Upsetting news from the Colonies 'cross the Pond. For those who follow pioneer and WW I aviation, Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome might be a familiar name. Though not as long lived as Old Warden and the Shuttleworth collection, the late Cole Palen began assembling his collection in the late 1950s. As a lad, I spent much of my time there, along with three mates. We were the "Aerodrome gophers" who were often sent to "go-fer" this and "go-fer" that. Cole would let us play with his toys (WW I Renault tank, 1905 Sears Autobuggy, 1916 Willys Overland coupe, etc) and now and then, the pilots would take us aloft in one of the aircraft based there (Tiger Moth, Fleet 16B, Aeronca Champ, Piper J3, Funk Model B, etc.). Thanks to his wedding to Rita (And her business acumen) in 1967, the Aerodrome was put on a firm financial footing and became widely known.
Following Cole's passing in 1993, Rita carried on until her passing in 2002. Operating as a foundation, the Aerodrome has continued to carry on delighting visitors with flying pioneer, WW I, and between the wars aircraft to this day.
Unfortunately, Friday afternoon the Aerodrome's gift shop was destroyed by fire (Likely an electrical fault). In addition to the loss of souvenirs and aircraft related gifts, the stick and tissue models that Cole had built, along with some WW I relics, were lost in the fire.
As a nonprofit foundation, the Aerodrome relies heavily on contributions and as such, they would appreciate any donations for the upkeep and renovations necessary.
The site to donate is:
http://oldrhinebeck.org/ORA/donate/As to Morgan related bits, there is an early MX2 powered Sports 2 seater as well as an Anzani powered Bleriot XI (So far as is known, the second oldest flying machine remaining).
