Name/Title
Newspaper Article - Mollisons Fail in Take-Off Attempts at Wasaga - 1933Entry/Object ID
2020.407.1Scope and Content
Newspaper article attached to 1/16" thick cardboard with leather type cover of a scrapbook that reads "SCRAPBOOK" and "COME HITHER"Context
The photo shows the Seafarer II with a crowd of people surrounding it. There is another plane visible in the background. The article describes the scene and the Mollisons' failed attempts to take-off from Wasaga Beach. Two smaller clippings show a picture of a small child and a description titled "Good-luck Bouquet". The child, named Billy Self, aged two years old gave Captain James Mollison a bouquet of three flowers picked from a garden. Captain Mollison put the bouquet inside the Seafarer for good luck.
In the description of the main article, it is noted that in the picture with Captain James and Amy Mollison, Tuesday, October 3, 1933, James and Amy are standing at Dehavilland air field before leaving on a flight for Wasaga Beach the previous day.
The History of Flight in Wasaga Beach:
In early years, the beachfront at Wasaga Beach was not only a main roadway it was also a natural runway for airplanes. In 1933, Captain James Mollison and his wife Amy Johnson attempted to fly their plane, the Seafarer II, from Wasaga Beach to Bagdad, Iraq in an attempt to break the long distance record. On the day they attempted to take off from the beachfront, high crosswinds made it difficult to take off. On their third attempt, the undercarriage of the plane was damaged preventing any further attempt to take off. The Mollison's sold the Seafarer II to James Ayling and Leonard Reid who restored and renamed the plane “Trail of the Caribou”. Ayling and Reid also planned to attempt to break the record for longest flight. On the morning of August 8th, 1934, Ayling and Reid took off from Wasaga Beach in the Trail of the Caribou and made it to England. They encountered heavy fog and winds and used more fuel than they had anticipated. Although they did not break the world record they made the first direct non-stop flight from Canada to England.
Amy Mollison is the first documented female pilot to land on our beachfront. She was also the first solo pilot to fly from England to Australia in 1930. Another famous female pilot who landed in Wasaga Beach was Amelia Earhart. Amelia Earhart was the first woman to fly solo from Newfoundland, Canada to England. That same year she also made the first solo, nonstop flight by a woman across the United States in 19 hours and was the first woman to fly as a passenger across the Atlantic in 1928. Wasaga Beach Archives has a picture documenting Amelia Earhart’s plane being pulled onshore in Wasaga Beach that has a notation “Amelia Earhart, Wasaga Beach, Elsie and I saw her take off.” This photo was taken by the father of Denton and Paul Brownridge and “Elsie” in the photo is their mother. Locals Elsie and Clarence Brownridge were in attendance. The photo was taken in the early 1930’s and there is speculation around why Amelia would have landed here. Amelia and Amy Mollison were friends and competitors, perhaps she landed to support Mollison’s flight.Acquisition
Accession
2020.407Source or Donor
UnknownAcquisition Method
Gift
