This collection consists of eight 4 by 5 inch black and white negatives, with corresponding contact sheets, relating to Thomas Slate's all metal dirigible, The City of Glendale. The images include the dirigible outside a hangar during buoyancy testing, several close-ups of the gondola inside the hangar, one of Thomas Slate holding a model of the City of Glendale, and one of Slate holding the flat-bladed centrifugal blower.
Biographical / Historical:
Captain Thomas Slate financed his all-metal dirigible, the City of Glendale, from the money he made in the dry ice / refrigeration business. Construction of the dirigible started in the summer of 1926 and the work was completed in early 1929, The dirigible was made out of duralumin and was filled with hydrogen. It was forecast to have a cruising speed of 80 mph and would accommodate 40 passengers and five crew. The dirigible was to be powered by oil and driven by steam-turbine, using one rotary blower, which would create a vacuum, instead of traditional propellers. Though completed in 1929, the airship never flew, in part to the stock market crash that closed the company.r
Provenance:
Sara Daubney-Kinney, Gift, 2006
Restrictions:
No restrictions on access.
Rights:
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests
