Biographical / Historical
Conditions Governing Access
Conditions Governing Use
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Preferred Citation
Related Materials
Scope and Contents
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
San Diego Air and Space Museum Library and Archives
Title: Maj. George E.A. Hallett Personal Papers
Identifier/Call Number: SDASM.SC.10062
Physical Description:
0.8 Cubic Feet
5 boxes
Date (inclusive): 1911-1982
Date (bulk): bulk
Abstract: This collection contains personal material relating to the career of Maj. George Hallett. Hallett was an engineer who worked
with Glenn Curtis on early airplanes in San Diego. He was in the Army Air Service during World War I. After the war he worked
in the General Motors Research Lab and later as a consultant for Consolidated Aircraft.
Language of Material: English
Biographical / Historical
George Eustace Amyot Hallett, an aviation pioneer, aircraft engine developer, and inventor, devoted the major part of his
adult life to aviation. He was born in England on May 9, 1890. His parents came to America when he was six months old, locating
in San Diego, California. After finishing school, he worked as an apprentice for the Baker Machine Company in San Diego, specializing
in the maintenance and repair of boat and automobile engines, while also taking a home study course in engineering.
He became acquainted with two amateur San Diego aviation enthusiasts, Bernard F. Roehrig and Charles Walsh, who were experimenting
with airplanes and teaching themselves to fly at Imperial Beach. The Roehrig machine had been built at Baker Machine Company,
and Hallett began to help the two aviators make repairs and tune their engines. In 1910, Hallett made Glenn H. Curtiss’ acquaintance
when Curtiss began to adapt North Island for use as a training base. Curtiss had rented a boat from Baker Machine to transport
men and equipment. Soon, Curtiss made arrangements to borrow Hallett, which proved to be the start of a long association.
Hallett was a member of the small Curtiss group who succeeded in making the first successful flights off the water in 1911.
He was also involved in attaching a retractable wheel landing gear to their aircraft, which they called the Triad, the first
successful amphibian. The same year Hallett accepted a position as the mechanic for Charles C. Witmer and the Curtiss flight
exhibition team, later also serving over the next several years as the mechanic for other Curtiss team pilots. In 1914, Hallett
received flight training, in anticipation of his role as the co-pilot of the flying boat America, planned for a trans-Atlantic
flight attempt. The flight was abandoned due to the impending war in Europe.
Hallett returned to North Island in 1914, supporting the Curtiss Model N that was to enter the Army competition trials there.
This airplane was later modified and became the well known Curtiss JN during and after World War I. Late that year he left
Curtiss and accepted a government position as the Army’s aviation mechanic at North Island, supervising engine overhaul and
serving as a consultant on engine matters. He then developed a course of study for engine mechanics and developed a new method
for investigating engine problems and failures. This led to his preparation of a book on the topic, which became a standard
part of aviation ground school instruction.
In 1917, after the declaration of war, Hallett was called to Washington and placed in charge of organizing mechanic’s schools
for the Army Air Service at large. He also assisted colleges in adding his coursework, which, by then, had achieved national
prominence. In 1918, he was commissioned a Major in the Army Air Service and was sent to Wright Field in Dayton, where he
established the power plant and aeronautical repair departments. After the War, he was transferred to McCook Field, where
he was placed in charge of the power plant branch. There, he established an engineering department and an engine test and
development facility, which led to a number of innovations, particularly with engine superchargers.
In 1922, Hallett resigned from the Army to become a research engineer and section head of the General Motors Research Laboratory
in Detroit. His work at General Motors included laying the foundation for their very successful diesel engine program. Of
note, he was a prominent member of the group that arranged for the moving of the Wright residence and workshop from Dayton
to Greenfield Village, to become a permanent part of the Ford Museum at Dearborn.
George Hallett retired from General Motors in 1937, moving first to Tucson, Arizona, where he lived for four years, following
which he returned to the San Diego area, where he made his final home in La Mesa. During World War II, he served as a special
consultant for Reuben H. Fleet and Consolidated Aircraft in San Diego. He continued to fly whenever possible, never lost his
interest in things mechanical, and also enjoyed small cars and photography. Major Hallett served as Chairman of the Prudden
Historical Library and Archives at what is now the San Diego Air & Space Museum, a position he held for a number of years,
initially in 1963.
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open to researchers by appointment.
Conditions Governing Use
Some copyright may be reserved. Consult with the library director for more information.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The materials were donated to the San Diego Air & Space Museum circa 1970-1980.
Preferred Citation
[Item], George Hallett Special Collection, Archives, San Diego Air & Space Museum
Related Materials
Curtiss Aviation School Subject Files
Scope and Contents
This collection contains correspondence, photographs, technical documents and other papers covering the career of Maj. George
Hallett.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
North Island Naval Air Station
Liberty Engines
McCook Field (Ohio)
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (Ohio)
General Motors Corporation -- Research
Aero Club of America
Bane, Thurman Harrison, Col.
Arnold, Henry Harley
Curtiss, Glenn Hammond
Early Bird Society
Martin, Glen L.
Consolidated Aircraft (Firm)
Heron, S.D. (Samuel Dalziel)
Kettering, Charles Franklin
General Electric Company
Hall-Scott Motor Car Co.
Mitchell, William, Gen.
Fleet, Reuben Hollis
Handley, Frederick Handley