This Week Is Anniversary Of Once-Famous Blair Flier’s Death

(Photo of Memorial) Caption: Unusual Memorial Has Stood in Blair Cemetery for 47 Years.

Lt. Tinus Christensen Killed While Flying U. S. Mail

The nation’s commemoration of the 50th anniversary of air mail service this month brings to mind one of Blair’s pioneers in that service.

This was Lt. J. Tinus Christensen who was killed when the aeroplane in which he was carrying mail crashed at Cleveland, Ohio, on April 29, 1921. He was then flying the Chicago to New York route.

According to the account found in the May 5, 1921 issue of the Pilot, there was a dense fog in Cleveland at the time and Lt. Christensen crashed while attempting a landing at the airport. He was reported to have been killed instantly in the crash.

Of course, in those days, there were no such aids as radio beacons nor radar, and pilots flew largely by sight, and their knowledge of their routes.

The body was shipped to Blair by train and arrived Monday, May 2. All flags on public buildings and business houses flew at half-mast Monday through Wednesday.

The funeral, on Wednesday, May 4, was the largest ever in the history of Blair. Services were conducted at the City Hall, and the flag-draped casket was taken to the cemetery on a caisson drawn by four white horses, with a soldier at the bridle of each horse.

The casket was escorted by a guard of honor drawn from the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps.

Pall bearers were veterans Elvin Hansen and Carl J. Schmidt for the navy; soldiers Herman Struve, Christian Zander, Spencer Petersen, and Burl B. Vaughn; with John Burgess and Ruthven Andersen from the marines. Honorary pall bearers were a delegation of men from the air mail service.

At the cemetery, the firing squad was commanded by Major Reed O’Hanlon.

During the service at the cemetery, five aeroplanes from the mail service flew over the cemetery and scattered flowers on the grave. The floral arrangements were described as the most elaborate ever seen in Blair, including a floral aeroplane.

The editor of the Pilot estimated that 1000 autos and 10,000 persons were in Blair that day for the funeral.

Lt. Christensen was raised near Blair and graduated from Dana College in 1915. He enlisted in the Air Corps in World War I and became a pilot. He joined the air mail service after his discharge and was assigned to the Chicago-Omaha run. While on this run, he established a new record of 2 hours and 45 minutes flying time between the two cities.

The Blair airport was originally named Christensen Airport in his honor.

Over Lt. Christensen’s grave a marker was erected, surmounted by an aeroplane propeller. Now the propeller is much the worse for wear, due to exposure to the elements. To perpetuate the memory of one of Blair’s heros, it would seem that some organization should make a project of the restoration, or replacement, of this propeller as a suitable memorial to the pioneer pilot of forty years ago.

Pilot Tribune 26 June 1921

Airfield Dedication Recalls Blair Aviator’s Death

(Photo of Tinus in uniform) Caption: Tinus Christensen For whom Blair’s airfield will be named.

Will Name Field To Honor Late Blair Aviator

Tinus Christensen Killed In 1921 While Flying Mail To Cleveland

Plans to name Blair’s airfield Christensen Field at dedicatory services on the Fourth of July bring to mind the tragic story of the death of the man for whom the field is being named, the late Tinus Christensen.

Christensen, son of the late Mr. and Mrs. A. M. Christensen of Blair, was a World war flier and later one of the pioneer airmail pilots of the country before his untimely death on a plane crash near Cleveland, Ohio, in 1921.

K. T. Christensen, farmer near Blair, who is a brother of the late aviator, has presented to The Pilot-Tribune clippings from the newspapers which tell of Christensen’s death and funeral.

Thirty years old at the time of his death, Christensen, a former Dana college student, was attempting to land in a fog at Cleveland while on the New York-Chicago run. The plane crashed and burned killing the ex-Blairite instantly.

Word of his death stunned his many relatives and friends here. Blairites had followed his career with interest, including his war service and his many records in flying, which included an Omaha-Chicago flight in two hours and 42 minutes (still fast time, but then a record).

Flags Lowered

Flags were placed at half-mast throughout Blair.

The body was returned to Blair, and early the day of the funeral the city began to fill with people who had come to pay their last respects.

When the casket was brought to the B.F.D. hall for the services, there were about 10,000 people jamming the hall and filling all adjacent streets and lawns.

The casket was borne to its resting place in Blair cemetery, draped in the national colors, on a caisson drawn by four iron gray horses with a uniformed soldier leading each horse. The guard of honor consisted of uniformed men from the army, navy and marines.

