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Charles Harvard Gibbs-Smith

May 18, 2024

Charles Harvard Gibbs-Smith (22 March 1909 – 3 December 1981)[2] was a British polymath historian of aeronautics and aviation.[3] His obituary in The Times described him as "the recognised authority on the early development of flying in Europe and America"[4] Richard P. Hallion called him "The greatest of all historians of early aviation".[5]

Charles Harvard Gibbs-Smith
Born22 March 1909
Teddington, Greater London, United Kingdom[1]
Died3 December 1981(1981-12-03) (aged 72)
Academic work
Main interestsEarly aviation, Bayeux Tapestry, paranormal
Notable worksThe Invention of the Aeroplane
Notable ideasimportance of inventor George Cayley; primacy of Wright brothers; critical appraisal of Clement Ader's contribution
Influencedhistoriography of aviation; accounts of the Wrights

Biography edit

Charles Gibbs-Smith was born in Teddington, Greater London in 1909 to a medical family which included in its line John Harvard, the founder of Harvard College.[4] Gibbs-Smith attended King's College School, Cambridge,[6] and Westminster School in central London before earning a Master of Arts degree at Harvard University in 1932.[1] The same year, he gained employment as an assistant keeper at the Victoria and Albert Museum.[1] In 1939 he organised the Exhibition of Early Photographs to Commemorate the Centenary of Photography, 1839–1939. He was seconded to the Ministry of Information in the Second World War and conducted training in aircraft recognition for the Royal Observer Corps—this experience catalysed a deep interest in aviation history.[1][4] He authored the government's manual on aircraft recognition in 1944 as well as being a contributor to the training journal Aircraft Recognition, then became the ministry's Director of the Photographic Division in 1945.[4][7]

Between 1947 and 1971 he was Keeper of the Department of Public Relations at the Victoria and Albert Museum.[1][2][4] The department, the first public relations department of any English museum, was initially called the Museum Extension Services.[8] In this role he arranged museum exhibitions, conducted scholarly research, and wrote on a variety of topics, including a study of the Bayeux Tapestry and a centenary collection of the Great Exhibition of 1851. Starting in 1976 he had a Research Fellowship at the Science Museum in London.[1] Upon retirement, he was chosen as the first Charles A. Lindbergh Chair in Aerospace History at the National Air and Space Museum in 1978, for which he spent a year in the United States studying the papers of the Wright brothers.[4]

Research and writings edit

In The Invention of the Aeroplane 1799–1909,[9] Gibbs-Smith wrote a concise account of aeronautical developments which led slowly to functional fixed-wing aircraft.

Gibbs-Smith investigated the disputed subject of inventor Clément Ader's 1897 aeronautical experiments. Gibbs-Smith's 1968 book on Ader thoroughly described the documented evidence that Ader did not make a controlled flight in 1897, and only claimed to have done so in 1906, after others had already flown.

In his 1960's "definitive" work The Aeroplane: An Historical Survey Of Its Origins And Development,[1] Gibbs-Smith wrote for the Science Museum about the controversy over Henri Coandă's early aircraft—the Coandă-1910—which Coandă said was the first jet aircraft. Gibbs-Smith wrote a rebuttal to Coandă, describing how the aircraft had no injection or combustion of fuel in the air stream. Gibbs-Smith said that it would have been suicidal to the pilot to attain combustion of the turbine-compressed air as the open cockpit would be subjected to the heat of the exhaust.[10]

Gibbs-Smith also investigated reports of the paranormal, including ghosts, flying saucers and parapsychology. He defended his studies among more sceptical colleagues.[4]

Honours edit

Selected publications edit

  • The Aircraft Recognition Manual (1944) – formerly Basic Aircraft Recognition
  • The Great Exhibition of 1851 (1951). London: His Majesty's Stationery Office
  • The Wright Brothers: A Brief Account of their Work, 1899–1911 (1963). London: Science Museum.
  • Sir George Cayley's Aeronautics, 1796–1855 (1962)[11]
  • The Invention of the Aeroplane 1799–1909 (1966), London: Faber & Faber.
  • A Directory and Nomenclature of the First Aeroplanes 1809 to 1909 (1966). London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office
  • Clément Ader – his flight claims and his place in history (1968), London: Science Museum
  • Aviation: an historical survey from its origins to the end of World War II (1960; 1970; 1985), London: Science Museum
  • The Bayeux Tapestry (1973), London ; New York, Phaidon ; Praeger
  • The Rebirth of European Aviation 1902–1908 (1974). London: Science Museum

