Halcon Corner
HALCON CORNER: Temporary Landing Ground and exhibition of flying
Operated by: Henri Salmet
Location: Just W of junction 25 on the M5, about 1.5nm E to ENE of Taunton town centre
Period of operation: 29th May to 1st June and 22nd to 24th June 1912
A MICHAEL T HOLDER GALLERY
Note: This second item, a newspaper article, was published in the West Somerset Free Press on the 1st June 1912. The town "Llanelly" mentioned is now at least, spelt Llanelli. This town being in Carmarthenshire, South Wales, as opposed to Llanelly which is in Monmouthshire.
Note: The newspaper article which I have divided into two parts, to make it easier to read, was published in the Western Chronicle on the 7th June 1912.
Note: The newspaper article was published in the West Somerset Free Press on the 29th June 1912. The area veiw is from my Google Earth © derived database.
NOTES: I think these three newspaper articles are of great interest. Not only did large crowds gather at the allotted venues, groups of people clearly gathered to try and see the aviator and his aeroplane along the route Salmet intended to fly. It needs to be remembered that the vast majority of people in the U.K. had never seen an aeroplane, let alone one flying, and even then it would have usually have been in and around an aerodrome. To attempt fairly long distance flights was an act of great heroism, or unforgiveable folly - depending on your point of view.
Another aspect which I find facinating, it how did so many people get to hear of these exploits? There was no public radio service, let alone television, and telephones in the home did not become widely available until the 1930s - and even then only the wealthy and professional people had one. The main answer is newspapers, although it must be mentioned that postal services were, in most parts, incredibly efficient. My grandfather, who lived and worked in London, told me he could send a letter to a friend in the morning, say to meet up that evening, and expect a reply that afternoon!
The other factor was the word of mouth 'grapevine' which, it appears, spread the word around over quite considerable distances with astonishing speed. Today of course, communications can take much longer. Will a person actually answer their mobile phone or an e-mail? Quite often not for a day or two! The main reason no doubt being because they are being bombarded by just too much information on all fronts simultaneously. This of course is what we are told to regard as progress, mainly by those pedalling these services.
We'd love to hear from you, so please scroll down to leave a comment!
Leave a comment ...
Copyright (c) UK Airfield Guide
