HISTORY OF AVIATION SIGNED PHOTOGRAPH A historic, unique and irreplaceable icon of aviation history, a signed photograph, 19 1/2" x 15 3/4" b/w picturing three U.S. Navy PT-17 Stearman biplanes in flight over the City of New York, ca. 1935, signed by over one hundred of the most important civilian and military aviators and astronauts. Among those signing this icon of flight are ORVILLE WRIGHT, CHARLES LINDBERGH, AMELIA EARHART, NEIL ARMSTRONG, HOWARD HUGHES, BILLY MITCHELL, EDDIE RICKENBACKER, DOUGLAS CORRIGAN, JACQUELINE COCHRAN, WILEY POST, JOHN YOUNG, JIMMY DOOLITTLE (brushed), CLAIRE CHENNAULT, ERNST UDET, CHUCK YEAGER, BUZZ ALDRIN, JAMES AND AMY MOLLISON, CARL SPAATZ, HUGO ECKNER, RICHARD E. BYRD, LOUIS BLERIOT, OSCAR WESTOVER, MAXWELL D. TAYLOR, AUGUSTUS POST, DON EISELE, ALEXANDER P. DE SEVERSKY, GENE CERNAN, BERYL MARKHAM, CLARENCE M. YOUNG, HOYT VANDENBURG, HAROLD L. GEORGE, MAURICE ROSSI, CURTIS LEMAY, TED WILLIAMS, FIORELLO LAGUARDIA, FRANK BORMAN, BENJAMIN AND JOSEPH ADAMOWICZ, WILLIAM P. ODOM, CHARLES CONRAD, JR., VIOLA GENTRY, RUTH NICHOLS, W.H. "BILL" ALEXANDER, PAUL TIBBETTS, LOWELL THOMAS, ROGER Q. WILLIAMS, LEWIS YANCEY, GEORGE R. POND, DAVE SCOTT, RUSSELL BOARDMAN, DON GENTILE, ROSCOE TURNER, J. ERROL BOYD, DEAN LAMB, CESARE SABELLI, LEE GEHLBACH, CASEY JONES, BERT ACOSTA, REX NOVILLE, ASHLEY MCKINLEY, DEAN SMITH, DEKE SLAYTON, B.H. GRIFFIN, DONALD B. MACMILLAN, JIMMIE MATTERN, TOM STAFFORD, FRANK. P. LAHM, ROBERT W. DOUGLASS, JR., HARRY RICHMAN, LAURA INGALLS, JAMES LOVELL, JAMES MCDIVITT, AL WILLIAMS, LEE YA-CHING, LINCOLN ELLSWORTH, ZACK MOSELY, FRANK HAWKS, BERNT BALCHEN, HUBERT WILKINS, JAMES R. WEDELL, WALTER SCHIRRA, RUSSELL THAW, JOHN YOUNG, WILLIAM E. KEPNER, A. W. STEVENS, CLAYTON KNIGHT, CLYDE PANGBORN, JACK O'MEARA, CLARENCE CHAMBERLIN, TEX HILL, ARTHUR W. RADFORD, JOCKO CLARK, STANLEY F. HAUSNER, GEORGE W. HALDEMAN, GENE VIDAL, F. DI PENEDO, JIM FITZMAURICE, GROVER LOENING, PRINCE PHILIP OF ENGLAND, BILLY BISHOP, PAUL CODOS, HARLOD E. HARTNEY and a few others unidentified by us. The photo is slightly faded with a very small puncture near bottom margin and two 2" marginal tears (closed) affecting the signatures of Hartney and de Seversky, else a few trivial surface creases, else very good. Virtually every signature bears excellent contrast and stands out from the photo quite well. Set in the collector's simple original frame. This astounding assemblage of signatures was gathered over many years by Major James Adams, a decorated fighter pilot who served in both World Wars. Between the conflicts, Adams was the Operations Supervisor at Floyd Bennett Field, New York's first commercial airport. While there, Adams met many of those who made aviation history; as a matter of fact, it was Adams who cleared Douglas "Wrong Way" Corrigan for his famous trip to California which landed him in Europe. Adams continued to add signatures to this photograph even long after his retirement in 1958, including those of NASA astronauts and more modern military pilots. This is an extraordinary opportunity for the aviation collector to obtain a single item bearing the signatures of the world's most important aviators, from those that flew at Kitty Hawk to those who walked upon the surface of the moon! Included with the lot are fifteen original photographs (mounted) presumably taken by Adams which show pilots Hawks, Mattern, Pond and Sabelli, Pangborn, Jones, the Mollisons, Post, Cochran, Turner, Nichols, Corrigan, Hughes, Post, Earhart and others. With a 1937 T.L.S. by EDWARD RICKENBACKER to Adams thanking Adams for sending a photo of Rickenbacker on "the day Dick Merrill took off ". Overall very good. $30,000-40,000