USS+Shenandoah

//by Kate Quinn// May 29, 2007

Though many of us in the Valley have heard of the Hindenburg, few know that that the Valley had it’s own airship crash. The USS Shenandoah, the first helium, rigid-frame airship in the world was a pioneer in the history of American airship crafts.

After completing a round trip transcontinental flight from Lakehurst, New Jersey to the West Coast an October of 1924, the USS Shenandoah was ordered to do a Midwestern tour in the summer of 1925 for 40 city “fly-overs” visiting state fairs in the region.

On September 2, 1925, the Shenandoah left Lakehurst with a crew of 41 and two passengers, crossed the Alleghenies into Ohio, and was caught up in a severe storm near Ava, Ohio in Noble County. The ship was 680 ft long with a diameter of 78.7 feet and a height of 93 feet. Its five 300-horsepower engines could assure a top speed of 60 mph. The captain, Lieutenant Commander Zachary Landsdowne, decided to try to fly around the storm, but a sudden violent updraft caused the craft to fall. It was then hit by another side wind that twisted the hull and broke it. The control car with Landsdowne and six other crewmen on board, fell to earth killing everyone. Seconds later, six more crewmen positioned in the hull smashed into the earth. The stern section was last to touch down with 18 men on board.

Fifty-three minutes later, the bow section, rose to 10,000 feet, fell brushing the Earnest Nichols farmhouse west of the crossroads of Sharon. Mr. Nichols grabbed a line thrown from the bow and tied it to a tree securing the ship. The crew jumped out, grabbed a shotgun from Nichols, shot the gasbags and used the Nichols’s phone to call a telegraph office to inform the Navy of the disaster. A study of the crash determined that a much stronger hull was needed.

The Shenandoah was one of four airships built by the United States between 1920 and 1930. Of the four, three crashed less than two years after their first flight. Of the 43-member crew, 29 survived the fate of the Shenandoah. Along Highway 821, in Noble County, an official memorial to the Shenandoah stands on the spot where the stern section fell to the ground. A tall granite archway encloses a replica of the airship with metal storm clouds surrounding it. A plaque of bronze lists those killed in the disaster.

Today, a Memorial Trailer, parked on the South side of the town of Ava near Rayner’s Garage preserves the artifacts and memorabilia of the crash. Articles such as Capt. Lansdowne’s cuff links, a bottle of “Zep Up” carbonated beverage, and a small piece of fabric from the famous airship are held in the Museum. Although one of the owners, Theresa Rayner, a post office employee, attempted to get a stamp issued commemorating the crash, she learned that since 9/11 laws have been passed prohibiting the glorification of disasters on U. S. postage stamps.

The locals have memorialized the airship disaster by naming their local sports teams the Noble-Shenandoah Zeps. Their logo was changed from a fat blimp to a sleek dirigible. Call 740-732-2624 to schedule a tour at the museum.

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