Lawrence
Burst Sperry was born in Chicago on December 22, 1892, the third child of Elmer
and Zula Goodman Sperry.
He built his
first airplane glider during his school days in the attic of his home. After
finishing school, he joined his father’s company and became a licensed pilot and
undertook field work of applying a gyroscope to an airplane.
In 1914, the
Republic of France issued a notice of a Safety Contest to be held. The Sperry’s entered an improved
gyrostabilizer in the contest. When Lawrence arrived in Paris, he and his
mechanic installed the device on a Curtiss flying boat. On June 18th, 1914,
Lawrence’s parents joined the thousands lining the Seine River to watch the
competition. Like the rest of the spectators, they were awed when in a flight
over the jury of experts Lawrence let go of the controls and stands up with his
hands high over his head, and the plane remained level. The Sperry’s heard a
gasp from the crowd when the mechanic walked out on the wing and again Lawrence
let go of the controls. The Sperry’s joined in the roar of approval as Lawrence
throttled the engine and the plane automatically went into a glide. When
Lawrence landed safely, the jury realized that it had witnessed one of the most
convincing demonstrations in aviation, and it awarded the Sperry’s a 50,000
franc prize.
In late
1915, Lawrence journeyed to England, where he conceived of a three-way
gyrostabilizer to steer bombing planes, and also arranged for Sperry Gyroscope
to manufacture aircraft compasses. When he returned home, Lawrence developed
the first amphibious flying boat in history. He also investigated the problems
of night flying by adding lights to his flying boat, and went on to make night
flights of up to 80 miles.
He returned
to America in 1916 and engaged in many and varied activities. He demonstrated
the possibilities of the aerial torpedo to the Navy Department. He made several
night flights in 1916, the first in the United States. He also built the first
amphibious flying boat and the first to land a plane by the use of skids.
Sperry’s
manufacturing operations outgrew its two factors and a third plant was built in
Farmingdale. The building was
constructed on the corner of Rose and Richard Street. Employing about sixty
men, the company produced amphibious Navy triplanes, aerial torpedoes, and the
Verville Sperry racing monoplane, which was was constructed within three
months.
Lawrence
Sperry was lost on December 13, 1923 while crossing the English Channel in his
Messenger Plane at the age of thirty. He had planned to fly from Croydon
Airport to Amsterdam. The normal route was to follow the railway to Ashford in
Kent, and then on to Folkstone, before crossing the English Channel to France.
It seems Sperry mistakenly followed a second railway that diverged southward
and westward to Hastings. His plane was spotted five miles east of Hastings.
His engine misfired and lost power, forcing Sperry to land on the water. At
some point, he pulled off his flying boots, struggled out of his flight suit,
and struck out towards shore. His body was found on the shore at Jury’s Gap on
January 11, 1924.
Sources:
Farmingdale’s
Story: Farms to Flight. Junior Historical Society of Farmingdale, L.I.
“Lawrence
Burst Sperry Sr.” http://www.nationalaviation.org/our-enshrinees/sperry-sr-lawrence-burst/
Smith,
Victor N. “The Last Flight of Lawrence B. Sperry.” Journal of American Aviation Historical Society. Spring, 1983.
The Sperryscope. C.D. Jobson, Editor. The Sperry Gyroscope Company.
January-February, 1924. Vol. 4, No. 6
