This morning, as I was drinking my coffee and waiting in line to drop off my third grader at class, his teacher noticed my History Guy mug and said the he uses your videos to help teach history. Thanks History Guy, for passing along history to another generation so it won’t be forgotten
I lived in Berkley CA while I was still taking lessons to become an "aeronaut". There I met, Ed Yost, the founder of the modern Hot air balloon. I became a balloon pilot before leaving Berkley but until this day had not heard of the Morrel Airship. Most certainly history that needs to be remembered.
Me too. I thought I had a reasonably good knowledge of airship history. It's THG though, so not the first, or last time he'll school me.... There's little doubt that if there were fatalities we'd have heard of this particular bit of madness. Sadly...
The use of natural gas seems insane in these modern times. They had no fear that a saboteur might shoot it with a flare gun? Or that lightning might strike it? A spark from one of the engines? They were darn lucky the thing never flew, I’m sure if he had gotten further, a worse ending would have occurred.
@@alphagt62 Helium was practically unknown at the time - at least, not obtainable in quantities large enough for airships. Your choices were either hydrogen or coal gas ('city gas'), both inflammable.
Morrell said it was shaped like a “huge projectile?” He knew exactly what it looked like. Was this an early marketing strategy for the John Morrell sausage company?
I think the critical shortcoming was one of engineering - in particular, a lack of it. I wonder what the plan was for dealing with storms, from thunderstorms to hurricanes.
While wrong about almost everything else, Morrell was right in emphasizing the important role that aluminum would eventually play in the aviation industry. But, it still took another 30 years for aluminum to replace wood and canvas.
One of the interesting things I remember reading about airships was the behavior of the lifting gas. We think of it as simply filling the bag. The reality is more like a captured bubble, or fluid flowing in a container, squirming, writhing, creating significant handling problems all on it's own.
that is why in successful airships the gas was contained in numerous cells within the structure. The same issues confronted the designers of early submersible boats. Water sloshing in large ballast tanks. The same solution is used, compartmentalization. Big liquid tankers (trucks, railcars) also have baffles for the same reason.
I was reading an old Air&Space magazine my father gave me. As I read yet another theory on why Hindenburg died, I noticed my father had made some notes above the text. Turns out, he knew the “Oh, the humanity” guy. He used to deliver copy to the guy when he was a young intern at the radio station the famous reporter worked for. I am one hand shake away from Lakehurst. Kind of humbling.
I always enjoy watching a new History Guy video, but one subject I noticed is missing from the online history books that might be interesting to make a video on and is also reaching its 159yr anniversary. The battle of Portland Harbor (Maine), June the 27th, 1863. A battle that is little remembered by anyone, but involves treachery, steamboats, explosions, cannons, armed civilians, and piracy.
I don't think Morrell was running a stock swindle. If that were the case he likely wouldn't have gone to the expense of building such a huge and costly prototype, nor would he have placed himself at risk. I think it's much more likely he was just a guy with a big idea who lacked the knowledge to pull it off successfully.
If that floated by back in the 60's all the hippies would have thought it was the biggest " joint" they've ever seen and would have tried to smoke it. " Damn dude! It's a flying reefer!".
As it happens, I'm in Tucson right now, transiting an Airship back across the country to Tennessee. Happy to be part of the rich history of airships. 'Blimpin' ain't easy'!
The first public demonstration of heavier than air flight in the western hemisphere was made in April 29, 1905 in Santa Clara California by Daniel Maloney flying a glider designed by John Joseph Montgomery, dropped from a hot air balloon from 4,000 feet, witnessed by a crowd of thousands. Montgomery had built and flown a manned glider in 1883-4, as depicted in the Columbia Pictures movie Gallant Journey. That's some history that deserves to be remembered.
You must mean the first demonstration of heavier than air flight on the West Coast since Kitty Hawk,NC is also in the Western Hemisphere. But a dropped glider is also substantially less of an accomplishment than powered flight.
@@Sagart999 Kitty Hawk was not a public demonstration. The Wrights first public demonstration was in France. All of the problems of aerodynamics and control can be solved and demonstrated in soaring flight. The flights in Santa Clara were longer in duration than anyone had achieved. No small accompaniment in early aviation.
I hope you do one on the Vinn Fizz, first transcontinental flight. The craft was so failure-prone that the plane that arrived was, in large part, not the plane that left!
The Wright brothers were very methodical in doing research and experimentation FIRST, before building an aircraft. Perhaps if Mr. Morrell had taken that route, he would be remembered differently
Question fine sir. AT 1.25 you refer to “Count Von Hindenburg” builder of L-3. I think you’ve got some names switched around. Always thought Count Von Hindenburg was a famous German General from WWI, later to become president over Germany prior to Hitler. Yes, and who the famed LZ-129 Hindenburg is named after. That it was Count Ferdinand Von Zeppelin that was the inventor/ designer of Zeppelins. That the ships he designed bore his name Now, which X-Wing Fighter is upon thy shelf??? T-65, T-70, or the advanced T-85? Then of course who is the pilot?
