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Posted on 03/09/2006 7:15:31 PM PST by alfa6
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 are acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated.
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 "Be Quick, Be Quiet, And Be On Time" I knew I wanted to design airplanes when I was 12 years old" says Johnson. "I read every Tom Swift novel I could get my hands on. I read "Tom Swift and his Airplane"; "Tom Swift and his Electric Car" ; "Tom Swift and his Submarine" and I said that's for me." A native of Michigan, Johnson was born in the remote mining town of Ishpeming on November 27, 1910 to immigrant Swedish parents. Kelly was born seven years after the Wright Brothers made their first successful flight. While attending grade school, Kelly was chided by some classmates for his name; Clarence. The other boys started calling me "Clara". One morning while waiting in line to get into a classroom, one boy named Cecil started with the normal routine of calling me "Clara". Kelly tripped the boy so hard it broke his leg. The boys then decided that I wasn't a "Clara" and looking for a new nickname started calling me "Kelly". The nickname came from the popular song at the time.."Kelly With the Green Neck Tie". From that time forward it would always be "Kelly Johnson". After making his decision at the age of 12 to design aircraft, he went ahead to design his first airplane. Kelly called his first design "The Merlin 1, Battle Plane". Several weeks later he saw his first airplane; a World War I Jenny. His decision was confirmed. He later moved to Flint where his father had a construction business. Kelly graduated from Flint High School, working summers with his father and in the motor test section of the Buick Motor Car Company. By graduation he had saved up $300. He tried to give it to an Instructor at the Flint Airport in exchange for flying lessons, but the Instructor shook his head and probably changed the entire course of Kelly's life. "I've always had the greatest respect for that man," Kelly said later. "He needed that money more than anything else in the world. But instead of taking it, he said, "Look kid..save that money and go to school." Kelly graduated from Flint Junior College and completed his education at the University of Michigan, where he received His Bachelor of Science Degree in 1932. Kelly Johnson worked his way through school by picking up scholarships, washing dishes and helping a professor; Edward Stalker, as a Teaching Assistant. He went on to received his Master of Science Degree in Aeronautical Engineering in 1933. During this period he picked up small teaching fellowships and augmenting his income by renting the University's wind tunnel to run tests as a consultant on models of Indianapolis racing cars, trains and aircraft. "I made more more money that year than any of the first 10 years I worked for Lockheed." Kelly grins. After graduating froom the University of Michigan in 1932 Kelly Johnson wenr out West to look for work in the aircraft industry. No work was to be found. Ther only encouragement Kelly recieved was from the Lockheed Company which had just come out of bankruptcy. No jobs were available at the time but engineering executive Richard von Hake suggested to Kelly. "Why don't you go back to school and come out again next year? I think we'll have something for you." So back to the U of Michigan for a year to get a Masters in Aeronautical Engineering. Kelly's tuition was paid in part by a $500 fellowship grant and lots of hours at the wind tunnel. Among the projects that Kelly helped with in the wind tunnel was a model of the Lockheed Electra. The aircraft had some stability problems but the university professors and Lockheed execs thought that they were. Kelly Johnson thought otherwise.  He left college in 1933 with a master's of science degree, a used car, and plans to return to Lockheed and the promised job in California. Lockheed executive Cyril Chappellet and Chief Engineer Hall Hibbard hired the young Johnson as an $83 a month tool designer until there was an opening in engineering. Kelly Johnson was asked his opinion of the Electra, the plane that the newly reorganized Lockheed Compamy was banking it's future on. Kelly never one to hide his light replied,"Practically the first thing I told Chappellet and Hibbard was that their plane was unstable and that I did not agree with the university's wind-tunnel report." Back to Michigan U went Kelly Johnson to see if he could do better. It took 72 wind tunnel test but Kelly was able to improve the Electra. The result was the classic twin tail of the Electra line. Also in the design of the Electra was the introduction of "Fowler Flaps that enhanced low speed stability and braking and helped to improve the aircrafts speed in flight. The design of the Fowler Flap earned Kelly Johnson the first of over fifty awards that he would gather over his carrer.In 1937 at the age of 27 Kelly Johnson was awarded by the Institute of Aeronautical Sciences the Lawrence Sperry Award for "important improvements of aeronautical design of high speed commercial aircraft". The Sperry award was given annually "for outstanding achievements in aeronautics by young men."  