On this link you will find all the chapters I have written for our family story of "The Lost Plane." This Depression Era story of a plane wreck on the mountain called Lone Peak has all the adventure of a fiction story, but is a true tale. Someday, maybe I'll get it all put together in book form for my family. I should have written it years ago...now some old gaffer in Alpine has beaten me to it...however, many of his sources were ones he borrowed from my dad. It's all good! These tales need to be told.
Chapter 1...The Lost Plane
(As written for a younger audience)
This story is for my grandchildren. I put this story together from the pages of Grandma Zetta's old scrapbook; from her writings, old newspaper clippings and letters. The pages are brittle with age, but filled with adventure.
The Lost Plane Looked Like This!
Once upon a time, in the winter of 1936, a little more than a week before Christmas, something would occur that would change the lives of many people. My daddy was only two years old. He and his parents, Grandpa and Grandma Devey, lived way up in Fort Canyon on a fruit farm at the base of Lone Peak, right above Alpine, Utah.
The night was cold and snowy. The little family shivered in their beds in the drafty old farmhouse. In the wee hours of the morning, they were awakened by the sound of an airplane flying over the farm. Grandma Zetta wrote, "...It was so loud we thought it was almost over the house. I jumped out of bed and looked out of our east window. The loud roar passed (it lasted about 90 seconds) and then silence. It was as tho' it had been cut with a knife."
It was still snowing and she couldn't see the plane's lights. "There's something wrong. It's stopped!" she said to Grandpa. They lay awake the rest of the night wondering about the plane and what happened to the people in it. She didn't know then that a media circus was about to pitch it's tent in the little town of Alpine.
$1000 Reward!
The Search
The missing plane was a Western Air Express transport plane from Los Angeles with seven persons on board. When it failed to arrive in Salt Lake City, an extensive search was launched. The airline offered a huge reward of $1000 to anyone who could find the plane. A thousand dollars doesn't sound like much today, but this was during the Depression. Do you know what the Depression was? It was a time when millions of people were out of work. Many people were homeless and hungry. Those who could find work were often paid only a few dollars for a whole week's labor. The prices of food and other goods were very low compared to today. But if a loaf of bread costs a nickel and you don't have a nickel to spend, life can feel pretty low if your children are hungry. So a thousand dollars to the poor people of Alpine must have seemed like a small fortune.
Over the next few weeks many volunteers joined the search. Men on skis and on horseback scoured the mountainsides from Milford to Salt Lake City. But they weren't looking on Lone Peak. They didn't know that the plane had gone off-course in the blinding snow. Everyone had a different theory about where the plane had gone down...and of course they were eager to share in the reward money. Even a famous lady flyer joined in the search.
Amelia Earhart
Do you know who Amelia Earhart was? She was a famous aviatrix. Instead of an aviator, a woman flyer was called an aviatrix. On May 20-21, 1932, she became the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic ocean. It took her 14 hours and 56 minutes. It was also the fifth anniversary of Charles Lindberg's Atlantic flight.
Amelia Earhart
On December 21, 1936, Amelia Earhart arrived very unexpectedly in Salt Lake City. She was flying her fancy red low-wing Lockheed Vega monocoupe. She must have been a dashing sight in her leather aviator's costume, her cheeks all red from her flight in the open-air plane. She told officials she had a hunch that the plane would be found between Salt Lake and Brigham City and wanted to check it out.
Why do you think this famous woman came all the way to Utah? I think she wanted the reward money to help pay for her trip around the world she was planning for the coming summer. But even Amelia Earhart couldn't find the lost plane. Do you know why? Because none of the officials believed the plane had lost its way in the snow. The pilot had reported in as scheduled. No one except for Grandpa Mel believed it was on Lone Peak.
None of your maps can help you, Amelia!
