Dear Mr. Thiemann,

I am enclosing news items from the Fairmont Sentinal dated 1929 hoping that you might be related to the Thiemanns in the articles and might be able to help me locate information regarding my father Burne Harber. I moved from Fairmont as a young child but on one of my visits back to Fairmont read an article from a 20 year ago column in the Sentinal describing an incident in which my father was flying when some basic part of the plane fell off..??? but he landed and walked away unharmed. My father, Burne Harber, was a member of the flying school described in one of the articles. The news items I have enclosed came from research of the Martin County Historical Society ? they do a great job but the item concerning my father walking away unharmed from his plane has not surfaced. Are you part of the Flying Thiemann's in Fairmont? If so do you have any suggestions on how I might get more information regarding the early aviators in Martin County? If someone were to receive a pilots license would there be someplace one could get a record of this license?

Sincerely

Phyllis Harber

Enc: items

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Recovering from Air Crash 1929 (Fairmont, MN Sentinal dated 1929):

Ernest Thieman, mechanic at the Schaffan Auto Co., is one of the few who have crashed to earth in a tailspin and lived to tell about it.

He is expected to be up and around in a few days, Dr. R. C. Hunt said today.

Ernest was in the Hunt Hospital today with a broken arm, an injured hip and many painful bruises and cuts, the result of an accident about 4:30 p.m. yesterday when his homemade monoplane fell into a cornfield on the Oliver Swanson home three miles northeast of the city. The plane fell from an altitude of between 200 and 300 feet.

Fifty searchers trampled the corn field nearly 15 minutes before they found the plane which was flattened in a tangled mass of twisted struts and torn canvas.

Louis Looney of the Kraft Misbach clothing store and H.O. Selts found the plane. Looney climbed to the top of a haystack in an adjoining alfalfa field from where he espied the red painted wing about three rods out in the corn. Field.

Pinned To Ground Thieman was pinned to the ground, his feet and legs caught in the twisted machinery. He was conscious but apparently badly stunned by a blow on the head. He was able to tell them to loosen his feet before they pulled him out. His arm was broken and when they moved him he cried to them to be careful of his hip.

Scores who visited the scene before the wreckage was brought to the city late yesterday said it is a mystery that Thieman was not instantly killed.

He had flown about half a mile from the Harold McLaughlin farm east of the place where the plane crashed. Thieman, who had been talking flying lessons and who has made two solo flights, had been testing the plane on the McLaughlin field nearly all day. Until about 4:30 p.m. Sunday, however, the plane had never left the ground.

Takeoff Is All Right It went up against the wind in perfect style and flew gracefully across part of the McLaughlin farm and over one field of the Swanson farm. The crowd of 50 or more watchers followed its course eagerly and noticed it settle from about 400 to 300 feet above the earth. Thieman began to make a right bank, apparently starting to return to his taking off place.

Suddenly it seemed to falter and in an instant was ion the tailspin that carried it to earth like a stone. Trees around the McLaughlin home obscured the exact landing place from the crowd, which started in search of the craft immediately. Some said he brought it out of the spin but was too low to gain altitude.

Selts and Looney were among the first to leave the McLaughlin place. They went around to the north of the field while others came from the south and east of the Swanson place. Had it not been for the haystack vantage point it probably would have been five or ten minutes more before the plane was found, as it was hardly discernable from a distance of more than two rods.

Dr. Hunt Gives Aid Paul Thieman, brother of the injured man, and Harold McLaughlin reached the wrecked plane just as Selts and Looney pulled him out of the wreckage and laid him on the ground. They carried him to a car and took him to the McLaughlin home, where Dr. R.C. Hunt, called by Irvin Barg from the Swanson place where the search began, administered first aid.

He was placed on a mattress in a truck and taken to the hospital. His eyes had swollen shut before they reached town, a severe bruise on his head causing the discomfort. Dr. Hunt said his skull was not fractured and that his eyes appeared to be uninjured.

Thieman is the son of Bruno Thieman with whom he lives at 301 South Prairie Ave. He is married.

Plane Built Here He built the plane during the winter and spring of this year, assisted by Arthur Nightingale, also a mechanic at the Schaffan garage. They first intended to make their own motor, but later substituted a 28-horsepower two-cylinder army motor.

'It was a bad day in the air,' said Floyd Eltgroth, local aviator. 'I am sure the plane was o.k., but the wind was bad. The wind caught the light ship which will spin pretty fast. I am sure the wind was the only cause of the accident.'

The framework was of durable hollow steel piping with canvas covering on the wings. It was a trim looking craft and on the start of its fateful trip seemed to perform capably. The crowd on the field was jubilant over his success in getting in the air and after the accident was unanimous in expression of regret at its unexpected failure.

The takeoff was a surprise to Thieman's audience. Both he and his brother, Paul, had been taxiing about the field. When Ernest got in the last time he went to the far end of the field and started back. He surprised his friends when he suddenly opened the throttle. The tail lifted from the ground and after a short run it soared into space, the motor working perfectly.

They thought nothing of his descent of about 100 feet near where the accident occurred and saw him start to turn. There was no intimation of the impending crash until the plane went into the tail spin that carried it to the ground in an instant.

Craft Badly Wrecked Force of the impact was great enough to twist the sturdy framework, crack open the metal crankcase of the motor and smash the propellor (sic). Ernest was pinned in a space between the steelwork barely large enough for his body.

Two weeks ago the plane was given ground tests at the McLaughlin field. No attempt at a takeoff were made at that time.

