Charles Keeney Hamilton (May 30, 1885[1][2][3][4] – January 22, 1914) was an American pioneer aviator nicknamed the "crazy man of the air".[5][6][7] He was, in the words of the U.S. Centennial of Flight Commission, "known for his dangerous dives, spectacular crashes, extensive reconstructive surgeries, and ever present cigarette"[8] and was "frequently drunk".[9] He survived more than 60 crashes.[8][10][11]
Hamilton was born inNew Britain, Connecticut,[4] to Joseph Delliber Hamilton and Nellie Keeney Hamilton. His parents split up by the time he was six.
Hamilton – who described himself as an "aeronaut" – was a hot air balloonist and parachute jumper at fairs and circuses at the age of 18.[4][10] Three years later, he became friends with aeronautical engineer and aviatorA. Roy Knabenshue and began pilotingdirigibles.[4][10] On the dayLouis Bleriot flew the English Channel, July 25, 1909, Hamilton was sailing his own airship across theBay of Osaka in Japan.[12]
In late 1909, he started taking flying lessons fromGlenn Curtiss.[2][10] He joined Curtiss's exhibition team and quickly acquired fame and a nationwide reputation as a daredevil flyer.[2][6] In December, he flew atSt. Joseph and outsideSt. Louis, Missouri, and inOverland Park, Kansas, before participating in the1910 Los Angeles International Air Meet at Dominguez Field, the first major airshow in the United States, which ran from January 10–20, 1910.[5] He then embarked on an 11-city, two-month exhibition tour across the American Southwest, starting atPhoenix, Arizona, and ending inSan Diego, California.[5] On February 19, Hamilton became the first to fly an airplane inTucson, Arizona.[13] In San Diego, he became just the third American flier to remain aloft for at least an hour, crossing the ocean to Mexico and back.[5]
Hamilton became the first to fly in the state ofWashington, when he piloted theReims Racer overSeattle on March 11.[6][14] The very next day, he went up again, drunk, and "Swooping like a rapacious bird from a height of 500 feet[150 m], the Curtiss biplane, with Charles K. Hamilton, dived into the newly formed lake at The Meadows".[6] He had to be fished out of the lake, but suffered only minor injuries.[6]
Undaunted, he flew atTacoma, Washington, and crossed the border to become the "First Air Visitor toVancouver, B.C."[15] on March 25.[5][16] The next day, he flew toNew Westminster and back, covering 20 miles (32 km) in 30 minutes.[17] He participated in an air meet inSpokane, Washington between April 1–3.[2] On April 9, he flew overMercer Island andLake Washington.[6]
InSan Antonio, Texas, he set a record for the quickest takeoff: 79 feet (24 m) in 3.8 seconds, breaking Glenn Curtiss's mark of 95 feet (29 m) in 5.25 seconds.[5] In May, he performed inAtlanta andAugusta, Georgia, before heading toMineola, New York, Curtiss's headquarters.[5]
On June 13, 1910, Hamilton won a prize of $10,000, sponsored byThe New York Times and thePhiladelphia Public Ledger, for being the first to fly fromNew York City toPhiladelphia and back,[5] the first flight between two major US cities.[18] He departed fromGovernors Island in New York harbor at 7:30 am and reached Philadelphia at 9:26 am.[19] With a stopover in Philadelphia, the round trip took a little over 11 hours, at an average speed of nearly 51 miles per hour (82 km/h).[5] He received a hero's welcome in his hometown of New Britain,[20] and, on July 2, 1910, made "the first public flight in the State" there.[21] It was also the first inNew England.[20][22]
Between June and August, he performed atKnoxville,Nashville andAtlantic City.[5] In Nashville, he made the first night flight in America, remaining aloft 25 minutes before developing engine trouble.[5]
When Hamilton fell behind on payments, Glenn Curtiss repossessed the Reims Racer.[5] Hamilton then had a new airplane built by Walter Christie, who had a car and engine factory in Manhattan.[5] Finished on August 31, it was reputed to have the most powerful airplane engine yet, boasting 110 hp.[5] Hamilton named his new airplane the "Hamiltonian".[5] In September, however, the Hamiltonian stalled and crashed during a demonstration flight outsideSacramento, California; Hamilton was "badly cut, bruised and burned", but was flying again in a week.[5] "On September 28, he was issued American pilot license no. 12."[5]
He then joinedJohn Moisant's exhibition team, performing with them inRichmond,Chattanooga andMemphis. In Memphis, he broke his own speed record of 64.6 miles per hour (104.0 km/h) by going 79.2 miles per hour (127.5 km/h).[5] On February 2, 1911, the team was inEl Paso, Texas. Hamilton flew over nearbyCiudad Juárez and performed the first wartimeaerial reconnaissance, looking for rebel forces of theMexican Revolution.[23][24] That same month, he and Moisant parted company, with Moisant keeping his airplane.[5] He pioneered flying inCleveland, Tennessee, in October 1911, piloting a Curtiss biplane.[25] It was the first plane landing ever in Cleveland and the local newspaper called it at the time "The greatest event in the history of Bradley Country."[26]
Hamilton died oftuberculosis[10] or "a lung hemorrhage after a long bout with tuberculosis"[4][25] on January 22, 1914. He was buried inHartford, Connecticut, on January 26.[27] Those familiar with his short career claimed he had earned a quarter of a million dollars, but he died almost broke.[27]
Hamilton married twice. He was divorced by his first wife and was survived by his second, Gussie, whom he had married the summer before his death.[11]
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