Newfoundland Air Mail 1919-39
January 25, 2023
Newfoundland has played an important role in the development of long-distance air travel. As the easternmost place in North America, it became a popular runway for many aviation pioneers attempting to cross the Atlantic by air in 1919. It also served as a refueling point for round-the-world attempts in the 1920s. Amelia Earhart made two record-setting flights from Newfoundland, in 1928 and 1932. The advent of passenger flights in the 1930s brought the pioneer period to a close, but established Newfoundland as a major stopover between Europe and North America. This June will mark 104th Anniversary of the Alcock & Brown flight (On 15 June 1919 came the telegram with the news that the Vicker's Vimy landed in Ireland, having completed the 1,860 mile flight in 16 hours. The news was received with great enthusiasm. "Well, it must be something for a man in Ireland today to be able to say Yesterday, when I was in America", quoted the pilots). The rest is history.
We are pleased to present the award-winning collection assembled by Jean-Claude Vasseur, author of "Newfoundland Air Mails 1919/1939" published in 2015. The collection tells the story of the Great Transatlantic Air Race and the struggles of early aviation. Many rarities and unique items are included.
The auction will take place on Wednesday, January 25, 2023 at 1:00 PM at Cherrystone Auction Galleries and on CherrystoneLive.
| Images | Description | Current Bid |
 | Lot #21 The Great Transatlantic Race Alcock & Brown - successful Transatlantic Flight 1919 (13 June) "The Cochrane" corner card cover franked with $1 Trans-Atlantic surcharge, comma, no stop variety (pos.14), tied by St. John's machine departure duplex pmk, addressed to England, endorsed "Via Vicker-Vimy Aeroplane Transatlantic Mail", written by John Alcock, with letter (card mounted, aged, with paper separations) stating his confidence in the enterprise and the rivalry with the Handley-Page team, some cover wear, one of only a few known from the legendary John Alcock, signed Diena (On 15 June 1919 a telegram arrived at the Royal Aero Club with the message: "Landed Clifden, Ireland, at 8.40 am Greenwich mean time, June 15, Vickers Vimy Atlantic machine leaving Newfoundland coast 4.28 pm GMT, June 14, Total time 16 hours 12 minutes. Instructions awaited." The message was from pilots John Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown announcing to the world that, for the first time, an aircraft had flown non-stop across the Atlantic)  Catalog #C2 | Price Realized $8,500.00 |
