use the plane later that same year to make his famous trans-Atlantic flight. While the WB-2 appeared to be "just another straightforward high-wing monoplane with clean if rather angular lines", it was, unlike others of its class, able to lift a huge payload. This was due mainly to two features: "a profiled fuselage and wide aerofoil-section wing struts, both [of which] contribut[ed] considerably to [the plane's] total lift.
Prior to Chamberlin's successful endurance flight, the WB-2 was purchased by Charles A. Levine, the wealthy, millionaire salvage dealer and the president of the Columbia Aircraft Corporation. Charles Lindbergh himself had tried to buy the plane before Chamberlin's endurance flight, but Levine refused Lindbergh's offer. Soon after its purchase, the "aeroplane was christened Miss Columbia by two little girls who performed the ceremony with ginger ale. Afterwards they were treated to a joy-ride by Clarence Chamberlin". However, the joy ride almost ended in tragedy when part of the undercarriage tore loose on take-off, but Chamberlin was able to safely and skillfully land the plane.
Miss Columbia holds the distinction of not only being the first plane to carry a trans-Atlantic passenger, but also of being the first plane to make the trans-Atlantic crossing twice. Three years after its record-breaking flight with Chamberlin, the now newly-renamed Maple Leaf—flown by Canadian Captain J. Erroll Boyd and U.S. Naval Air Service Lieutenant Harry P. Connor—flew the plane from Harbour Grace, Newfoundland, to Pentle Bay, Tresco, in the Isles of Scilly.