Active pallbearers were personal friends of the dead aviator. They were two sailors, Elvin Hansen and Carl J. Schmidt; four soldiers, Herman Struve, Chis Zander, Spencer Petersen and Burl Vaughan; and two marines, John Burgess and Ruthven Andersen. Men prominent in state and national aviation circles comprised the list of honorary pallbearers.

At the grave planes circled overhead and dropped flowers. Piloting one of the planes was Jack Knight, now probably the most famed commercial flier in the United States, who was a personal friend of Christensen.

Christensen’s grave is marked by a propeller, taken from his wrecked plane and mounted on his tombstone.

Enterprise 9 Aug 1984

(Photo of Grave Stone; Caption: Pictured above is the monument in The Blair Cemetery with the empty bolt that once held a wooden propeller.)

(Photo; (Caption: Pictured above is Tinus Christensen in an early day photo as he awaits warmup of Martin Bomber mail plane No. 202 that was used for the flight to Cleveland from its Chicago base.)

Blair was home for early day airmail pilot

Tinus Christensen brought early day recognition to Blair because of his flying abilities. He was one of the pioneer airmail pilots in the United States. But he brought additional notoriety to Blair when he was killed while trying to deliver the mail to Cleveland in bad weather.

Tinus Christensen is now buried at the Blair Cemetery following the crash in 1921. He was 31 years old at the time of his death.

Tinus Christensen was a Blair area native and graduated from Dana College. He then was a railroad depot agent in Blair before trying his hand at flying. Someone told him that the thin air at higher altitudes would help his asthma ad he entered the armed services and learned to fly during the First World War. After the war he constructed his own airplane according to Rudy Fick, of Blair, who said he worked for Christensen at the railroad depot.

Fick says he remembers that a man named McDonald, Jack Knight and Tinus Christensen started an airmail route from Omaha to North Platte and from Omaha to Chicago. Fick said that he remembers Tinus saying one morning, “I guess I’ll go to the movie tonight in Chicago.” Fick said that seemed impossible to him at the time when there was nothing more than a gravel road between Omaha and Chicago in those days. Fick said he remembered that the only airfield in Omaha, in those days, was the grass infield of Ak-Sar-Ben. Fick also remembers Tinus talking about the bonfires that were set to mark a path from Omaha to North Platte for the night flights of the mail planes.

Tinus Christensen took his last flight in 1921, the exact date was not known. He had a load of mail to take from Chicago to Cleveland Ohio. The weather was bad but Tinus was told that he had to go anyway. Tinus made it to Cleveland but could not find the airport. The reports said that he circled the lighted area of downtown Cleveland and looked for someplace to land. The wing of his airplane struck a bridge and he crashed, causing his death. Fick said, “Tinus always carried a loaded .45 pistol with him in the airplane. He told me that he would shoot himself before he would burn up in the airplane. I guess he didn’t get a chance to shoot himself.”

Mr. Fick also remembers the funeral at the Blair Cemetery. Airmail planes flew over the cemetery and dropped wreaths in recognition. He also remembers that the wreaths missed the grave and crowd completely.

A six foot high monument was put up at the Blair Cemetery complete with a full size wooden propeller on it. A few years ago a family member removed the propeller and told Blair Cemetery workers that he was going to have it repaired and placed back on the monument. The relative and the propeller have never returned. But people will stop and read the wording on the monument, “He Is Not Here.”

Pilot Tribune 7 March 2006

(Photo of gravestone. Caption: Christensen’s marker in the Blair Cemetery used to have an airplane propeller mounted on it. It was removed by a family member several years ago.)

Blair aviator inducted into Hall of Fame

A famous Blair aviator, Jens Tinus Christensen, has been inducted into the Nebraska Aviation Hall of Fame in recognition of his extraordinary skill and tragic death in the line of service.

Born in Denmark in 1890, Christensen and his parents settled in Blair when he was four years old. Christensen graduated from Blair High School and then Dana College before joining the military in 1917. During World War I, Christensen served as a flight instructor until 1919, after which he continued flying, performing at exhibitions in Midwestern cities. In 1920, he hired on with the aviation mail service and was one of the first pilots to fly the Omaha-Chicago route.

