Collection context
Summary
- Title:
- Howard T. Douglas Records
- Dates:
- 1917-1921
- Creators:
- Douglas, Howard T.
- Abstract:
- Appointments and awards, letters of condolence, writings, and published and newspaper accounts from 1917-1921, relating to the life and career of Howard T. Douglas and the Alaska Flying Expedition of 1920.
- Extent:
- 2 Linear Feet (1 slim document box, 1 flat box)
- Language:
- Languages represented in the collection: English .
- Preferred citation:
-
[Identification of item], Howard T. Douglas Papers (H.Mss.0273). Special Collections and Archives, The Claremont Colleges Library, The Claremont Colleges Services, Claremont, California.
Background
- Scope and content:
-
The collection includes appointments and awards, letters of condolence, writings, and published and newspaper accounts, 1917-1921, relating to the life and career of Howard T. Douglas and to the Alaska Flying Expedition of 1920. The collection features biographical materials, writings, printed materials, and newspapers and newspaper clippings. Biographical materials include a recommendation for promotion (1918), papers appointing Douglas as First Lieutenant and Captain (1919), and a letter (1920) from the Aero Club of America awarding Douglas the Aviation Medal of Merit (the medal itself is now in the Arthur L. Neuman '23 Collection of Aeronautical Medals [NC010], Numismatics Division, Department of Rare Books and Special Collections, Princeton University Library. Other materials include a carbon copy typescript report on Douglas' body; several letters of condolence, most from Douglas' military superiors, but including one signed by the explorer Roald Amundsen; and a photograph (1920) of Douglas in military uniform. Writings include Douglas' travel orders for, and a 137-page carbon-copy typescript account of, the Alaska Flying Expedition of 1920; and carbon-copy typescripts of two articles he had prepared for publication at the time of his death. A published history of the San Gabriel Valley towns of Azusa, Baldwin Park, Charter Oak, Covina, Glendora, and Puente, during World War I is also featured, which includes accounts of the war service of both Howard T. Douglas and his brother, Gordon C. Douglas. The newspapers include clippings and pages from the Nome Nugget, New York Times, New York Tribune, Covina Argus, Pasadena Evening Post, and other unidentified newspapers, relating to the Alaska Flying Expedition and death and funeral of Douglas.
- Biographical / historical:
-
Howard Thomas Douglas was born in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, on October 1, 1887, the second son and youngest of the four children of Summerfield Douglas (1847-1927) and his wife, Rebecca Clark (1849-1913). The family immigrated to the United States in 1895, and appears in the 1900 census in Lincoln Township, Pembina County, North Dakota, where Summerfield is listed as a farmer. By the time of the 1910 census, the family had settled in Covina, California, where Summerfield worked as a salesman for the Covina Realty Company. Howard graduated from Covina Union High School and the University of California at Berkeley. He enlisted as a private in the United States Army in January 1917, joining a coast artillery unit in Covina. In May 1917, after the United States declaration of war, he was sent to the first officer's training school at the Presidio in San Francisco, where he received his commission as a first lieutenant of infantry, U.S.R., at the end of the month. In July 1917, he was called to active duty, and upon finishing training camp the following month proceeded via Camp Lewis, American Lake, Washington, to Fort Sill, Oklahoma, where he received his first instruction in aerial observation. In December 1917, he proceeded to France where he served as an aerial observation officer, where he served with distinction, being twice recommended for promotion to Major, and receiving the Distinguished Service Medal. Following the armistice, he was placed in command of an aviation unit in Germany; he returned to the United States in the summer of 1919. He then entered the Regular Army with the rank of Captain, and was attached to General Mitchell, Chief of Air Service. He served as Mitchell's aid and flying companion, directing a cross-country flight and playing a vital role in the Alaska flying expedition of 1920. He helped write the War Department's first aviation manual. He was drowned in the Chesapeake Bay, off Tangier Island, on June 22, 1921, during a practice bombing raid on the hulk of the battleship San Marcos, after his plane collided with another flown by Lieutenant Marll J. Plumb. His body was not recovered until July 1, 1921. He was buried in Oakdale Cemetery, Covina, on July 12, 1921.
Sources:
- Diary of Howard T. Douglas, 1918.
- "Covina Aviator Killed in Chesapeake Bay Fall", Los Angeles Times, June 23, 1921, p. i (1).
- "Covina Airman's Body Recovered from Chesapeake," Los Angeles Times, July 2, 1921, p. ii (8).
- "Last Honor for Hero at Covina," Los Angeles Times, July 13, 1921, p. ii (13).
- Acquisition information:
- Gift of Mrs. Gordon Douglas (sister-in-law), Covina, California, May 9, 1957.
- Processing information:
-
Collection processed by Michael P. Palmer, June 2004; revised by Michael P. Palmer, May 2010 and 18 February 2014.
- Accruals:
-
No additions to the collection are anticipated.
- Physical location:
- Please consult repository.
- Rules or conventions:
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Indexed terms
About this collection guide
- Date Prepared:
- © 2024
- Date Encoded:
- This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2024-06-17 16:09:00 -0700 .
Access and use
- Restrictions:
-
Collection open for research.
- Terms of access:
-
All requests for permission to reproduce or to publish must be submitted in writing to Special Collections.
- Preferred citation:
-
[Identification of item], Howard T. Douglas Papers (H.Mss.0273). Special Collections and Archives, The Claremont Colleges Library, The Claremont Colleges Services, Claremont, California.
- Location of this collection:
-
800 N. Dartmouth Ave.Claremont, CA 91711, US
- Contact:
- (909) 607‑3977