Fun fact: When Zeppelin was a young man he traveled to the US as during the American civil war. Bugging Lincoln to let him observe military tactics, he ended up in the camp of Franz Sigel of the Union Army
Another great early airship story you should look into - The Thomas B. Slate airship company at Glendale CA's Grand Central Air Terminal, building a truly bizarre ALL-metal airship in the late 1920's.
It looks like a cross between a Dune sandworm and the alien probe that was calling to whales in a Star Trek movie. Considering it's bent, semiflaccid state, it should have been named the "Priapis"!
So glad you said that. From 2:05 on, there was nowhere else my mind would go. If only it had been able to find the female it broke away to search for ...
Usually you seem get it right but it was Count von Zeppelin not "Count von Hindenburg" who was building large airships in Germany. Also you didn't mention the amazing survival story of the crewman on top of the airship envelope and who is clearly visible in several photographs.
History repeats itself. Just a few miles South, stands Ames Research Center, and two huge airship hangars next to it. Morrell was looking for venture capital. Same place, PARC research ideas fueled the start of Apple and Microsoft, and of course before them HP and Xerox and later Google, Adobe... Then again, like Morrell, were many that not one remembers, not even THG
I see this kind of story in modern experimental aircraft where some knowledge is dangerous. Buying an aircraft kit, used aircraft or "whipping up" a modification does not make one a professional aeronautics engineer. It's amazing that the gas bag did not explode and that in the crash that no one was killed. One of your most interesting stories. Thank you for posting.
Looks like Bezos wasn't the first to brave the skies in a...suggestive vessel. Mr. Morrel was also a bit of a braggart, claiming the craft to be "to scale".
Thomas B. Slate built a metal skinned airship, the _City of Glendale,_ in 1924 - 29 at what is now California's Glendale Airport. It was displayed, tested, but failed due to excess internal pressure before being actually flown.
I have always enjoyed the descriptive way journalist used before broadcast News was available and your inflection while reading it brings it to life. Have you thought about a cool history guy hat
Thx for the episode, it was very interesting. Being from Germany, I never heard before of the airship. They should have used ballast, yes. But I admire the men, who dared to try something impossible.
Youre the best. I love how much your channel has grown since I first found it. Wishing you all the best. Thank you for all your work to bring us entertaining and educational videos!!
The ending is worth every second...even more than the entire piece being worth every second. Seriously, people. "Worrrrrth it." As the kids would say...or did say in recent history. Fabulous, as always THG.
Even at the time, I'm sure people who knew what they were doing, or people who simply had better reasoning, were sceptical of the flimsest flying vehicle ever built before or since.
About fifty plus years ago old plans were found of gas filled flying machine designed by a man from Camden, New Jersey. He had apparently built it and piloted it and supposedly demonstrated it to President Lincoln during his administration. I have my doubts because I never heard anywhere that this had actually occurred. A century later these old plans were used to fabricate this “Trifoyle” in a hanger at Mercer County Airport in West Trenton, N.J. It consisted of three large sections, side by side and controlled by thermostats that heated each section independent of one another. It had an article and cover of either Popular Science or Popular Mechanics at the time. There were problems with the material used to hold the helium and the Feds came in over concerns of securities fraud. I saw it at the airport hanger and it sure wasn’t from a lack of effort that it never got off the ground.
There is something about your speech and how you describe things that will forever be etched into my mind, thank you for what and how you teach all of us!
In this instance engineering was replaced by 'trail and error'... never a good idea for such a massive undertaking BUT there were capable engineers and architects around at the time. Capable humans have around since the beginning of humans.
I really amazed to not be seeing any comment to the effect of that when someone hears the name "John Morrell" they usually think of sausage and hot dogs.
That dream is dead. Leftists won't allow that now. Leftists are on a warpath against Elon and are already creating false accusations against him just like how the FBI falsifised evidence against Trump.
@@justtime6736 Well, I am certainly no leftist, 100% Trump, but Musk has made a lot of claims that have fallen short and certainly his time lines are total fiction.
I can't resist making some comments, the Morrell sausage wilted. Since it was covered in hemp, had it caught fire, would it have been the world's largest 'reefer"?
I love how you could just do wildly unsafe experiments in populated areas, seriously injure people and only get sued by your girlfriend and stockholders. Not the injured people or anything. Great video
Great episode! Living in a flyover State/ area always made me fascinated with anything in the air. I’ll still stop working just to look up and see what planes I see. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️🤘🍿🎥❤️