Flying was much more dangerous in those days, because pilots had no radio contact and no instruments for flying in bad weather. Of the first 40 pilots hired by the post office, 31 died in the line of duty. However, Christensen was considered one of the best airmail pilots in the area. He set speed records for the Omaha-Chicago and the Chicago-New York runs.

IN 1921, Christensen was transferred to Chicago and made his first flight on the Chicago-Cleveland route on a foggy spring morning.

The April 29, 1921, flight would prove to be his last.

On his Cleveland approach, Christensen got lost in a heavy fog that forced him to fly low over the city in search of landmarks. Then the engine on his DeHaviland biplane sputtered and filed. Rather than attempting to land on the street and endangering countless pedestrians, Christensen aimed to ditch his plane in the Cuyahoga River. But he came up short.

A 1921 article from the Burt County Plain-Dealer states that Christensen struggled for 15 minutes to find a landing place before he crashed. The fog, which reduced his visibility to 200 feet, prevented him from finding any place to land. Eventually, his engine failed completely and his biplane plunged 200 feet to the ground where the gasoline tank exploded.

Christensen’s struggle for a landing site was witnessed by hundreds of people who were attracted by the roar of the low-flying plane’s engine. Aviators say that if he had dropped in the river, 25 feet away, his life would have been saved.

After the accident, Christensen’s body was shipped to Blair by train where he was honored with the largest funeral in Blair’s history, with an estimated 10,000 in attendance. Services were conducted in the City Hall, and the flag-draped casket was taken to the cemetery on a caisson drawn by four white horses, with a soldier at the bridle of each horse. During the service, five mail planes flew over the cemetery and scattered flowers on the grave.

The most recent issue of PIREPS, a newsletter for Nebraska pilots, stated that Christensen brought credit to Nebraska through his service as a pioneer aviator. His accomplishments were groundbreaking and his skills land him in the record books, inspiring others through his energy, positive attitude and love of flying.

Christensen’s great-nephew, Oscar Tinus Christensen, accepted the honor on his behalf.

Enterprise 5 May 1921

OMAHA AIR FLEET ATTENDS FUNERAL

Five Planes, Commanded By Supt. Votaw, Scatter Flowers On Grave

Full Military Services

Never in the history of the county was such a demonstration witnessed as occurred in this city yesterday when Air Mail Pilot J. T. Christensen was laid to rest in the Blair cemetery.

Mr. Christensen was born in Denmark, August 25, 1890. His father died shortly after his birth and with his widowed mother he came to this country when but six years of age, where they joined his older brothers who had preceded them.

He was a graduate of the Dana college and after the late war broke out he enlisted in the aerial service receiving his first instructions down in Texas and Florida.

Four milk white horses drew the caisson carriage bearing the former soldier’s body. The day was ideal and facilities were not large enough to care for the crowds. Over one fourth of the crowd was unable to get inside of the opera house where the services were held. The cemetery was unable to care for the hundreds of automobiles in the cortege.

A squadron of five airplanes flew from Omaha to Blair, where the pilots landed, attended the services at the city hall, remounted the airplanes and scattered flowers from the sky on the fresh grave of their former comrade.

Pilots who flew to Blair included Tex Marshall, Christensen’s “buddy”, Jack Knight, W. A. Yackey, Clarence C. Lang, Pilot James, L? Bowen, W. R. Holcomb and A? Nielsen.

With Lang, in an Ashmu? Swallow” plane, flew Superintendent William I. Votaw of the Omaha air mail station, who was in command of the air fleet.

The floral decorations were profuse. Pilots and mechanics from the mail service sent a miniature airplane of flowers. A large floral wreath was dropped over the grave by the air men.

The planes circled eight times over the cortage dropping flowers. The ?

Tribune 12 May 1921

THERE’S A NEED OF BETTER MANNERS AT FUNERALS

The writer of this article desires to protest against the behavior of some of the people who attended the burial services of Tinus Christensen last week. So great was the curiosity of some that they intruded their presence on the sanctity of the grief stricken relatives to the extent of crowding to the very edge of the grave in their eagerness that nothing should escape them. Other graves in close proximity to the one being made that day, were trampled to pieces in the stampede, and had it not been for the vigilance of Undertaker J. E. Campbell, some of these people would have fallen into the grave before the lifeless form of the ill-fated young man could have been lowered. Indeed Mr. Campbell manifested untold patience with these ill-bred persons-both children and adults-and in a kindly manner tried to persuade them to move along. The congested condition about the grave reminded one of a bargain counter jam. It is strange that people of ordinary intelligence should have so little common decency as to behave as a large number did on this occasion.