Also in 1937 Lockheed won the a design contract that would lead to the P-38 Lightning. It was Kelly Johnson's work in the wind tunnel that helped to solve the problems of compressibilty that threatened to end the Lighting program. Lockheed went on to build almost 10,000 P-38s whixh fought in all theaters of the war amd was flown by the two top aces of the United States. In 1938 with Hitler threatning war in Europe the British sent a purchasing commission to the United States to lookk for aircraft to help re-arm England. Among the planes the comission was looking for was a coastal patrol bomber/antisubmarine aircraft. With only commercial aircraft in production Lockheed was not on the original schedule for the British comission. A change of plans however led the British to Lockheed with only five days notice to Lockheed. With only five days to come up with something to present to the British Purchasing Commission Lockheed engineers and shop personell, using the Electra Model 14 as a starting point produced a full scale wooden mockup of a medium reconnaissance bomber. The British were so impressed by the enthusiasm of the Lockheed employees and their mockup that Lockheed was invited to send a group of people to England to confere with the Air Ministry on the proposed bomber. Of course Kelly Johnson was a member of this team. At the meeting with the Air Ministry in England new specifications were requested that would require a major redesign of the proposed bomber. Working for three straight days over a holiday weekend, taking the occasional catnap Johnson redesigned the proposed bomber to meet the new specifications. The British were astounded that the plane could be redesigned in such a short time, especially by such a young engineer. After a week of additional discussions the British called Courtland Goss of to the side to inquire as to wether or not Lockheed would stand behind their young engineer. Courtalnd Goss recalled the conversation thusly... "Mr. Goss, we like your proposal very much, and we very much would like to deal with Lockheed. On the other hand, you must understand that we're very unused in this country to dealing--especially on transactions of such magnitude--on the technical say-so of a man as young as Mr. Johnson. And, therefore, I'll have to have your assurance . . . that if we do go forward, the aircraft resulting from the purchase will in every way live up to Mr. Johnson's specifications." Of course Goss assured the British that Lockheed had every confidence in the capabilities of Kelly Johnson and that the Air Ministry would not be dissapointed with the new aircraft. On June 28, 1938 the British Air Ministry signed a contract worth $25,000,000 dollars for 200 of the proposed bomber plus as many more that could be built and delivered by December of 1939 up to a total of 250 aircraft. At the time it was the largest single order for aircraft that an American aircraft company hed seen. The proposed new bomber was the Hudson, the progenitor of the Venura and Harpoon that came later in WW-II.  In 1943 the "Skunk Works" was born. Lockheed had a contract with the Army Air Forces to develop a jet fighter built around British DeHavilland jet engine in only 180 days. The rush was in response to repoert that the Germans were flying a jet aircraft. Kelly Johnson with the approval of Lockheed President Robert E. Goss, Johnson formed a team of 23 engineers and 103 shop personnel that were mostly pirated from other projects. The team worked in a small assembly shed at the Lockheed plant in Burbank. Some reports indicat that an old circus tent was used owing to the lack of available secure space due to the need of wartime production demands. In a 143 days, 37 days less than the contracted amount the P-80 Shooting Star made it first flight on January 8th, 1944. The Advanced Development Projects team had it's first succes. The nickname "Skunk Works" came from the Al Capp comic strip "L'il Abner" where the denizens of Dogpatch would throw in skunks, old shoes and who knew what else to make that fearsome brew "Kickapoo Joy Joice". The folks at Lockheed started to refer to the building where Kelly Johnson's crew was working as "The Skunk Works" because who knew what they where building.  