Looking Back: Dutch Thompson – Wake up and prepare
Courtesy Thompson Family Collection at the Washington County Historical Society
DeLloyd Thompson holds the altimeter that recorded his flight to 15,600 feet on Aug. 7, 1914, breaking the previous altitude record by more than 4,000 feet.
Courtesy Thompson Family Collection at Washington County Historical Society
The April 20, 1916, edition of the New York Herald documents the New York “bombing” executed by Dutch Thompson.
Courtesy Thompson Family Collection at Washington County Historical Society
DeLloyd “Dutch” Thompson
Courtesy Thompson Family Collection at Washington County Historical Society
One of the labels contained in the “bomb” dropped by Dutch Thompson
April 15, 1916: The streets of Washington, D.C., were quite busy on this Saturday evening. Groups of men with their dates were headed to the theater to see the newest show. Some were window shopping downtown. Others were finishing their dinner at the local restaurants. In the White House, President Woodrow Wilson was contemplating the growing tensions between the United States and Germany. He had just walked to the window when the first explosion sounded.
At this, people turned in curiosity to ee from where the sound had come. But after the second, third, and fourth explosions, that curiosity turned to fear. People in the streets stood panic-stricken. The traffic on Pennsylvania Avenue came to an abrupt halt. The succession of explosions continued; the sky was filled with flashes, not from lightning, but from exploding bombs. Streaks of fire were seen throughout the night sky. The origin of the bombs was hidden from stunned citizens. Searchlights attempted to locate the assailant, but there was nothing to be seen. All that could be heard was the humming of an engine. “Sure must be a Zeppelin raid,” yelled an elevator operator, as quoted in the Washington, D.C., Herald, in the April 16, 1916, edition. It was not a zeppelin invasion, or even an enemy of America that dropped the bombs that night. It was someone flying under the United States flag – Washington County native Dutch Thompson.
Once touted as the “Greatest Aviator in American History,” DeLloyd “Dutch” Thompson soared through the skies for years making aviation history. After his time as an instructor at the Cicero Flying Field in Chicago, Ill., Dutch toured the country making famed appearances at air fields, county fairs and aviation exhibitions performing his famous loop-the-loop trick. In fact, by June 14, 1914, Dutch had performed 61 loops and was diagnosed with hypertrophy of the heart – a condition described by a Kansas City doctor as an enlargement of the heart due to nervous strain. In addition to the impressive aerial feats that wowed crowds at fairs, Dutch also added several other impressive achievements to his repertoire. In August 1915, he flew the plane that carried the first woman flown upside down, Miss Etta Pillard. Dutch also became famous for racing. He often flew his plane in races against cars. And on the last day of the 1916 Arden Fair in Washington, Pa., he even raced his plane against a horse.
But Dutch also acknowledged the practical applications aviation could provide and soon began promoting the need for preparedness. It was his belief that aeronautical technology had reached a point at which planes would most likely be put to military use. They were already being used by England for reconnaissance and would soon be used in bombing campaigns. He felt that cities in the United States, especially those on the coast, must prepare for the possibility of aeronautical bombing campaigns on U.S. soil. Tensions with Germany were growing, and soon the United States might be thrust into war. “Aerial attack is the only danger we openly invite by total unpreparedness,” said Thompson.
Under contract with the Department of War, Thompson undertook the bombing campaign in Washington, D.C. In the Washington, D.C., Herald from April 16, 1916, Dutch was quoted, “I dropped about three hundred excelsior-filled warning ‘bombs’ over the residential and business section of the city … I confined the explosives to the area over the water next to the polo field so there was no danger in case one or two failed to explode in the sky.” There was no damage caused by this invasion, but people who found shells the next day were shaken by the inscription on the bomb:
“This bomb is harmless. Suppose it had contained Nitro-glycerine and was hurled by the enemy instead of DeLloyd Thompson, who flew the American Flag. Wake up and prepare.”
Thompson did not stop with this one campaign. He was under contract to bomb 20 other cities throughout the United States – New York, Chicago and Kansas City were just a few.
The bombing campaigns were not without danger for Thompson. He designed the device used to drop the bombs. It was connected to the wing of the airplane, and when triggered by Thompson, the bomb would ignite and then drop. It was quite efficient, but would sometimes malfunction. While in the sky over New York, a bomb prematurely exploded before leaving the wing of the plane. A few of the ribs of the airplane were broken, and the linen covering caught fire. Thompson did make it safely to the ground, but only after a very rough landing. A similar event occurred in the bombing of Chicago. The bomb exploded only a few feet under Thompson’s plane. He again sustained damage to the plane, but made it safely home.
After Dutch retired from flying, he moved back to Washington, Pa., and took up construction – a skill inherited from his father, who was a mason. Dutch helped to dig Sunset Beach Pool in Taylorstown, and also Canonsburg Dam. In 1939 Dutch ran for mayor of Washington on the Democratic ticket, but was defeated. In 1945 he was involved in a car crash that left him with severe chest injuries. He never fully recovered and eventually died in January 1949.
Thompson believed strongly in the need for preparedness and did not let these accidents deter him. He continued his campaign throughout the United States, bombing many U.S. cities and also putting on exhibitions at county fairs. He would construct patch work forts and in front of curious onlookers perform several bombing raids. Thompson used any venue available to him to demonstrate the need for aeronautical preparedness, and it is because of him and the efforts of others that defense against aerial bombardment became a vital component of U.S. National Security.
Clay Kilgore is executive director of Washington County Historical Society.