Working out of his creative studios in Sandy, OR, Maiden has finished the first in a series of six figures. Eugene B. Ely will be the centerpiece of a park honoring Navy aviatiors past and present. This clay original (pictured) measures nearly 8 feet tall and when cast in bronze, will weigh roughly 400 pounds.

EUGENE B. ELY
THE PIONEER OF NAVAL AVIATION
Ely was an aviation pioneer in the early 1900’s. He was born in Iowa and graduated from Iowa State University. He left college with an interest in all things mechanical. First learning to drive a car, he started as a chauffer and later become one of America's first racecar drivers. In 1909 he moved to San Francisco to sell cars, and it was here that he met and married Mabel Hall, and the two bought a home in Portland, Oregon. There he met auto dealer Harry Wemme, who had a newfound interest in aviation, and who had just bought a Curtiss airplane in preparation for becoming the Northwest's first airplane dealer. Wemme had no knowledge of flight and was reluctant to teach himself to fly, so with no pilots available to help, Ely offered his hand, assuming flying couldn't be all that more difficult than racing cars. He learned otherwise on his first try when the Curtiss became briefly airborne before crashing. As apology for his accident, Ely bought the remains and repaired the pusher, becoming familiar with its workings, and finally did teach himself to fly in early 1910.

In performing exhibition flights around Portland, he realized he could earn more money than by selling cars, so he and his wife headed north to Canada for a flying tour, ending up in Minneapolis, where he met Glenn Curtiss at an aviation meet. Curtiss was impressed with Ely's abilities and convinced him to become a member of his exhibition team scheduled for a tour of the Great Lakes and Eastern cities. In Chicago in early October, Ely received his Aero Club of America pilot's license, number 17, to become one of the aeronautical elite.

On November 14th, 1910 Ely made history by being the first person to ever take off in his Curtis built "Hudson Flyer," from the deck of a ship at sea. His historical flight from the deck of the USS Birmingham, a test flight for Naval purposes, was a success that many doubted was possible. Two months later on January 18th, 1911 Ely took his historical feat one step further by performing the first landing on the improvised deck of the USS Pennsylvania, then performed another successful take off, erasing any doubts about the flights feasibility. Ely's daring flight that day, during the early history of aviation, was one of the most outstanding achievements ever made by any of the pioneer aviators. The implications of its military and commercial usefulness will remain with us for all time.

Ely in 1910, preparing for his groundbreaking flight from the deck of the USS Birmingham.

Ely in 1910, flying his Curtis plane from the deck of the USS Birmingham.

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