Just a few of the military aircraft to come out of the Skunk Works ere the T-33 trainer variant of the F-80. The T-33 probanly traiined more pilots to fly jets than any other aircraft. The F-104 Starfighter, the "missle with a man in it" of the late 1950's. The P2V Neptune naval patrol bomber. It was a P2V, the Truculent Turtle, that etablished a non-stop distance record from Perth, Australia to Columbus,Ohio in 1946 of 11,235 miles. Another Lockheed aircraft to benefit from Kelly Johnson's work was the Constellation. The Constellation was a civil airliner that was taken over by the military when WW-II broke out. After the war in became one of the premier piston engined airliners before the advent of the jet airliner. It also was used by the United States military in various forms as well.  It was the 1950s that saw the development what could arguably be two greatest designs of the Skunk Works, Driven by a need to conduct overflight reconnaissance of the Soviet Union in order to collect data on the Soviet military and misasle work the U.S. goverment turned to Kelly Johnson and the Advanced Development Project team. In 1955 the Skunk Works rolled out the long winged U-2. The U-2 could fly at over 70,000ft with a range of 4,000 miles. The U-2 was also a money saver. Johnson's team returned $2,000,000 of the $20,000,000 contract. Lockheed also built 26 of the U-2 aircraft instead of the 20 airctaft that was in the contract.  The other great aircraft to come out of the Skunk Works was of course the SR-71 Blackbird. in 1960 the U.S. Air Force gave the Skunk Works the go ahead to design and build what would become the SR-71. The idea of designing a plane that could fly at sustained speed in excess of Mach 3 was the most difficult challenge thast Kelly Johnson and the Skunk Works team would face. An aircraft that could fly at these speeds would take a whole host of inovations that at the time were basically unknown. Metals, fuel, plastic and wiring were just a few of the problems the the Skunk Works team had to overcome. It all came together however and in 1962 the first of the A-12s made it's maiden flight. The YF-12A flew in 1963 with the SR-71 making it's first flight on December 22, 1964. The SR-71 in the 1970s went on to set records for speed (2,193 mph), altitude (85,069 feet). A New York to London flight of 3,470 miles was accomplished in one hour and fity four minutes. London to Los Angeles a distance of 5,463 miles only took three hours and forty seven minutes. In March of 1990 for it's retirement the SR-71 streaked across the United States in 68 minutes in a 2,400 mile coast to coast flight.  |
"When Confederate troops threatened the B&O at Grafton the federal government quickly moved troops into the area. On the night of June 3, 1861, the first land battle of the Civil War involving organized troops took place at Philippi, about 15 miles south of Grafton. Some 3,000 federal troops under the general command of Major General George B. McClellan and the immediate command of Colonels Benjamin F. Kelley and Ebenezar Dumont drove about 800 Confederates under Colonel George A. Porterfield from the town. While no one was killed in the battle, the Confederates suffered several severe wounds necessitating the first amputations of the Civil War, one each by Union and Confederate surgeons.
Source: WV Encyclopedia
The siege of Ft. Sumpter (April 12, 1861) was a harbor bombardment from Ft. Moultrie, Castle Pinckney and Morris Island. It would seem that Sumpter was not a true "land battle" but I'd defer to the more scholarly. What say you?
Great Story
Thanks for sharing it here on the Foxhole
Regards
alfa6 ;>}
LOL! I guess it's because they're the "the southern most northern state and the northern most southern state." ;^)
Good thing I drive one of these!
I'll just say that I have some serious theological differences with them, which I have articulated on the Religion board. But other than that, I'll heed your advice.
There is some merit to that. It was more of a bombardment.
From the book "The Longest Night" A Military History of the Civil War" by Favid J. Eicher Copyright 2001 by Touchstone Press.
"At Fairfax Court House, Virginia on June 1, (1961)50 cavalry troopers and 25 dragoons led by Lt. Charles H. Thompson of the U.S. 2nd Cavalry, a regular army veteran, cut through the town on their way to Germantown. In what was ostensibly the first land battle of the war, Confederates of the Prince William Cavalry and the Warrenton Rifles put up a short fight, opening fire at first from windows in the town. Capt. John Q. Marr of the Warrenton Rifles was killed and Col. Richard S. Ewell, whose fame and influence would rise greatly after he recovered, was wounded in the shoulder. The Confederates in Fairfax Court House greatly outnumbered the U.S. troopers and Tompkins retreated to safety after the brief skirmish.