Grandpa Mel's Search for the Plane
By now the winter snow was too deep to look any further. Grandma Zetta said, "The storms of winter buried the mystery of the plane and the seach was abandoned until Spring." As soon as Grandpa Mel could walk on the snow, he would go out to hunt for some clue to the mystery. Between February 13 and June 6 he climbed the mountain 35 times looking for clues. Sometimes he and his neighbor Emery Andrews would do each other's chores so they could take turns climbing the mountain. Lone Peak is over 11 thousand feet in elevation. Can you imagine climbing it 35 times in the snow?
Meanwhile, a couple of local men found some mail that belonged to the plane. This got the people of Alpine very excited. They all wanted that reward! Some of them would follow the two men up the mountain, but they were very sneaky and hid their trails by jumping from rock to rock.
Finally, one early summer morning, Grandpa and Emery made one last climb. Grandma Zetta wrote, "The morning of June 6, he and Emery left the house about 5:00 a.m. They headed for Lake Hardy country, for everyone had come to the conclusion that the letters were coming from somewhere. At [about 8:00] that morning, Mel saw a shiny object and when he came to it, found it was part of the plane." He took the object to airline officials who were happy that the search for the plane was nearly over.
Emery Andrews is on the left. Grandpa Mel is in the center with his dog.
The Victims
But what about the poor people who were in the plane when it crashed? Do you think that anyone survived such a horrible crash? The terrific speed of the plane had carried it on up the ridge and over the sheer cliff to drop to the canyon below...Hogum Basin...which is on the other side of the mountain. The falling snow, and then avalanches, covered the main part of the plane and the bodies of the occupants. When the plane was found, no bodies could be seen. It would be two months more before all the bodies of the victims were located.
The first victim was found on July 4, 1937. Her name was Hazel Skinner and she was just returning home to Chicago with her new husband. They had been honeymooning in Mexico. Gradually over the next few weeks the rest of the bodies were located. Do you want to hear a strange coincidence? On that very same Fourth of July, the Salt Lake Tribune announced that Amelia Earhart had disappeared somewhere between Lae, New Guinea and Howland Island in the Pacific and was never heard from again! What happened to Amelia is one of the twentieth century's biggest mysteries.
The Reward!
Little Tad...your Great Grandpa and my Daddy!
So who got all that reward money? After months of waiting and a long court case, the money was finally awarded. Four men got a share...$250 each to Grandpa Mel, his neighbor Emery Andrews and the two men who first found the mail. The radio station asked Grandpa what he would do with his share. He said that all he wanted was a radio so he could listen to the news...and a pair of shoes for his little boy, Tad.
On September 11, 2004, Grandpa George and his friend decided to climb up the backside of Lone Peak and see if any of the wreckage was still there. An old newspaper article from the late 70s said that pieces of the plane could still be seen at the bottom of the cliff. Look at this picture of Grandpa George...do you think he found the lost plane?
Post Script
Family stories can be filled with adventure. All you have to do is look and listen. Look at the pictures your grandparents show you...Listen to the stories they tell. When you know your ancestors' stories, they come alive. I'm sure Grandma Zetta and Grandpa Mel would be happy to know that they live on through their stories.
Chapter 2...Finding the Lost Plane...My Father's Account!
When I wrote about the Lost Plane a few months ago, I was writing the story for my grandchildren to read. My information came mostly from newspaper accounts, my grandmother's scrapbook and stories Grandpa Mel told me. My father, Thomas A. Devey (TAD) was only a toddler at the time of the crash. A few years ago, he sat down and began writing his personal history which included a chapter on the Lost Plane. We had never talked about the crash...I would have liked to have heard his version of what happened. Here are some excerpts from his account:
"...like a Hollywood drama..."
Tad writes, "...After several weeks and still no sightings, the crash was beginning to play out like a Hollywood drama, complete with romance, suspense and mystery. The stewardess had recently been involved in a romantic triangle, some of the passengers were socialites and the plane was rumored to have carried a very valuable package in its cargo of mail. And on top of all of this, the plane seemed to vanish into thin air.
