Kittery, Maine – September 24, 1860

     On September 24, 1860, Dr. W. H. Helme, along with William Hill and Peter Dean, made a balloon ascension from Providence, Rhode Island.  The balloon traveled north-northeast and after five hours landed in Newton, New Hampshire, a town just over the border from Massachusetts, about ninety miles from Providence.

     A strong breeze was blowing as the men began to allow the gas to escape from the balloon.  When the balloon had partially deflated, it broke free of the netting and sailed off on its own minus the gondola and any pilot.  It was later recovered in Kittery, Maine. 

     Source:

     Cincinnati Daily Press, (Ohio), “Balloon Ascension”, September 25, 1860