Logan Archbold Vilas

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Logan Archbold Vilas
Logan Archbold Vilas.jpg
Born(1891-05-25)May 25, 1891
Chicago, Illinois
DiedMay 15, 1976(1976-05-15) (aged 84)
Bonita Springs, Florida
Other namesJack Vilas
Parent(s)Royal Cooper Vilas
Carrie Logan Ward

Logan Archbold "Jack" Vilas (May 25, 1891 – May 15, 1976) was an aviation pioneer and a member of the Early Birds of Aviation.[1] He was inducted into the in 2000.

Biography[]

He was born in Chicago, Illinois on May 25, 1891 to Royal Cooper Vilas and Carrie Logan Ward.[2]

In the spring of 1913, Vilas visited Glenn Curtiss in Hammondsport, New York and made a down payment on his Hydro-Aeroplane and enrolled in the Curtiss Flying School.[3] He graduated in four weeks becoming a certificated pilot, holding U.S. Hydro-License No. 6 from the Aero Club of America. He became the first person to fly across Lake Michigan when he completed a 64 mile over-the-water flight from Silver Beach Amusement Park in St. Joseph, Michigan to Chicago on July 1, 1913.[4] In 1914, he flew to Milwaukee, Wisconsin with the and, in the summer of 1915, he was hired by the to fly fire patrol over the Northwoods in his Curtiss Model F flying boat.[5][6] On June 29, 1915, at Trout Lake, Wisconsin, Vilas made what is believed to be the world’s first forest patrol flight.[7]

He died on May 15, 1976 in Bonita Springs, Florida.[8]

References[]

  1. ^ "L. A. Vilas". Early Aviators. Retrieved 2010-08-02.
  2. ^ Logan Archbold Vilas World War I draft registration
  3. ^ "Personairlities". Aero Digest. Vol. 27, no. 4. October 1935. pp. 84, 86. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  4. ^ "Fly Across Lake Michigan. Aviator Vilas and His Companion Go from St. Joseph to Chicago" (PDF). New York Times. July 2, 1913. Retrieved 2009-07-25.
  5. ^ "Logan A. Vilas". . Archived from the original on 2008-10-20. Retrieved 2009-07-25.
  6. ^ "Jack Vilas Day festival to mark historic achievements of pioneering aviator". . August 8, 2008. Retrieved 2010-08-02. Vilas made a big splash on the world stage in June 1915, when he made his history-making first forest fire patrol flight in his $7,000 open cockpit Curtiss Model F Flying Boat, taking off from North Trout Lake in Boulder Junction.
  7. ^ "June 29, 1915: First Aerial Fire Patrol Took Flight". Forest History Society. Retrieved 2014-08-27.
  8. ^ Social Security Death Index
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