Yesterday there was a stiff wind blowing from the northwest, a big assistance in the takeoff but apparently a detriment in making the fateful turn.

'I was talking to Thieman before he got in the last time,' said Harold McLaughlin. 'I asked him if he was going up. He said he didn't know so I told him I'd be pretty careful. He said he would and I didn't think he would try it until I saw the tail lift from the ground. It certainly took plenty of nerve.'

At the McLaughlin farm Thieman seemed to be in a semi-stupor. He asked those at the side of the bed where they were taking him and what had happened. At the hospital later, however, he was rational."

Organization of a flying club for the purchase of an airplane, through which members would take complete courses in flying instruction, is in prospect for Fairmont early next year it became known today.

Prospective aviators who would be members of the club are not the only ones interested in the project, a number of businessmen of financial means having expressed their willingness to help.

An initial membership of at least 20 embryo flyers is seen for the club, which would get under way early next year.

As yet little has been dome toward definite organization aside from interviewing prospective flyers and businessmen. Encouraging promises have been found, however, on almost every hand.

The plan is to organize a club, purchase a new plane of established reputation, employ a licensed transport pilot as an instructor, and establish a systematic business in the form of a flying school under the auspices of the club.

15 Pupils Now Among the Fairmonters who already have taken some instruction are Ernest Thieman, Earl Gray, Arthur Nightingale, Paul Thieman, Jack Robinson, Walter Welchlin, Dowie, Brown, Dr. L.A. Degen, Burne Harber, Mrs. Burne Harber, Arlow Thompson, Carl Oltman, two young men from Seylon, and Reuben Swenberg of Dunnell.

Thieman and Gray are the most advanced of the group, both already having taken solo flight. Mr. Thieman has a private pilot's license. Both he and Gray expect to have commercial and transport licenses soon.

The qualification of Thieman and Gray as pilots brings the Fairmont total to four. Floyd Eltgroth was the first and now has a new plane of his own with which he has been making regular and capable flights. Arlow Thompson, son of F.R. Thompson, also has made solo flights, having taken instruction this summer through a flying club at Lincoln, Neb.

Burne Harber recently made a trip to Moline, Ill., where he inspected a new plane made by the factory putting out the Monocoupe used by the Boone, Iowa, instructor who comes here weekly and sister ship to the small plane seen at the air carnival last week.

The new plane, however, would be larger and equipped with dual controls for instruction.

Cut Cost in Half Instruction at present costs $2 per hour and from 10 to 20 hours is needed to verse the pupil in the art of flying. It is believed that this cost could be reduced to $1 per hour through the club. 'Post graduate' work, usually taken by aviators after they learn to fly also would be reduced in cost materially.

The Leonard landing field south east of the city, used most of the time for local instruction, is too small. The flyers want a landing field where they can come down and go up again without stopping to turn around and taxi back across the field for a fresh start.

The taxiing takes a lot of time out of the expensive $20 hours. But a few seconds would elapse between the landing and takeoff if the field were large enough.

All the embryo aviators want is the field. They do not ask for hangers or other equipment, saying that private interests would be only too glad to have an opportunity to open enterprises of this kind."

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RESPONSE

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From: "Roger Thiemann" <flyboy2u2@hotmail.com>

Subject: Burne Harber Letter

Date: Fri, 15 Sep 2000 10:32:01 CDT

Thanks for the *very* interesting letter you sent in early August. I apologize for not getting back to you until now. We had a new baby on August 9th and ... well, you know how busy one gets. I've tried to do a little digging under the rocks so I had some more information for you, but this is all new facts to me.

Here's what I know:

Ernest Thiemann was the son of Carl Bruno Thieman, who was the brother of my great grandfather, August Rudolph Thiemann. I've been researching Carl Bruno Thieman's line on and off for 15 years and this side of the family continues to be a mystery for many of us Thiemann's who are doing family research. I have to admit, I haven't spent *a lot* of time working on this branch, but I do have some information on them. But this is the first time I've heard anything about any Thieman(n)'s being pilots other than me and my uncle Willard Thiemann, who passed away a few years back, but was my inspiration to become a pilot.

Here's what I know about Carl Bruno and Ernest Thieman. The information was gathered from Mrs. G.E. (Edna) Thieman of Fairmont, MN

Unfortunately, this is the only reference material I have regarding Carl Bruno's side of the family. Here's what I suggest:

My Aunt Sharon Thiemann (wife of my uncle Willard) *MAY* have some additional information regarding "stories" she heard as she was growing up. She lived with my Grandfather and Grandmother (Hugo Carl and Frieda Thiemann), and they talked about many things over the years. She also has visited the Fairmont Thiemann's numerous times .. so this would be my first source. There's good news about Sharon ... she shares a home with my father so I see them often. The next time I'm over there (should happen within the next two weeks), I'll share your letter with her and she if she has any information or can direct us to the right contacts.

As far as who to contact regarding pilot licenses, you might want to try contacting the FAA (Federal Aviation Agency) to see if they have archives you can research, or perhaps your father belonged to some aviation organization. The modern organizations didn't start until after WWII, so you may have to research what organizations were out there years ago. The best shot is with the FAA (years ago they were called CAA - the Civil Aviation Agency).

There are web sites that can give you information on current pilots, but holders of pilot licenses from the past may be difficult to track down. The two sites above may be your best bet.

Thanks again for the interesting newspaper articles ... it's neat to see that I continue to a carry on the Thiemann tradition of being a pilot that started many years ago.

Roger L. Thiemann