When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Exceptional group of three original World War I-era aviation photographs from the personal photographic archive of Lt. (jg.) Dr. Louis Henry Clerf, medical officer aboard USS Rainier during the ship\'s 1917-1919 Mexican Patrol service off Southern California and Baja California.
These are unusually strong early military aviation images.
Two photographs show a two-seat WWI-era biplane and its aircrew during what appears to be an aerial-photography flight. One provides an excellent close view of an observer/photographer working with a large purpose-built aerial camera from the aircraft.
The camera is particularly significant. Its square lens hood, large central lens and overall configuration closely resemble the Folmer & Schwing Division of Eastman Kodak F&S Aero Camera A-series, particularly the Model A-1 introduced for U.S. military use in 1917. The exact model cannot be positively confirmed from the photograph alone, so this attribution is intentionally stated as probable rather than definitive.
The aircraft itself appears consistent with the Curtiss JN-4 \"Jenny\" family of two-seat training aircraft extensively used by the U.S. military during World War I. Curtiss JN-4 aircraft are documented in period U.S. aerial-photography training. Exact aircraft subtype has not been positively established.
The third photograph is a striking full-length portrait of an early aviator wearing goggles, flying helmet and a heavy fur-collared flight coat.
MOST IMPORTANTLY, one photograph carries a remarkable period handwritten account on the reverse, signed \"Al.\" The writer describes being airborne when another aircraft crashed, stating that they circled the wreck several times and that \"I photographed the wreck.\" He writes that the airplane came down upside down in a plowed field. He then relates that the pilot who had previously taken him flying subsequently \"piled up\" in another accident and that the passenger was killed, concluding:
\"I am not very lucky.\"
This is an extraordinary firsthand glimpse into the hazardous world of military aviation during the First World War.
NOTE: The wreck photograph referred to in the inscription is not part of this three-photograph group.
From the Dr. Louis Henry Clerf / USS Rainier WWI photographic archive.
USS Rainier was commissioned at Mare Island in July 1917 and assigned to Division 2, Pacific Fleet. She served on the Mexican Patrol off Southern California and Baja California through World War I and into 1919. Dr. Clerf served as the ship\'s medical officer.
A substantial portion of this same Clerf/Rainier archive was later acquired directly from this collection by rare-book and historical-photograph dealer Max Rambod and has subsequently been cataloged commercially as the Louis Henry Clerf USS Rainier Mexican Patrol archive.
These three aviation photographs remain a separate surviving portion of that original archive.
The broader Clerf archive includes material from San Diego, making the important Rockwell Field aviation complex a possible context for these photographs; however, no specific airfield identification is claimed here without documentary confirmation.
An outstanding group for collectors of World War I aviation, early aerial reconnaissance photography, military photographic equipment, Curtiss-era aircraft, U.S. Army aviation, U.S. Navy history, Mexican Patrol material, or early aviation accidents.
Original period photographs. Not reproductions.
Please examine all photographs carefully for condition, image detail and handwritten verso inscriptions.
ITEM SPECIFICS
Conflict: WWI (1914-1918)
Era: 1910s
Approximate Date: 1917-1919
Country/Region of Manufacture: United States
Theme: Militaria
Service: U.S. Military Aviation / U.S. Navy Provenance
Subject: Early Military Aviation
Subject: Aerial Photography
Subject: Aviation Camera
Subject: Biplane
Subject: Military Pilot
Subject: Aviation Accident
Aircraft: Curtiss JN-4 Jenny Family - Probable Attribution
Camera: Folmer & Schwing / Eastman Kodak F&S Aero A-Series - Probable Attribution
Provenance: Dr. Louis Henry Clerf USS Rainier WWI Archive
Associated Ship: USS Rainier
Campaign/Service: Mexican Patrol
Geographic Association: Southern California / Baja California
Photograph Type: Original Vintage Photographs
Quantity: 3 Photographs
Inscription: Handwritten Firsthand Aviation Crash Account Signed \"Al.\"
Condition: Original period photographs with expected age-related handling, toning and edge/corner wear. Period handwriting on reverse. See photographs for exact condition.
