The Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) will host a webinar on Dec. 12 at 7 p.m. to highlight Clyde Lee.
Clyde Lee, an Oshkosh resident, aimed to be the first pilot to fly from America to Oslo, Norway.
His journey will be highlighted in this webinar session, digging into the journey Lee made.
Lee was set to win $10,000 as a reward for accomplishing the flight, and had originally painted his plane with the Oshkosh B’Gosh logo before a sponsorship fell through.
While on the journey, Lee and his flight partner were lost without a trace, disappearing during the attempt.
Earl Iverson, an Oshkosh resident, served as Lee’s flight manager and preserved photographs that are present today in the EAA Museum.
The webinar is set to highlight an event in local history, said Drew Stephani, the EAA communications specialist.
“We believe there are several people in the Oshkosh area that have no idea this event ever occurred,” he said. “Having the opportunity to share this unique piece of local history is really special to our team.”
The webinar event is one of many that EAA puts on throughout the year.
“The event is part of our museum webinar series that tells the story behind some of the aircraft and/or artifacts within the EAA museum’s collection,” Stephani said.
Hosting the webinar is Museum Manager Chris Henry and Museum Collections Curator Amelia Anderson.
“I hope people are reminded about how far back Oshkosh’s aviation lineage goes,” Anderson said. “We’re more than just AirVenture.”
Anderson hopes that people also learn more about Lee and his journey.
“Oshkosh had a local in the 1930s catch the aviation bug and attempt a transatlantic flight,” she said. “Even though Lindbergh had flown to Paris already five years prior, it was still a treacherous journey and courageous act.”
Anderson will be leading the session through looking at donated items.
“A local man came into possession of items belonging to Earl Iverson and donated them to us,” she said. “I just thought it was an interesting angle to tell Clyde Lee’s story from.”
The webinar is free to attend, but registration must be completed beforehand due to limited spots, registration can be done at pages.eaa.org/2023-12-12WBN_ClydeAndEarl_LP-Registration.html.
