This is my third post to counter the negative perceptions of Asians in America. Assaults against Asian Americans are persistent.
Los Angeles Aviation Meets at Dominguez Field
In January 1910 the country's first aviation meet was held at Los Angeles. The "aeroplane" machine enthralled the public. By the end of that year, Dominguez Field was the repeat venue for the second air meet held December 24-30 and January 1st and 3rd of 1911. The third meet was organized for January of 1912.
Daredevil men referred to as "birdmen" performed aerial stunts. The unfortunate, which soon included women flyers, had short careers - for those ill-fated in their imperfect apparatus.
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| Image courtesy of LA County Museum of Art |
Tom Gunn Takes Flying Lessons
San Francisco-born Tom Gunn was in Los Angeles in the Fall of 1911 taking flying lessons from Warren Eaton in the Hyde Park area of Los Angeles. [Source: "Aviation in Northern California 1910-1939" by Allen Herr, 2020] They were about 21 years old and 20 years old respectively. Warren and his older brother Frank came as kids to L.A. from South Dakota and were now in business constructing airplanes.
Perhaps Gunn grew sky-high dreams inspired by his hometown's first air meet at Tanforan Park in San Francisco held January 7-16, 1911. Allen Herr's book mentions in early 1911 Gunn was involved with a flying tour formed by Clarence H. Walker.
Herr stated that Gunn flew solo at Hyde Park on January 18th, 1912.
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| At the 1912 air meet, Tom Gunn with one of the Eaton Brothers (possibly Gunn's flying instructor, Warren S. Eaton) Image courtesy of California Historical Society, University of Southern California. Libraries |
In the 110 years-old photo above the two men are in layered attire likely standing on a crisply cold day at The People's Aviation Meet, Dominguez Field. Gunn was 5' 6" in height, only slightly shorter than Eaton.
The Los Angeles Evening Herald reported that Gunn "soars aloft seventeen minutes" in a pre-meet exhibition on January 19th. The Los Angeles Times on January 22nd described the circus stunts by representatives of France, Great Britain, Japan, Sweden...and Gunn who was representing China.
In addition to the novel Chinese entrant at the meet were also aviatrix Blanche Scott and 15-year-old Farnum Fish, the "Boy Aviator."
In the following month, Gunn performed at the Second San Francisco Aviation Meet held at the Emeryville Racetrack. He crashed on February 22nd, and he survived with a broken jaw and other injuries. (He later declared a crippled leg on his 1917 military exemption.)
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| Morning Union newspaper, February 23, 1912 Courtesy of California Digital Newspaper Collection, Center for Bibliographic Studies and Research, University of California, Riverside, <http://cdnc.ucr.edu> |
The press followed the Chinese aviator throughout his career, but in 1909 he first made the newspaper for his athleticism.
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| San Francisco Call newspaper, January 4, 1909 Upper image left to right: A.L. Lim, Thomas Gunn, Frank Munn, and Herbert Chan Lower image: Spectators in support of the Imperials team against the rival Fuji's Courtesy of California Digital Newspaper Collection, Center for Bibliographic Studies and Research, University of California, Riverside, <http://cdnc.ucr.edu> |
Barnstorming and Brainstorming
Barnstorming and performing aerial antics from city to city was par for the course among the early pioneering pilots.
But Tom Gunn was also brainstorming. It was reported in the San Diego Union and Daily Bee (4/19/1912) that Gunn was about to form an air ship company. He was now the director of aeronautics in Canton, China (Guangdong), as he supported the new China republic led by Sun Yat-Sen. He planned to train the air force and supply planes.
The L.A. Times (4/26/1912) wrote of Gunn's plan to raise funds and fly to help victims of the recent Titanic ship disaster and also provide East China famine relief.
By November, Gunn had garnered a lot of respect by the local Chinese community.
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| San Luis Obispo Daily Telegram, November 14, 1912 Courtesy of California Digital Newspaper Collection, Center for Bibliographic Studies and Research, University of California, Riverside, <http://cdnc.ucr.edu> |
The 4th aviation meet was held at a new venue, Ascot Park. It began Thanksgiving Day. The Malibu Mountains had been struck by a natural disaster in the week leading up. A fire had been propelled by strong winds since November 21st. Several days before the meet, Gunn flew over the Malibu Mountains to learn about the feasibility of transporting firefighters and adapting planes for protecting forests.
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| Gunn at San Francisco in a bi-plane Hanford Journal Daily, September 7, 1913 Courtesy of California Digital Newspaper Collection, Center for Bibliographic Studies and Research, University of California, Riverside, <http://cdnc.ucr.edu> |
[Update 1.17.2022] In May, 1916 Gunn married Lily Tong, a former San Francisco classmate. Gunn was a media darling, and many papers in 1913 through 1914 covered their marriage plans. Instability in the Chinese government delayed their wedding, and Gunn had opened an aviation school in the Philippines after fleeing China. Sun Yat-Sen regained a foothold in the Chinese province of Guangdong in 1916, and this may have provided an opportune time for the young couple to tie the knot in Hong Kong.
Ruth Gunn, one of his sisters, appeared in an article in 1921.
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Humboldt Times, September 11, 1913
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Information on the life of Gunn are available in the following:
Aviation in Northern California, 1910-1939, by Allen Herr, 2020.
Tom Gunn Chinese American Aviator, on YouTube. Importantly, this video highlights Gunn's knack for entrepreneurial ventures including airmail service and passenger flight service to the Hawaiian Islands.
[Update 1.17.2022] Historical Record of Chinese Americans: Aiming for the Sky – First ChineseHydroaeroplane Designer, by Ann Lee. Thank you to Russell Wong for bringing this extensive article to my attention yesterday. However, the author of the article pinpointed Gunn at the inaugural 1910 aviation meet in L.A., while my research indicates his appearance was instead at the 1912 meet.
My earlier posts on Chinese American men are:
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