Greenwich, Connecticut – August 20, 1910

 

     At 6:35 p.m. on the evening of August 20, 1910, famous aviator Clifford B. Harmon took off from Garden City, Long Island, N.Y.,  in his Farman bi-plane, and flew across Long Island Sound to Greenwich, Connecticut, where he landed at 7:05 p.m. in a grassy field near Sandy Beach and Indian Harbor where his father-in-law lived.  Upon landing, the aircraft skids struck rocks hidden by the grass causing the airplane to wreck and suffer serious damage.  Harmon was shaken but otherwise uninjured. 

     As word of the accident spread, sightseers converged on the area, and a guard was employed to watch over the aircraft until morning.  Despite the watchman, souvenir hunters managed to remove items from the plane before morning.    

     The following day the aircraft was disassembled and brought back to Long Island by the oyster boat Samuel Chard.  

     This was the first successful heavier-than-air flight in history to cross Long Island Sound.  Harmon had made several previous attempts to cross the Sound without success.  For completing the flight Harmon was awarded a $2,000 cup provided by the Doubleday Page Co. 

     Sources: 

     New York Tribune, “Benedict Proud Of Harmon”, August 22, 1901, page 3. 

     Norwich Bulletin, “Aeroplane trip Over The Sound”, August 22, 1910.