Tribune 5 May 1921

(Photo)

BLAIR AVIATOR MEETS DEATH AND REMAINS BURIED HERE

Blair people were horror stricken on Friday afternoon when word came that J. Tinus Christensen, who lived in Blair for many years, had been killed in an airplane accident at Cleveland Ohio, while carrying mail from Chicago to New York.

The Tribune was the first to receive information of the accident which cost this young man his life, and from this point the news spread.

J. Tinus Christensen was born in Denmark thirty years ago and came to America with his parents and other members of the family when only a few years old. They took up their residence in Washington county where Tinus was educated and was graduated from Dana College.

Shortly after the late war was declared he enlisted, and it was while in the service of the country that he learned to fly and was attached to the aviation corps, holding a commission of second lieutenant. He became an expert aviator and after peace was instituted he was retained by the government in the aviation mail service, and had been carrying mail between Omaha and Chicago since the aerial mail service was instituted, and had recently been transferred to the Cleveland division.

A little more than two years ago Mr. Christensen was married to Lena Davis, a daughter of Mrs. J. W. Emery, and a granddaughter of Mrs. L. A. McEvers of Blair. Some months ago Mrs. Emery moved to Winnebago, Nebr., and Mrs. Christensen, who had been with her husband at Maywood, Ill. – aviation headquarters – had reached Winnebago for a visit with her mother on Thursday of last week, the day previous to the death of her husband. She and her mother came to Blair, reaching here Saturday evening, and went to the home of her grandmother, Mrs. McEvers.

Arrangements were at once made for shipping the body of the dead aviator to his old home town, and on Monday morning it arrived at 8:45 via Chicago and Missouri Valley on the Northwestern road. The body was sent under military escort, being accompanied by Aviator S. M. Moore of Chicago, and Luther Harris, of the aviation mail service of Cleveland. There also accompanied the remains from Chicago, Mrs. A. M. Christensen, mother of the deceased, and a brother, Dr. F. C. Christensen, both coming from Racine, Wis., to meet the body and its attendants at Chicago.

Undertaker J. E. Campbell, and a few Blair citizens met the body at the station and it was taken to his undertaking rooms and held until the day of the funeral.

A Tribune reporter met Aviator Moore and he told the story of the death of the young man:

The fog was very dense over the city of Cleveland on the morning that Aviator Christensen was making the trip and it was difficult for him to see where to land. And while nothing definite is known, it is presumed that he saw a “pocket”-clear space-in the fog and guided his plane for that space, and fell. Mr. Moore assured the reporter that Mr. Christensen was instantly killed by the fall and was not burned to death as the first reports stated. The head and face were so badly crushed that it proved beyond any doubt that death was instantaneous.

The young man was held in the highest esteem by all who knew him. He had established a number of records for flying, the greatest being the making of a trip on December 14, 1920, from Omaha to Chicago, a distance of 440 miles, carrying 400 pounds of mail in his airplane, covering the distance in two hours and 42 minutes flying time. He made but one stop on the trip, that being at Iowa City for fuel.

Besides the wife, there are left to mourn the untimely death of this fine specimen of young manhood, his mother, Mrs. A. M. Christensen, who is heartbroken over the manner of his death as well as her loss, and Dr. F. C. Christensen, a brother, both of Racine, Wis.; three other brothers, K. T. Christensen, of Blair; Rev. J. C., Christensen, of Viborg, S.D.; Rev. Peter Blicher, of Boyceville, Wis., and two sisters, Mrs. Lars Jensen, of Blair, and Mrs. J. C. Christensen, of Springwater, Kas.

The flags of this city were placed at half mast on Monday morning and remained in that positon until the body was laid to rest.

Wednesday morning the city began to fill with people to attend the funeral, which was held at the city hall at 3 o’clock, and was military throughout. The casket was borne to its resting place in the cemetery, draped in the national colors, on a caisson drawn by four iron grey horses with a soldier in uniform at each horse’s head. The guard of honor consisted of uniformed men from the army, navy and marines.

The active pall bearers were personal friends of the dead aviator. They included Sailors Elvin Hansen, and Carl J. Schmidt, Soldiers Herman H. Struve, Christian Zander, Spener Petersen and Burl B. Vaughan, and Marines John Burgess and Ruthven Andersen.