Also form the same source just a few paragraphs later.
"Yankees and Rebels met agian on June 3, at Philippi, Virginia. Maj. Gen. George B McClellan, in command of the Department of Ohio, had overall authority in the area. His strategy called for Union forces to march from Grafton throught the dark mountain roads during a night rainfall and strike the Confederates under Col. Geaorge A. Porterfield at daylight. Union militia Brig. Gen Thomas A. Morris ordered the attack. The force would be led by Col. Benjamin F. Kelley and would consist of about 2,000 men. At dawn the Union forces fiorewd a shell into the midst of the Confederate encampment, stunning and scattering Porterfield's 1,500 troops. Early in the action Kelley was struck in the chest by a pistol shot and severely wounded, although he subsequently recovered. Thereafter, Col. Ebenezer Dumont of the 7th Indian Infantry took command. As the seccesionist fled, the Yankees pursued until all were exhausted. Althought this minor skirmish was glorified in the press, which dubbed it the "Phillippi Races" it had little significance. The casualtires were slight: 15 Confederates were killed and, aside from Kelley, 2 Yankees wounded."
Depending on your definition of "battle" there could be a bit of disagrrement. I don't think the skirmish at Fairfax Court House has the numbers or pehaps the amount of fighting , at least from this account, to count as a "battle"
YMMV
Regards
alfa6 ;>}
1861 Battles
FWIW Mr Eicher rated the June 10th engagement as the first major battle of the Civil War. As I mentioned earlier it all depends on what "is" is.
Opps wrong analogy, thought it might be good for a cheap laugh :-)
I will have to look through Mr. Eicher's book some more tonight.
E-book version of "The Long Night" is here.
(http://cyberread.com/Shop/Details.php?product_id=7458)
Regards
alfa6 ;>}
That's pretty funny.
hI MISS fEATHER
The bittygirl phrase of the day: "icky gickies"
Msdrby was changing a Bittydiaper when:
"I went to change her diaper, and I opened the almost brand new box of babywipes to find (drumroll) a bunch of (now soggy) crackers sitting on top of the wipes."
"Althought this minor skirmish was glorified in the press, which dubbed it the "Phillippi Races" it had little significance."
Maybe it's a not so major battle/skirmish?
ROTFLOL!!
Oh, yikes!
LOL. It's so cute!
That pup looks like that rascal Sarge, doesn't he??
I agree with you. Now let me go back over to the Religon board where I can find something with which to disagree.
I've read it a dozen times and get a different perspective each time. There's much to a bridge.
1. Wisconsin visitors and residents enjoy the state's 7,446 streams and rivers. End-to-end they'd stretch 26,767 miles. That is more than enough to circle the globe at the equator.
2. Wisconsin's Door County has five state parks and 250 miles of shoreline along Lake Michigan. These figures represent more than any other county in the country.
3. In 1878-1879 the Wisconsin legislature approved the creation of a state park in Vilas County. The proposal was not successful and the state ended up selling two-thirds of area land to lumber interest for $8 an acre in 1897.
4. In 1900 land acquisition for Wisconsin's first state park began. The park became Interstate State Park located in St. Croix Falls.
5. Devil's Lake was established in 1911. The facility has become one of Wisconsin's oldest and most famous state parks. It leads the state parks in attendance.
6. The House on the Rock was designed and built in the early 1940s. It is considered an architectural marvel and is perched on a 60-foot chimney of rock. The 14-room house is now a complex of rooms, streets, buildings, and gardens covering over 200 acres. The Infinity Room contains 3,264 windows.
7. The state is nicknamed the Badger State.
8. In 1882 the first hydroelectric plant in the United States was built at Fox River.
9. The first practical typewriter was designed in Milwaukee in 1867.
10. Wausau is the Ginseng Capital of the World.
11. The American Birkebeiner, a 52K cross-country ski race between Cable and Hayward, is the largest on the North American continent.
