Airship Monuments in the United States
US Monuments: Ava, Ohio - Shenandoah * Greenville, Ohio - Shenandoah * Norfolk, Virginia - Roma * Historic Marker, Norfolk, Virginia - Roma * Lakehurst, New Jersey * Pine Lake Park, New Jersey - Akron * East Garden City, NY - R-34 * Hempstead, NY - R-34 * Cathedral of the Air, Lakehurst, NJ * Burbank, California
The United States has a rich history in Airships but a rather pathetic and apathetic recognition of them. There is only one major monument and that is for the USS Shenandoah, and the only book about that airship is, sadly, entitled "America's Forgotten Air Disaster"! So, on this page is every monument or memorial I could find. Sadly, it's not many.
Ava, Ohio - USS Shenandoah:
Photo credit: US Navy
There is a very nice memorial located at Ava, Ohio. It is a stone monument, with a representative bronze ZR-1 in the middle, and is the only proper, formal stone monument to an airship crew in the United States:
ZR-1 Memorial
Photo credit: Historical Marker Database.
http://www.hmdb.org/PhotoFullSize.asp?PhotoID=52572
Here is a close-up of the bronze airship in the center of the pilar:
Photo credit: Historical Marker Database.
http://www.hmdb.org/PhotoFullSize.asp?PhotoID=52573
And a close-up of the dedication:
Photo credit: Michael Hughes, with permission
Also at the memorial is an information board located next to the memorial:
Photo credit: Michael Hughes, with permission
The memorial is located at (Lat Lon) 39.833237 -081.574209:
Photo credit: Google Maps
Return to topGreenville, Ohio - USS Shenandoah:
The USS Shenandoah was commanded by Lt Commander Zachary Landsdowne who perished in the Sep 3, 1295 crash. Zachary Landsdowne is buried at Arlington National Cemetery, but he was born in Greenville OH, December 1, 1888, where his birthplace and boyhood home still stands and is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. It is located at 338 E. 3rd St:
Photo credit: Google Maps
On the grounds, near the corner of the property at the corner of Locust and 3rd is a stone marker identifying the birthplace home:
Photo credit: Alvaro Bellon
The Landsdowne home is located at (Lat Lon) 40.104032, -084.628808:
Photo credit: Google Maps
Also in Greenville is the Garst Museum where a granite monument stands commemorating Greenville's aviation hero:
Photo credit: Brian Andersen
The Garst Museum is at 205 North Broadway, Greenville, Ohio, and the Landsdowne marker is located at (Lat Lon) 40.106945 -084.636405 on the museum grounds:
Photo credit: Google Maps
Return to topShenandoah Crash Sites & Markers
When she came down that September day in 1925, she broke into 3 parts, creating 3 crash sites. All 3 locations are well-known, as well as the markers and memorials. Here they are:
Crash Site #1
Photo credit: National Register.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nationalregister/3972152180/
(Above.) The control car, two engines, and part of the midsection fell here near the Andy Gamary farmhouse (seen in the background).
Today, the crash site (thankfully) is marked by a small granite headstone.
Photo credit: Undetermined
Immediately next to (to the right) of the formal headstone is the cement marker hastily placed by locals soon after the crash was cleaned up. The marker reads "This is the spot of the Landowne", referring to the spot where the body of Lt Commander Zachary Lansdowne was found.
Photo credit: Antony Hayes, with permission
The wreckage was at (Lat Lon) 39.839108 -081.538544. As found on Google Maps:
There is no formal parking area, so one simply parks on the dirt road and walks to the site through the opening in the cable fence.
Photo credit: Michael Hughes, with permission
Return to topCrash Site #2
Photo credit: Airships.net.
http://www.airships.net/us-navy-rigid-airships/uss-shenandoah
(Above) The aft section fell near what is today Interstate 77 about 1/2 mile SW of Crash Site 1 at the Gamary farmhouse.
Below, nearly the same view today from above I-77. Compare the photo above and the one below for similarities which remain. The approximate outline of the Shenandoah's aft section is marked on the ground with painted cinder blocks.
Photo credit: Google Earth.
The site is at (Lat Lon) 39.835184 -081.546320 on private property. (Click here to View in Google Maps) but the large billboard at the site is easily visible from Interstate 77:
Photo credit: Google earth.
Here is the commemorative billboard as it appeared in late 2016:
Photo credit: Jerry Copas, with permission.