The honorary pall bearers were men of the air service who came by plane and auto truck and included S. M. Moore, assistant superintendent of the Chicago field at Maywood; Luther S. Harris, flyer of Cleveland, and Clarence Lange, Jack Knight, W. A. Yackey, “Tex” Marshall, L. L. Bowen, W. R. R. Holcomb, Andy Nielsen, A. L. Fetters, George Gray, Elmer Pierson. B. Moser, W. I. Votau, manager of the Omaha air service field, J. Woods, C. Williams, Frank Pendleton, A. J. Gerhardt, John Foutch, Chas. Fiala, Jerry Malee, George Lehn and C. Balase. Just before the funeral cortege reached the cemetery five airplanes came into view and began circling over the open grave and during the final services scattered flowers from the sky.

A firing squad from the Stanley E. Hain Post of the American Legion, in sailor and soldier uniforms, under command of Major Reed O’Hanlon, marched at the head of the procession and fired three volleys above the grave.

One of the items worthy of note was the constant singing of a robin in a tree near the open grave, which even the close proximity of the planes, the firing of the guns, or the notes of the bugle did not interrupt.

The services at the hall were very impressive, being conducted by Rev. W. H. Underwood, in English, and Rev. P. S. Vig, in the Danish language. A quartet of young men from Dana college sang several selections.

Rev. Underwood said during the service: “This man did not die in vain, but in the service of a work of wonderful benefit to his fellow men. His life was sacrificed in the cause of progress.

“He was a pioneer and the pioneer has always been a hero. He was such a man as we love to honor with a statue.”

It was estimated that more than 1,000 automobiles and 10,000 persons were in attendance at the grave.

The flowers were the most elaborate ever seen in Blair. One design sent from the aerial station at Chicago was a floral airplane eight feet long and cost $135. One of the most beautiful and impressive pieces was an air service insignia made of red white and blue flowers, by our own florist, William Rodgers, and was ordered by the members of the Cleveland, Ohio airplane department. There were two immense truck loads of choice flowers sent from all parts of the country.

The city schools and the schools of the county were closed in respect of the dead hero, and he business houses of Blair were closed from 3 to 4, during the hour of service.

All that can be said or written in eulogy of Tinus Christensen can not fill the aching void in the heart and life of the good mother who gave him life and reared him to splendid young manhood, who cared for him when no one else was competent to do so, and made him capable of taking his place in the world and prove a blessing to the profession which he chose for his life work; nor the wife, who now has only memories of the past joys for a consolation; nor the brothers and sisters, who loved him and were proud of his achievements.

On every hand we hear words of praise for the young man. Blair is indeed proud to claim him as her own.

The mangled body now lies at rest in a little spot in “God’s Acre” near the place where he passed the greater part of his life and where fond memories of those who loved him will revert in days to come, when he shall be forgotten by the multitude who paid their last respects to him on Wednesday afternoon. But “He is not there!” The spark of life which animated the tenement of his clay has ascended far, far above any altitude he was ever able to reach in his earthy soaring, and is set as a beacon light in a window of heaven, to pilot others to that haven of rest.

Tribune 19 May 1921

MONUMENT WITH “PROPELLER” PUT UP FOR J. T. CHRISTENSEN

A novel monument will be erected at the grave of the late Tinus Christensen, aviator, who lost his life in Cleveland, Ohio, a few days ago when his plane crashed into a railroad track.

Mrs. Christensen, the widow, will erect the monument, which will be of marble, and on the top will be placed an airplane propeller which has been donated by the Omaha field. The propeller is now at J. E. Campbell’s store and has never been used in a flight. It is expected that the monument will be in place by Decoration day.

Omaha World Herald 2 Jan 2005 Article by David Harding Everyday History

(Photo. Caption: J. Tinus Christensen was among the first U.S. Postal Service aviators for the fledgling air mail service between Omaha and Chicago in 1920

Moving the mail might seem mundane, but there was a time when it couldn’t be done without daring young men in flying machines.

The airplane had proved its value in World War I, but most sober adults probably would have balked at the offer of a joy ride in 1920. The engine was still a work in progress, and too many planes had a tendency to plant themselves face-first in a field.

Officials at the U.S. Postal Service felt differently. They envisioned the airplane as the workhorse of a new era in high-speed mail service. They had tried to get Congress interested in funding aerial mail delivery since 1912, but lawmakers felt there were better ways to burn money.

