Eastlands Showground
EASTLANDS SHOWGROUND: Flying exhibitions
Featuring: Bentfield Hucks (1912) and Gustav Hamel (1913)
Location: Just E of Rugby town centre
Period of operation: Hucks 30th July 1912, Hamel 4th February 1913
A MICHAEL T HOLDER GALLERY
We have Mike Holder, a great friend of this 'Guide' to thank for most of the following in 2022.
Note: The article was published in the Rugby Advertiser on the 3rd August 1912. The fourth item above, and the fifth item below, both great photos, are from the "Our Warwickshire" website, © Rugby Library.
Note: This article was also published in the Rugby Advertiser, but this time on the 8th February 1913.
Note: The tenth item, the Google © ground view, shows the houses in Clifton Road that can be seen in the photo of Hamel in the fifth item above. The local area view and area view are from my Google Earth © derived database.
NOTES: The French especially were far more advanced in aeroplane and engine design in the early years of the 20th century than we in the U.K. were, which helps to explain why, on the occassions listed above, both Hucks and Hamel were both flying on, (not 'in'), Blériot machines - as aircraft were normally called in those days.
The rate of development was truly astonishing. Powered aviation in the U.K. had only got going in 1909, but in 1910 the Daily Mail had sponsored the London to Manchester air race. By 1912 a few of the most accomplished pilots were achieving 'super-star' status by giving public exhibitions of flying around the country. Huge crowds would gather to witness these displays, as very few people had seen an aeroplane, let alone one actually flying!
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