TSCLowe
Corporal
- Joined
- Sep 14, 2012
- Location
- Redding, CA
CW Balloon Trading Cards:
US Observation Balloons: First Air Force
Corrections for historical accuracy:
1. John Wise was THE leading aeronaut of the time and was the first to be offered the position of Chief Aeronaut for the Union Army in part because he underbid Lowe by $200.00; Thaddeus Lowe was one of the leading aeronauts and was offered the position of Chief Aeronaut after Wise resigned.
2. Lowe was from New Hampshire, not New Jersey
3. On June 18, 1861 Lowe's balloon "Enterprise" went to an altitude of 500 not 1,000 ft when an operator in the basket sent the first air to ground telegraph.
4. Hydrogen was preferred over heated air because a hydrogen filled balloon could stay inflated for a week and a half to two weeks at a time weather permitting while a hot air balloon will only stay inflated as long as the air inside the envelope (balloon) was hotter than the air outside. Gravity works as soon as the heated air begins to cool!
US Observation Balloons: First Air Force:
Corrections for historical accuracy:
1. While McClellan initially prohibited Officers from going aloft after Fitz-John Porters accidental free flight, Officers continued to go aloft to make observations.
2. The Rebels DID NOT make a balloon out of a silk dress. No Southern Belles were harmed nor did they donate the dresses off of their backs to make the Confederate's second balloon, The Gazelle, which was made of a patchwork of material that could have been used to make silk dresses.
Confederate Balloons:
Balloon Duty "Balloon Bryan"
Corrections for historical accuracy:
1. There are no period photographs or drawings of any of the three (3) balloons used by the Confederates. Their first balloon was the ONLY HOT AIR Balloon used by either army during the war. Disappointing they used a picture of the Union's "Intrepid" and "Constitution" at Gaines Mill to depict a balloon that would have looked similar to this:
2. Bryan made three (3) ascents in this balloon before it was damaged and Bryan gladly went back to his desk job.
3. The Confederates second balloon, the Gazelle, went aloft during the battle of Seven Pines with E. P. Alexander in the basket.
Balloon Duty "Nothing But a Big Cotton Bag"
Corrections for historical accuracy:
1. There are no period photographs or drawings of any of the three (3) balloons used by the Confederates. Their first balloon was the ONLY HOT AIR Balloon used by either army during the war. Again, it is disappointing they used a picture of the Union's "Intrepid" to depict the balloon that would have looked like the "Big Cotton Bag" above.
2. Not having a professional balloonist around and because they used heated air to give the balloon lift, the Confederates used a single point tether (only one rope) to anchor the balloon to the ground. While more ropes would give the balloon a stable base, they would also add weight to the aircraft thus limiting its' potential payload and altitude. With a single point tether, any wind passing by the balloon would cause it to spin around and around . . . and around and around . . . .
1997 Keepsake "The Blue and the Gray" Civil War Art Trading Cards #20 By Mort Kunstler
Thaddeus Lowe and His Balloon
First let me say this is a beautiful painting of Lowe and his balloon "Intrepid"!
Corrections for historical accuracy:
1. The collective total of military ascents by Lowe and the nine (9) Aeronauts he hired was more than 3,000
Respectfully Submitted,
TSC Lowe, Aeronaut
US Observation Balloons: First Air Force
Corrections for historical accuracy:
1. John Wise was THE leading aeronaut of the time and was the first to be offered the position of Chief Aeronaut for the Union Army in part because he underbid Lowe by $200.00; Thaddeus Lowe was one of the leading aeronauts and was offered the position of Chief Aeronaut after Wise resigned.
2. Lowe was from New Hampshire, not New Jersey
3. On June 18, 1861 Lowe's balloon "Enterprise" went to an altitude of 500 not 1,000 ft when an operator in the basket sent the first air to ground telegraph.
4. Hydrogen was preferred over heated air because a hydrogen filled balloon could stay inflated for a week and a half to two weeks at a time weather permitting while a hot air balloon will only stay inflated as long as the air inside the envelope (balloon) was hotter than the air outside. Gravity works as soon as the heated air begins to cool!
US Observation Balloons: First Air Force:
Corrections for historical accuracy:
1. While McClellan initially prohibited Officers from going aloft after Fitz-John Porters accidental free flight, Officers continued to go aloft to make observations.
2. The Rebels DID NOT make a balloon out of a silk dress. No Southern Belles were harmed nor did they donate the dresses off of their backs to make the Confederate's second balloon, The Gazelle, which was made of a patchwork of material that could have been used to make silk dresses.
Confederate Balloons:
Balloon Duty "Balloon Bryan"
Corrections for historical accuracy:
1. There are no period photographs or drawings of any of the three (3) balloons used by the Confederates. Their first balloon was the ONLY HOT AIR Balloon used by either army during the war. Disappointing they used a picture of the Union's "Intrepid" and "Constitution" at Gaines Mill to depict a balloon that would have looked similar to this:
2. Bryan made three (3) ascents in this balloon before it was damaged and Bryan gladly went back to his desk job.
3. The Confederates second balloon, the Gazelle, went aloft during the battle of Seven Pines with E. P. Alexander in the basket.
Balloon Duty "Nothing But a Big Cotton Bag"
Corrections for historical accuracy:
1. There are no period photographs or drawings of any of the three (3) balloons used by the Confederates. Their first balloon was the ONLY HOT AIR Balloon used by either army during the war. Again, it is disappointing they used a picture of the Union's "Intrepid" to depict the balloon that would have looked like the "Big Cotton Bag" above.
2. Not having a professional balloonist around and because they used heated air to give the balloon lift, the Confederates used a single point tether (only one rope) to anchor the balloon to the ground. While more ropes would give the balloon a stable base, they would also add weight to the aircraft thus limiting its' potential payload and altitude. With a single point tether, any wind passing by the balloon would cause it to spin around and around . . . and around and around . . . .
1997 Keepsake "The Blue and the Gray" Civil War Art Trading Cards #20 By Mort Kunstler
Thaddeus Lowe and His Balloon
First let me say this is a beautiful painting of Lowe and his balloon "Intrepid"!
Corrections for historical accuracy:
1. The collective total of military ascents by Lowe and the nine (9) Aeronauts he hired was more than 3,000
Respectfully Submitted,
TSC Lowe, Aeronaut