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Chambers Biographical Dictionary. Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. 2007. Retrieved 26 May 2011. Hosted by Credo Reference.
  2. ^ a b Charles Gibbs-Smith, famous people from Teddington at Information Britain web site
  3. ^ . V&A People. Victoria and Albert Museum. February 2002. Archived from the original on 7 June 2011. Retrieved 26 May 2011.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g , Staff Obituaries, Victoria and Albert Museum, archived from the original on 15 January 2011, retrieved 26 September 2010, Reproduced with kind permission of The Times Times Newspapers Limited
  5. ^ Hallion, Richard (2003). Taking flight: inventing the aerial age from antiquity through the First World War. Oxford University Press US. p. 446. ISBN 0-19-516035-5.
  6. ^ Henderson, RJ (1981). A History of King's College Choir School Cambridge. ISBN 978-0950752808.
  7. ^ Hamilton, Tim (2004). Identification Friend or Foe. HMSO. p. 119. ISBN 0-11-290496-3.
  8. ^ . Victoria and Albert Museum. June 2007. Archived from the original on 29 July 2011. Retrieved 26 May 2011.
  9. ^ Gibbs-Smith, Charles Harvard. The invention of the aeroplane (1799–1909), Faber, 1966.
  10. ^ Gibbs-Smith, Charles Harvard (1960). The aeroplane: an historical survey of its origins and development. H. M. Stationery Office. p. 220.
  11. ^ Sir George Cayley's aeronautics, 1796–1855 entry at National Library of Australia site

External links edit

  • Charles Harvard Gibbs-Smith at LibraryThing
  • Review of The Rebirth of European Aviation in Flight International, 15 May 1975 p. 806 (Link inaccessible 4/5/2020)
  • Review of The Aeroplane, and historical survey Flight 1960
  • New light on Cayley by Gibbs-Smith in Flight International, 1962, at Flightglobal/Archive
  • "Hops and Flights, a roll call of early powered take-offs" Flight April 1959
  • Television interview with Gibbs-Smith on the subject of UFOs

