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MAYFIELD,WILLIAM PRESTON (1896-1974)
Group of 25 photographs depicting pilots and various Wright Bros. flying machines, including
pioneer instructor Oscar A. Brindley, plus Col. Charles De F. Chandler, Lloyd S. Briadner, Howard
M. Rinchardt, C.P. Rodgers (who was the first to fly a “Wright” coast-to-coast), and OrvilleWright,
as well as would-be pilots (including one depicting Mayfield in the driver’s seat), and an early single
prop, the Model “B,”Model “E,” and the Parmalee (the first commercial Flier), many of which were
taken at Simms Station or the Dayton Fairgrounds. Silver prints, 2
3
/
4
x5
1
/
4
to 4x10 to 8x10 inches
(7x13.3 to 10.2x25.4 to 20.3x 25.4 cm.), nearly all with Mayfield’s hand stamp and penciled
notations byWalt Burton. 1910-1913; many are printed later
[5,000/7,500]
The Ohio-based photographer William Preston Mayfield began photographing the brothers and their
early aviation projects in 1910. Images in this group are reproduced inWright Brothers Legacy, including
the picture of Phil O. Parmalee, who is shown about to take off from Simms Field on the first commercial
flight (Orville is at left with an oil gun). Parmalee was delivering ten bolts of silk to a department store
in Columbus, Ohio.The store, which was owned by Frank Hermes, paid the Wrights $5,000 for the
flight and made a profit of $1,000 by selling small bits of silk as souvenirs.