The billboard is at (Lat Lon) 39.835184 -081.546320. As found on Google Maps:
Return to topCrash Site #3
Photo credit: US Navy
(Above) Crash Site 3 is where the nose section of the Shenandoah came down. (Below), today, one can visit the exact spot on highway 78 (also known as "McConnelsville Road") where there is a nice granite marker, and a painted sign.
Photo credit: Michael Hughes, with permission
Here is a view of the large billboard renewed sometime in 2010 or so:
Photo credit: barclaycardtravel.com
And the granite marker, as it appeared in May, 2014, abused by vandals. (It is not known if the monument has been properly restored on its pedestal.)
Photo credit: Michael Hughes, with permission
This location is (Lat Lon) 39.741256 -081.593285. Here it is in Google Maps:
Return to topRoadside markers - USS Shenandoah:
In the United States, more often than not, you find "roadside markers" to commemorate a significant event, rather than any formal, stone monument. For the Shenandoah, there are two that I have located:
Ava, Ohio:
Photo credit: Composite, Left: Michael Hughes, Right, Unknown
This location is (Lat Lon) 39.830668 -081.574079. Here it is in Google Maps:
Pleasant City, Ohio, on Interstate 77:
Photo credit: Public marker
This location is (Lat Lon) 39.905602 -081.528728. Here it is in Google Maps:
Return to topNorfolk, Virginia - the Roma:
Photo credit: Public domain
The Roma, carrying 45 on-board, crashed at Norfolk, Virginia on 21 February, 1922, killing 34. Sadly, the only marker to remember the airship and crew is a small, cement marker completely inaccessible to the public, and not even near the crash site (it's about 1/2 mile East).
The marker is presently sitting in its THIRD location since it was dedicated in 1926! This tiny memorial does not do justice for the memory of these aviators. May the right people come forward and a proper monument, accessible to the public, be built for the brave souls of the Roma! These US service men deserved better than this.
Photo credit: Nancy Sheppard, Airship ROMA Disaster in Hampton Roads
The plaque reads:
ROMA MEMORIAM
Erected in 1926 by workers of the old shipping board of Maritime Commission. This monument is in memoriam to the 34 persons who perished aboard the Roma, a U.S. Army Flying Service dirigible which crashed on this spot February 21, 1922.
Personnel of the Army Hampton Roads Port of Embarkation paid tribute to the victims for their role in advancing aviation at commemoration exercises held February 21, 1953.
The memorial at (Lat Lon) 36.915404 -076.314141, but it is not accessible to the public:
Historian, Nancy Sheppard, author of The Airship ROMA Disaster in Hampton Roads raised the funds for a historic marker for the Roma. See the next item:
Return to topHistoric Marker: Norfolk, Virginia - the Roma:
Photo credit: Nancy E. Sheppard
This new marker, placed in 2020, is the result of the herculean effort of historian/Author Nancy Sheppard of Norfolk, VA. She worked with the Virgina government, ran the fund-raiser for the marker, and saw the project through to fruition. The marker is located at the SE corner of the intersection of Baylor Place and W. Little Creek Rd in Norfolk, VA. It's right next to Fire-Rescue Station 12, 1655 W Little Creek Rd. The marker is at Lat-Lon: 36.915944 -076.307122. Click on this Google Maps link to jump directly there.
Return to topLakehurst, New Jersey:
Lakehurst, New Jersey, of course, could be described as the "hub" of airship activity in the United States. While the giant airship hangar which once provided shelter for the Hindenburg and all the US rigid airships is still there, there is no powerful monument at this great site.
Crash Site of the Hindenburg:
Photo credit: Jesse Loesch
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jesseloesch/4058659539/sizes/l/in/photostream/
A bronze plaque marks the spot where the control car of the ill-fated Hindenburg crashed to the ground:
Photo credit: Undetermined
The memorial at (Lat Lon) 40.030311 -074.325747, but a visit to the site must be pre-arranged as the site is on the Lakehurst Naval Air Station:
Return to topPine Lake Park, Manchester Township, New Jersey - USS Akron:
Photo credit: Public domain
The USS Akron crashed April 4th, 1933 off the coast of New Jersey. Seventy-three of the 76 on-boared perished. No formal monument to the Akron and her crew exists. A tiny memorial exists at the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) monument at Pine Lake Park, Manchester Township, New Jersey, about 4 miles east southeast of Lakehurst.