Congress finally gave the go-ahead in 1918 for an experimental route between New York and Washington, D.C. The experiment succeeded, so postal officials set up the first legs of a coast-to-coast delivery system-New York to Cleveland and Cleveland to Chicago. These were followed in 1920 by the opening of western aerial divisions, anchored from an Omaha hub.

J. Tinus Christensen was among the first crop of airmail pilots. Born in Denmark, he came to America with his parents at age 4. They settled in the Danish community of Blair, where he grew up.

Christensen served as a military flight instructor during World War I. He mustered out in 1919 and hired on with the aviation mail service in early 1920. He was one of the first to fly the Omaha-Chicago route, which was based at a field on the Ak-Sar-Ben grounds.

Flying the mail in 1920 proved dangerous. Pilots had no radio contact and no instruments for flying in bad weather. According to the late Bob Adwers, who wrote a book about flying in Nebraska, 31 of the first 40 pilots hired by the post office died in the line of duty.

Christensen was considered among the best of the airmail pilots. An experienced stunt flier, he had a keen sense of the winds aloft. He set speed records for the Omaha-Chicago and Chicago-New York mail runs. Popular among other fliers he helped to found the Associated Airmail Pilots union, and was elected its president.

Christensen transferred to another hub before the first coast-to-coast airmail flight passed through Omaha in the middle of a winter night in 1921. He transferred to Chicago a few months later and made his first flight on the Chicago-Cleveland route on a foggy April morning.

On his approach to Cleveland, he got lost in the fog and had to????? Showed up for his burial service in Blair and watched as planes from the Omaha airmail division dropped flowers.

Christensen was buried as a ?????????

Pilot Tribune 27 May 1948

Vandals Desecrate Grave of Aviator Hero

Vandals—possibly youths who did not realize the seriousness of their act—have desecrated the grave of Tinus Christensen, World War I aviator, in Blair Cemetery even as local was veterans planned to decorate the grave in annual tribute to the fallen flier.

Someone has removed the large propeller from the monument of the Christensen grave. The propeller monument, one of the most unique in this part of the state, had long attracted many visitors to the grave.

American Legionnaires, who annually varnish the propeller and otherwise prepare the monument and gravesite for Memorial Day, discovered its absence last weekend.

They are hoping that the propeller will show up before this week-end—that the ones who appropriated it will at least leave it at the grave so it can be returned to its proper place before Memorial Day.

Tinus Christensen, 30 at the time of his death in 1921, was the son of the late Mr. and Mrs. A. M. Christensen of Blair. After pilot service in the first war, he became one of the pioneer airmail pilots, and among other deeds set a new mark of two hours and 42 minutes between Omaha and Chicago—then a startling record and still an excellent speed.

Christensen was killed when his plane crashed near Cleveland, O., during a fog.

Flags were at half mast throughout Blair as the body was brought to Blair. Ten thousand persons from near and far filled Blair’s City Hall and adjacent streets as military services were held. The flag-draped casket, borne on a caisson drawn by four horses, was followed to Blair Cemetery by a large procession. Planes flew overhead and dipped to drop flowers on the grave.

Blair’s municipal airport was formally named Christensen Field in 1941 to honor the memory of the pioneer flier.

Article in Blair Historic Preservation Alliance (www.blairhistory.com/archive/biographies/j.Tinus.Christensen.htm 10 Nov 2008

Tribute from the Dana College “Hermes” Yearbook

(Photo of J. Tinus by plane); Photo: Caption Funeral Cortege at the Blair Fire Hall/City Hall C. 1921; Photo: Caption After the funeral at the Blair Cemetery c. 1921; Photo: Caption Funeral Crowd c. 1921; Photo: Caption: Airplane above hills reported to be J. T. Christiansen flying above Blair, Nebraska.; Photo of J. Tinus Christensen.

James Tinus Christensen, (1890-1921)

J. T. Christensen was one of aviation’s first heroes. Born in Denmark he came to this country with his parents at the age of four. They settled in Blair, Nebraska where he grew up and attended Dana College before World War I. During that war he was a military flight instructor. Then in 1920 he hired on with the U.S. Postal Service’s new airmail delivery. Buried in the Blair Cemetery (Block 85 Lot 8 Grave 8) on 5/4/1921 Age: 31

AIR MAIL PILOT SACRIFICED LIFE TO SAVE OTHERS

From AirMailPioneers.org www.airmailpioneers.org/Pilots/Christensen.htm

April 30, 1921, Plain-Dealer Forced to seek a landing in downtown Cleveland by engine trouble and unable to see because of a dense fog, Air Mail Pilot J. T. Christensen (James Tinus) yesterday afternoon sacrificed his life rather than attempt a landing in a street-a course which would have endangered the lives of many people. Facing death, he struggled for fifteen minutes to find a landing place before the crash scene.

