John H. Whitney’s work for Glenn Curtiss

Palm Beach: Last Curtiss Assignment

It was (1920) just ten years after I had first entered Glenn Curtiss' employ that he wired me to come to Miami, where there was some work for me to do. I had spent the holiday season, just passed, in our family business. I took me a little time to wind up my affairs and pack. So, by the time I got to Miami, Curtiss and I found the job had evaporated; things move fast in aviation and the job had moved faster than I and was gone; somewhere; I do not know where. I never saw it again.

So there were a few days at leisure in Miami getting used to the abrupt change from depths of winter and snow in the North Woods to real summer — in January.

Curtiss, having gotten me down there, looked about him and in a few days sent me to Palm Beach saying, "See if you can help the commercial airport there get out of the red." The small commercial airport used all Curtiss equipment.

Palm Beach was then possibly the richest winter resort in the world. Not only were the rich people there but also the very rich. The trouble was very simple, these people were afraid to fly. They had been "educated" by front-page horror stories of flying accidents. The well-managed little airport gave safe and pleasant flights but their potential customers did not know it.

I had considerable experience in my family's luxury merchandise sales and with high price, hard to sell articles. This made me a "natural" to solve this problem. I started a daily column, in the newspaper the rich all read, giving the names and addresses of people who had flown and returned safe and delighted.

So I started a daily column in the daily newspaper there. It published only during the short season. The column was headed "Aero Notes" and appeared to be news. The same methods have been, and are now and always will be used by competent advertising men to promote any new thing or service.

A daily example: Mr. and Mrs. John Smith flew with us yesterday and expressed themselves as delighted with the trip. Mrs. Smith admitted she had been afraid to fly; in fact she was in tears when she arrived with her husband. She had sobbed, "If John will go in that awful thing (pointing to the aircraft) and get killed I will go along and be killed also." We respected Mrs. Smith and understood her feelings. In 15 minutes (our minimum flight, $1.00 a minute for 15 minutes for each passenger) they returned, she smiling through her tears. "Why," she said, "It was delightful. I had no idea flying could be so nice."

I kept that up day after day and best of all it was true. The trips were pleasant and safe. We made them so. We would not take you up if the air was rough. We periodically took apart the Liberty motors and any part not perfect was replaced. At the end of the season the aeronautical office was swamped with cash. This season proved that a well-conducted little commercial airport could be self-sustaining. There were no accidents all season, not even a minor one.

Never before or afterward did the select little Curtiss equipped airport catering to the rich and super rich end up even in the black. The reason was because this was the only season when the staff was complete and included skillful publicity!

I left the aero work shortly after to return to our own family business which needed me and which I might add, rewarded me much better as to money.

John H. Whitney died Mar. 22, 1963 in Elyria, Ohio.

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