12. Wisconsin snowmobile trails total 15,210 miles of signed and groomed snow highways.
13. Mount Horeb is the Troll Capital of the World and home to the Mustard Museum (see below.)
14. In the 1930s the Flambeau River State Forest was established and became a legacy of the Civilian Conservation Corps and the Works Project Administration.
15. Noah's Ark in Wisconsin Dells is the nation's largest water-themed park.
16. Belleville is the Unidentified Flying Object Capital of Wisconsin.
17. Potosi is the Catfish Capital of the state.
18. The nation's first kindergarten was established in Watertown in 1856. Its first students were local German-speaking youngsters.
19. Wisconsin is the dairy capital of the United States.
20. Wisconsin produces more milk than any other state.
21. Frank Lloyd Wright was born in Richland Center on June 8, 1867
22. The National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame in Hayward is shaped like a Muskie.
23. The original Barbie is from Willows. Barbie's full name is Barbie Millicent Roberts.
24. Bloomer is the Jump Rope Capital of the World.
25. Milwaukee is home of Harley Davidson Motorcycles.
26. The first Ringling Brothers Circus was staged in Baraboo in 1884.
27. Somerset is the Inner Tubing Capital of the World.
28. Green Bay is Wisconsin's oldest city.
29. Two Rivers is the home of the ice cream sundae.
30. Wisconsin's second oldest city is Prairie du Chien.
31. The state's constitution is the oldest of any state west of the Allegheny Mountains. It was adopted in 1848.
32. Boscobeel is the Turkey Capital of the state.
33. The Republican Party was founded in Ripon in 1854.
34. The Hamburger hall of fame is located in Seymour.
35. Monroe is the Swiss Cheese Capital of the World.
36. Mercer is the Loon Capital of the World.
37. With an average of 2,500 performers, Milwaukee's Summerfest is the nation's largest music festival.
38. Famous Wisconsinites include: Harry Houdini, famous magician and escape artist. Douglas MacArthur, well known World War II and Korean War general. Frank Lloyd Wright, America's most famous architect. William H. Rehnquist, Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court. Don Ameche, actor and winner of an academy award for his performance in "Cocoon."
39. Mount Horeb's internationally known Mustard Museum holds the world's largest mustard collection. The museum contains more than 2,300 varieties of mustard. The museum celebrates National Mustard Day each August.
40. The National Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame is in Hayward.
41. Eagle River is known as the Snowmobile Capital of the World.
42. Marshfield is located in the geographic center of the state and is known Hub City.
43. Bonduel is the Spelling Capital of Wisconsin.
44. Muscoda is the Morel Mushroom Capital of Wisconsin.
45. Sauk City is Wisconsin's oldest incorporated village.
46. Prairie du Sac hosts the State Cow Chip Throwing Contest on Labor Day weekend.
47. Sturgeon Bay is the Shipbuilding Capital of the Great Lakes.
48. Sheboygan is the Bratwurst Capital of the World.
49. The falls in Niagara has the same geological feature as Niagara Falls, New York.
50. Green Bay is the Toilet Paper Capital of the World.
13. Mount Horeb is the Troll Capital of the World and home to the Mustard Museum (see below.)
16. Belleville is the Unidentified Flying Object Capital of Wisconsin.
17. Potosi is the Catfish Capital of the state.
19. Wisconsin is the dairy capital of the United States
24. Bloomer is the Jump Rope Capital of the World.
27. Somerset is the Inner Tubing Capital of the World.
32. Boscobeel is the Turkey Capital of the state.
35. Monroe is the Swiss Cheese Capital of the World.
36. Mercer is the Loon Capital of the World.
41. Eagle River is known as the Snowmobile Capital of the World.
43. Bonduel is the Spelling Capital of Wisconsin.
44. Muscoda is the Morel Mushroom Capital of Wisconsin.
47. Sturgeon Bay is the Shipbuilding Capital of the Great Lakes.
48. Sheboygan is the Bratwurst Capital of the World.
50. Green Bay is the Toilet Paper Capital of the World.
I think someone has figured it out . . . don't use the words largest, smallest, first or only; use the word "capital". ;^)
BTW, do you know what Madison is the Capital of?
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