46 AVIATION from 43


soloed on his 16th birth- day, April 2, 1939. Another interesting oc-


currence was the visit of the Aviation Country Club seaplane cruise. Many wealthy and famous avi- ators kept their private planes at the Aviation Country Club on Long Island, a location since re-


THE WEIRS TIMES, Thursday, September 30, 2010


developed as Levittown. In 1932, a dozen seaplanes, with many aviation lumi- naries of the period aboard, took an aerial cruise from Long Island to Lake Win- nipesaukee, where they were guests at the Bald Peak Country Club, refuel- ing at the Weirs seaplane base before heading back to home base.


For many years, Fogg advertised “Safe and Sane Flying,” and never had an accident with personal in- jury. That came to an end when he struck an un- marked rock in Mooseh- ead Lake, Maine, after dropping off passengers on a charter flight in the Sikorsky, which sank. When the flying boat had


been recovered from the lake and was being dried out and repaired, Laconia mechanic George Bisson was killed instantly when he was struck by a propel- ler that had one more kick left in it after it appeared that the engine was dead. In 1942, after both Fogg and Rice had ceased to be involved in Weirs aviation,


tragedy struck again when a plane piloted by Earl Blanchard of Vermont, taxiing back to the Weirs dock, struck a small boat and two passengers in the boat were killed, with four injured.


Following a season fly- “Grand Summers at the Weirs”


Depicts the Weirs just after the turn of the century. 23” x 13”


ing from Wolfeboro in 1938, Fogg went to work for the CAA (predecessor of the FAA) supervising the building of seaplane bases by young men em- ployed by the National Youth Administration. He flew first Lady Eleanor Roosevelt more than once to dedicate new bases. He was on active military service again in World War II, finally hanging up his flying helmet in 1953. After the war, he worked briefly for the Edo company, manufacturers of aircraft floats, and for Republic Aviation com- pany, and was probably involved in a mass flight of Republic Seabee amphib- ians which paid a visit at the Weirs base, which was operated by Bill Cannon at that time. He passed away in1976, and a fas- cinating collection of his scrapbooks and logbooks is housed at the Rauner Special Collections Li- brary at Dartmouth. An open-cockpit Waco biplane operated by Can- non in 1947 at the Weirs was subsequently re- stored and is currently at a museum in Canada, the only known survivor of the early Weirs flying days. It was used briefly in the film “Amelia,” about Amelia Earhart. The “Weirs Aviation


Scrapbook” compiled by the author from various news clippings, magazine articles, and personal pho- tos can be seen at the La- conia Public Library and at the Winnipesaukee Histor- ical Society. Research into Weirs aviation history is continuing and the author would appreciate hearing from anyone with memo- ries or pictures to share.


Purchase yours today by calling Toll Free 1-888-308-8463 or online at www.TheWeirsTimes.com or by stopping in at our office on Route 3 next to Funspot!


Anyone with more infor- mation about flying at the Weirs can contact Jane Rice at moultnews@hot- mail.com, or PO Box 5, Moultonboro, NH 03254.


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