The pilot fell 200 feet to the Erie railroad tracks at Scranton and University roads S.W., almost under Central viaduct. His airplane was reduced to a mass of tangled wreckage, the gasoline tank exploded and the fire which followed burned the pilot’s body, caught under the debris.

Christensen, his engine missing, searched back and forth over the southern portion of Cleveland for a vacant lot in which to land. He flew low, barely missing the tops of some buildings. Many persons stood on the street and watched. They said his engine seemed to be missing, and to the observers it was evident he was in straits.

Once he skirted over a vacant lot into which he might have dropped, but did not see it because of the fog. He tried once to rise, but was unable to attain enough altitude to allow him to continue the search.

When he was directly over the Cuyahoga river he flew upstream, presumably intending to drop into the river, but Central viaduct suddenly loomed ahead and he was forced to return. Trapped between Central viaduct and the high level bridge, he circled upstream once more, flying at the height of the viaduct until suddenly his engine appeared to fail entirely and he fell, the plane striking on its nose among the piles alongside the railway tracks.

Misses River by 25 Feet

Aviators say that if he had dropped into the river, twenty-five feet away, his life would have been saved.

The aviator’s battle for life was watched by hundreds who were attracted by the roaring of the motor.

His flying mates, who declare he was one of the most skillful of air mail pilots, say that in the fog he could not have been able to see beyond 200 feet.

Unable to get his engine to run properly, they declare, he was forced to look for a way out of his difficulty.

The only paths open were to attempt a street landing, with great danger to vehicles and lives, to find a vacant lot, an attempt which he made and filed in, or to drop into the river, feeling his way in the fog, when the crash came.

Christensen was making his first trip on the Chicago to Cleveland route. He was transferred recently to that division from the Cleveland to New York route.

He told friends when he was transferred that it was exactly the assignment he wanted. The plane he was flying was a converted De Haviland.

Christensen was 31 years old. His home was in Maywood, Chicago, but he maintained a room with Carl Krumhar.

He was well known here, having flown at the first aerial tournament held in Cleveland at Woodland Hills park, Aug. 15 to Aug. 25, 1919.

He married two years ago in Cleveland Miss Lena Davis. He met Miss David while she was attending Dana College, Blair, Neb. The couple took an airplane honeymoon trip from Cleveland to Akron and other Ohio cities.

Mrs. Christensen is visiting relatives in Nebraska and no one was at home at the little cottage near the Maywood air field in Chicago when reporter called there last night.

The dead aviator was one of the best flyers in the service, heads of the mail flying department said. He held three speed records.

On Dec. 30, 1920, he startled the commercial flying world by taking mail from Chicago to New York, 741 miles, in five hours and thirty-one minutes, averaging 117 miles an hour from Chicago to Cleveland and 151 miles an hour from Cleveland to New York. Another record was established when he flew a DeHaviland from Omaha to Chicago in two hours and forty-five minutes.

Knew Air Currents

Christensen’s speed supremacy in the air mail service lay, according to officials, in his knowledge of winds. He knew that the winds varied at different altitudes and always jockeyed up and down until he found the most favorable current.

He was taught to fly at the old Curtiss flying school at Norfolk, Virginia, before the war. When the war broke out he joined the army as a civilian instructor and was sent to Gerstner field, Lake Charles, LA. He later was given the rank of second lieutenant and became instructor in stunt flying at which he was expert.

After three years in the army he was discharged in the spring of 1919 and did civilian flying at Erie Beach, Erie, Pa. He came to Cleveland to fly at the Woodland Hills tournament and then joined the mail service.

He flew on the Chicago-to-Omaha division, then was transferred to the Cleveland-New York route and recently to the Cleveland-Chicago route.

Note: on Pg 2 of the above article there are other articles but they contain the same information as above.

~~~ Obituary courtesy of the Washington County Genealogical Society. Newspaper clippings on file in the Blair Public Library at Blair, Nebraska.~~~