Photo credit: mortonfox on panoramio
Located in the middle column of the dedication exists a small plaque honoring the men of the USS Akron. The small dedication contains a piece of duralumin girder from the airframe of the airship.
Photo credit: Associated Press
The memorial at (Lat Lon) 40.006977 -074.255163:
Return to topCathedral of the Air, Lakehurst, New Jersey:
Photo credits: Undetermined.
The Cathedral of the Air was built in 1932 by the American Legion to serve military personnel of the surrounding military facilities. Surprisingly, little information is found on-line about its history - even the Wikipedia article about it is only one short paragraph! Within its walls, both the USS Shenandoah and the USS Akron are commemorated with bronze plaques.
Here is the plaque commemorating the USS Shenandoah. Note that it was dedicated in 1926, just one year after the fateful disaster. Dedicated in June, 1926, at the large Hangar 1 at the Naval Air Station at Lakehurst, the plaque was relocated to the Cathedral of the Air after the cathedral's completion in 1932 presumably due to restricted access to the Lakehurst Hangar.
Photo credits: Rick Zitarosa.
It's a fine tribute to the crew of the Shenandoah, but it is sad that it has fallen into such obscurity. I've been researching airships for at least 15 years and did not become aware of the existence of this Shenandoah plaque till I saw a post on the AIRSHIPS, DIRIGIBLE, AND ZEPPELINS FaceBook page, https://www.facebook.com/groups/airshipblimpzeppelin/, in 2016.
Here is the plaque commemorating the USS Akron:
Photo credits: Undetermined.
The Cathedral of the Air is at (Lat Lon) 40.017873 -074.310421. Here is its location in Google Maps:
East Garden City, Long Island, New York - Commemoration of the 1919 R-34 Atlantic Crossing:
The R-34 at Mineola New York, 1919. Photo credit: Public domain
The first transatlantic crossing by ANY aircraft took place from July 2-6, 1919. The British airship R-34 departed from Scotland and landed in Mineola, New York at what was then the Roosevelt (or Hazelhurst) Airfield. The next day, July 10th, the R-34 made the return crossing, arriving at Pulham England on July 12th.
This great achievement was commemorated by the placement of matching stone and copper-bronze plaques in Scotland, New York, and Pulham, UK! The Marker in Scotland is located here: East Fortune . The marker at Pulham is located here: Pulham, UK.
Sadly, the marker for the US recognition of the feat has been removed from its original location and is shoved into a corner of the "Cradle of Aviation" museum, in East Garden City, New York. The only good thing is that the Cradle of Aviation museum is only about 1 mile south of where the Airfield once stood, and where the magnificent R-34 landed. It's shameful that the monument is not even outdoors where it is publicly accessible. Worse, it seems that absolutely no educational material about the R-34 Atlantic crossing is presented to visitors to the museum. This outstanding achievement in airship history, and aviation history in general is nothing but a tiny "footnote" at the museum.
The R-34 monument stuck in a corner of the "Cradle of Aviation" museum, East Garden City, NY. Photo credit: Mike Camero
The memorial is inside the Cradle of Aviation Museum approximately at (Lat Lon) 40.728840 -073.597068:
Hempstead, Long Island, New York - Mural commemorating the R-34 Atlantic Crossing:
The R-34 mural at the Hempstead Post Office. Photo credit: Undetermined
The first transatlantic crossing by the R-34 is commemorated by this mural in the Hempstead Post Office for its significance to the first transatlantic airmail!
Oddly, this mural is more prominently placed than the stone marker commemorating the R-34 Atlantic crossing found stuffed in a corner of the Cradle of Aviation museum (see above). At least the Post Office recognizes the historic event!
The mural is inside the Hempstead Post office approximately at (Lat Lon) 40.707455 -073.628321:
Return to topBurbank, California - Portal of the Folded Wings:
Photo credit: DebbieSue on panoramio
The Portal of the Folded Wings is an aviation memorial the Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery, Burbank, California. Buried on the floor of this monument is Roy Knabenshue an American airship pioneer. If you are not familiar with him, this site has three pages dedicated to Knabenshue and his airships The Knabenshue Toledo No. 1; The Knabenshue Toledo No. 2; and the The Knabenshue II;
The memorial at (Lat Lon) 34.190318 -118.353859:
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