Sounds in the night...
My family was living at the top of Fort Canyon above Alpine [Utah]. In those days most rural houses were not equipped with indoor plumbing and ours was no exception. My father, Albert Melvin Devey, was making his nightly trip to the outhouse when he heard a plane fly over. It was overcast and he could see no lights. It was not unusual for a plane to fly directly over what we called the North Mountain [Lone Peak], however in those days it usually happened during the day. Dad had noticed that when a plane flew over the top of the mountain, the sound of the engines gradually faded. In this case, the noise ended abruptly...[it appeared]to be coming from slightly east of the house in Fort Canyon.
The picture, from Zetta's scrapbook, is of Will Healey and Frank Bateman who found some mail from the plane.
Tad continues...
"...With the arrival of early spring, searchers made their way up Dry Creek Canyon to an area where many springs surfaced forming a bog. Traces of oil were found floating on the water in the bog, [bringing] renewed interest in the area. [Unfortunately] the traces of oil proved to be naturally occurring vegetable oil which is found on the water in swamps every where. The increased interest did pay off however. Two men from Alpine were searching in Dry Creek Canyon when they came upon letters which obviously had been carried aboard the plane...[proving] the wreck was in the general area.
Dad and his friend Emery Andrews were both farming on their respective properties in Fort Canyon. As the trail got hotter, their interest grew. They decided they would pool their knowlege of the area and of the circumstances surrounding the crash. They would each go on the mountain on opposite days, reporting where they had been and what they had seen...After a few weeks of looking into all the nooks and crannies of the lower elevation...they came to the conclusion that the wreck had occurred high on the mountain.
Dad went over the published reports of the accounts of witnesses and he talked to several local people who claimed to have heard the plane...and came to the conclusion that the crash mush have occurred somewhere around Lake Hardy.
Panoramic shot of Lake Hardy taken by Nathan Terry.
The wreckage is found...
"It was the first of June and most of the snow had melted from the lower areas. Lying in bed, he decided that when he went back on the mountain, he would search the mountain above Lake Hardy. Two days later, he arrived at the summit of the ridge north of Lake Hardy. On the top of the mountain was a scar where the plane had hit, and some small pieces of metal showing through the snow cover. He picked up a piece of metal and proceeded down into Dry Creek where he located an airline official. They returned back up the mountain. On the way they met another man from Alpine. He also was carrying a piece of metal from the plane.
When they reached the summit, the airline official confirmed that the area was definitely the crash site and that Dad had been the one to discover it. This was important, because there was a posted reward of $1000 to whoever could locate the wreck.
"Now $1000 does not sound like much, but in 1937 it was a fortune! Dad decided that he would split the reward four ways...equal amounts to the two men who had found the letters, to Emery Andrews, and to himself. This may have sounded like a good plan, but someone else had other ideas. The other man who had found the piece of wreckage the same day, claimed to have be the first one to find the plane. It took a court hearing to determine that the other man was employed by the airline and that employees of the airline were specifically excluded from sharing in the reward."
To be continued...
My father's account continues with recovery efforts and life after the discovery of the wreckage. I will continue his story in another chapter. I'm so glad my father took the time to write down his stories. I can't wait to share more of them with you. I was prompted to post this today because two bloggers I follow, A Vintage Chic and 521 Lake Street have inspired me this week with their family stories.
Chapter Three..."We The People!"
According to my dad, the publicity Grandpa Mel received for locating the crash site, and the "hub-bub" which followed the lawsuit over the reward, made him a minor celebrity in the tiny town of Alpine, Utah. The reward money, and the salary he received while working for the Airline on body recovery was enough for the family to live a little better than they had in the previous few years.
If you recall, Grandpa was able to buy a radio so he could listen to the news without having to leave Fort Canyon to get the news at the local store. Radio was the main entertainment for people all over the country...with soap operas, game shows and sporting events along with news and weather.
