ALTIMETER, AIRCRAFT

Description: ALTIMETER, GAUGE, METAL AND GLASS. BLACK FACE WITH BROWNISH RED NUMBERS AND BROWNISH RED AND BLACK NEEDLE, NUMBERS MARKED “0…18” AROUND EDGES, FACE MARKED “ALTITUDE… PIONEER…A743B-1137.” CASE SURROUNDING FACE IS BLACK PAINTED METAL, PAINT LOSS ON FRONT, FOUR HOLES IN FOUR CORNERS AND METAL ROD ON BOTTOM FRONT OF FACE. PAPER LABEL COMING OFF OF BACK OF GAUGE MARKED “UNDER, PATEN(?),” REDDISH BROWN AND PUCE SPLATTERS ON SIDE OF GAUGE.

History: ACCORDING TO DONOR GARY HODGE AT TIME OF DONATION, HE RECEIVED THE ALTIMETER FROM HIS UNCLE, ART LARSON. CORRESPONDANCE BETWEEN LARSON AND "STEPHENS" (NICKNAMED STEVIE) FROM FEBRUARY 23 - MARCH 3, 1937 SHOWS THAT THEY WERE TRYING TO FIND AN ALTIMETER TO SUIT THEIR NEEDS. IT IS POSSIBLE THIS ARTIFACT IS THE "PIONEER ALTIMETER IN A SECOND HAND STORE FOR WHICH THE YID WANTED BUCKS TWO AND A HALF," STEPHENS WAS REFERRING TO. "LARSON SPENT HIS EARLY DAYS IN LETHBRIDGE WHERE HE COMPLETED HIGH SCHOOL. HIS FATHER WAS A CARPENTER AND MASTER CRAFTSMEN. LARSON BECAME INTERESTED IN AVIATION AFTER LINDBERG FLEW THE ATLANTIC. HE AND HIS FRIENDS, IVAN THOMSON AND JIM FINDLAY, BEGAN BUILDING GLIDERS IN 1929. FOR THE NEXT 10 YEARS LARSON WAS THE DRIVING FORCE BEHIND THE LETHBRIDGE GLIDING CLUB. DURING THIS TIME HE MADE WELL OVER 300 GLIDER FLIGHTS. IN 1939 HE SET ONE OF THE FIRST UNOFFICIAL GLIDING RECORDS IN CANADA. LARSON SPENT THE WAR YEARS IN CALGARY AS AN AIRFRAME INSTRUCTOR FOR THE WAR EMERGENCY TRAINING PROGRAM. IN 1947 HE RETURNED TO LETHBRIDGE WHERE HE WAS EMPLOYED AS AN ASSESSOR FOR THE CITY UNTIL HIS RETIREMENT IN 1978." UPDATE: ON 6 NOVEMBER 2017, GALT CURATOR AIMEE BENOIT CONDUCTED AN INTERVIEW WITH GLIDER OBJECTS’ DONOR GARY HODGE. FOR MORE INFORMATION, INCLUDING A TRANSCRIPT OF THE INTERVIEW, PLEASE SEE THIS RECORD’S PERMANENT FILE.