May 18, 2024
charles, harvard, gibbs, smith, march, 1909, december, 1981, british, polymath, historian, aeronautics, aviation, obituary, times, described, recognised, authority, early, development, flying, europe, america, richard, hallion, called, greatest, historians, ea. Charles Harvard Gibbs Smith 22 March 1909 3 December 1981 2 was a British polymath historian of aeronautics and aviation 3 His obituary in The Times described him as the recognised authority on the early development of flying in Europe and America 4 Richard P Hallion called him The greatest of all historians of early aviation 5 Charles Harvard Gibbs SmithBorn22 March 1909Teddington Greater London United Kingdom 1 Died3 December 1981 1981 12 03 aged 72 Academic workMain interestsEarly aviation Bayeux Tapestry paranormalNotable worksThe Invention of the AeroplaneNotable ideasimportance of inventor George Cayley primacy of Wright brothers critical appraisal of Clement Ader s contributionInfluencedhistoriography of aviation accounts of the Wrights Contents 1 Biography 2 Research and writings 3 Honours 4 Selected publications 5 References 6 External linksBiography editCharles Gibbs Smith was born in Teddington Greater London in 1909 to a medical family which included in its line John Harvard the founder of Harvard College 4 Gibbs Smith attended King s College School Cambridge 6 and Westminster School in central London before earning a Master of Arts degree at Harvard University in 1932 1 The same year he gained employment as an assistant keeper at the Victoria and Albert Museum 1 In 1939 he organised the Exhibition of Early Photographs to Commemorate the Centenary of Photography 1839 1939 He was seconded to the Ministry of Information in the Second World War and conducted training in aircraft recognition for the Royal Observer Corps this experience catalysed a deep interest in aviation history 1 4 He authored the government s manual on aircraft recognition in 1944 as well as being a contributor to the training journal Aircraft Recognition then became the ministry s Director of the Photographic Division in 1945 4 7 Between 1947 and 1971 he was Keeper of the Department of Public Relations at the Victoria and Albert Museum 1 2 4 The department the first public relations department of any English museum was initially called the Museum Extension Services 8 In this role he arranged museum exhibitions conducted scholarly research and wrote on a variety of topics including a study of the Bayeux Tapestry and a centenary collection of the Great Exhibition of 1851 Starting in 1976 he had a Research Fellowship at the Science Museum in London 1 Upon retirement he was chosen as the first Charles A Lindbergh Chair in Aerospace History at the National Air and Space Museum in 1978 for which he spent a year in the United States studying the papers of the Wright brothers 4 Research and writings editIn The Invention of the Aeroplane 1799 1909 9 Gibbs Smith wrote a concise account of aeronautical developments which led slowly to functional fixed wing aircraft Gibbs Smith investigated the disputed subject of inventor Clement Ader s 1897 aeronautical experiments Gibbs Smith s 1968 book on Ader thoroughly described the documented evidence that Ader did not make a controlled flight in 1897 and only claimed to have done so in 1906 after others had already flown In his 1960 s definitive work The Aeroplane An Historical Survey Of Its Origins And Development 1 Gibbs Smith wrote for the Science Museum about the controversy over Henri Coandă s early aircraft the Coandă 1910 which Coandă said was the first jet aircraft Gibbs Smith wrote a rebuttal to Coandă describing how the aircraft had no injection or combustion of fuel in the air stream Gibbs Smith said that it would have been suicidal to the pilot to attain combustion of the turbine compressed air as the open cockpit would be subjected to the heat of the exhaust 10 Gibbs Smith also investigated reports of the paranormal including ghosts flying saucers and parapsychology He defended his studies among more sceptical colleagues 4 Honours editThe Danish government appointed him to the Order of the Dannebrog for his work on a 1948 exhibition The Royal Aeronautical Society awarded him an Honorary Companionship Selected publications editThe Aircraft Recognition Manual 1944 formerly Basic Aircraft Recognition The Great Exhibition of 1851 1951 London His Majesty s Stationery Office The Wright Brothers A Brief Account of their Work 1899 1911 1963 London Science Museum Sir George Cayley s Aeronautics 1796 1855 1962 11 The Invention of the Aeroplane 1799 1909 1966 London Faber amp Faber A Directory and Nomenclature of the First Aeroplanes 1809 to 1909 1966 London Her Majesty s Stationery Office Clement Ader his flight claims and his place in history 1968 London Science Museum Aviation an historical survey from its origins to the end of World War II 1960 1970 1985 London Science Museum The Bayeux Tapestry 1973 London New York Phaidon Praeger The Rebirth of European Aviation 1902 1908 1974 London Science MuseumReferences edit a b c d e f g Chambers Biographical Dictionary Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd 2007 Retrieved 26 May 2011 Hosted by Credo Reference a b Charles Gibbs Smith famous people from Teddington at Information Britain web site Obituary of John Harthan V amp A People Victoria and Albert Museum February 2002 Archived from the original on 7 June 2011 Retrieved 26 May 2011 a b c d e f g Charles Harvard Gibbs Smith Staff Obituaries Victoria and Albert Museum archived from the original on 15 January 2011 retrieved 26 September 2010 Reproduced with kind permission of The Times Times Newspapers Limited Hallion Richard 2003 Taking flight inventing the aerial age from antiquity through the First World War Oxford University Press US p 446 ISBN 0 19 516035 5 Henderson RJ 1981 A History of King s College Choir School Cambridge ISBN 978 0950752808 Hamilton Tim 2004 Identification Friend or Foe HMSO p 119 ISBN 0 11 290496 3 V amp A 150th Anniversary Victoria and Albert Museum June 2007 Archived from the original on 29 July 2011 Retrieved 26 May 2011 Gibbs Smith Charles Harvard The invention of the aeroplane 1799 1909 Faber 1966 Gibbs Smith Charles Harvard 1960 The aeroplane an historical survey of its origins and development H M Stationery Office p 220 Sir George Cayley s aeronautics 1796 1855 entry at National Library of Australia siteExternal links editCharles Harvard Gibbs Smith at LibraryThing Review of The Rebirth of European Aviation in Flight International 15 May 1975 p 806 Link inaccessible 4 5 2020 Review of The Aeroplane and historical survey Flight 1960 New light on Cayley by Gibbs Smith in Flight International 1962 at Flightglobal Archive Hops and Flights a roll call of early powered take offs Flight April 1959 Television interview with Gibbs Smith on the subject of UFOs Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Charles Harvard Gibbs Smith amp oldid 1218391973, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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