All in all, life was getting back to normal for the Devey family...until January 1938 when the letter from "We The People" arrived in the mail.
"We The People..."
One of the most popular radio shows of the day was called "We The People." It was a talk show from Phillips H. Lord Inc. Radio Productions. Mr. Lord is the gentleman on the left. The program billed itself as "truly a cross-section of American Life." All races and ages appreared on We The People...some examples:
- A 91 year old Negro slave.
- An eyewitness to the Chicago fire.
- Indian Chiefs.
- The granddaughter of Charles Dickens.
- Mary and her little lamb. (I am not making this up)
- The man who owns the universe.
- Casey Jones's fireman.
- A man who assisted Pasteur in the first innoculation against rabies.
"Dear Mr. Devey," read the letter, "Would you be willing to come to New York and appear on the radio with us, if all your expenses were paid?" The letter explains a little bit about the radio show, then continues, "We would like to know whether you would be available for a possible broadcast some Thursday night in the very near future necessitating your arrival the preceding Tuesday." They then asked him a lot of questions about the Lost Plane and asked him to send them the information as soon as possible:
- What were you doing on December 15th?
- Did you notice the plane in the air?
- When did you first hear of or see the wreck?
- Exactly when did you first reach the plane?
- What first met your eyes?
- Were there any survivors?
- Give us a full description of the wreck.
- How many persons were killed?
- How many people were in your party?
- Where did you take the victims?
- What was done with the wreckage?
- Were you the first person to reach the wreck?
- What are you doing now?
The Glitch...
Here's the problem...one of the sponsors of "We The People" was Western Air Express...the very airline who owned the doomed aircraft that crashed on Lone Peak. He would be flying in the same type of plane and Grandpa Mel's expenses would be paid if full if he were to fly to New York on Western Air Express.
But Grandpa had gotten his fill of airplanes, working at the crash site. He knew what burned and twisted metal looked like. Could he please travel by train? After some negotiations, the sponsor backed out and Grandpa did not get his trip to New York. He would have nothing to do with flying for many years.
There is still more of this story to tell. Tune in again...same time...same station.
As an old-time radio announcer might say...
"This, then, is the program which Mr. Lord has originated. It is truly the heartbeat of America, for there is more drama, more action, more startling stories in real life than in all the fiction of the world combined...when WE THE PEOPLE speak!"
The Lost Plane Chapter 4
"We the People" cont.
In His Own Words...
My dear husband brought to my attention that my last post about The Lost Plane was sadly lacking. He said "I enjoyed reading about the invitation from "We the People" radio program...but you only posted the questions they asked Grandpa Mel...not his answers. I wanted to read it in his own words." So I will repost the questions from the "We the People" letter of January 1938...and Mel's handwritten replies.
"Dear Mr. Bass..."
Yes, I am willing to come to New York and appear on your program, if all my expenses are paid. As far as I know now, I could make the trip any time within the next month or so.
The Western Air Express passenger plane was lost Dec. 15, 1936, but wasn't found until June 6, 1937--nearly 6 months later. I will try to answer the questions to the best of my ability.
Q. What were you doing on December 15th?
A. I live up Fort Canyon, 3 miles north of Alpine, Utah, and almost at the foot of Lone Peak. Alpine is about 8 miles east of the regular Los Angeles-Salt Lake air route. On Dec. 15, 1936, at about 3:30 a.m. we were awakened by our boy's coughing. About 4:05 we hadn't gone back to sleep.
Q. Did you notice the plane in the air?
A. No, I did not see the plane in the air, but at 4:10 or just before, we heard it coming. We knew it was off the route. As it roared past, we jumped to the window to see it, but snow was falling. The window rattled it was so loud. The all of a sudden the sound was cut off. All was silence.
Q. When did you first hear of or see the wreck?
A. About 12:30 p.m. that day, a large plane came around the mountain, flying just under the clouds. We wondered then if the plane we had heard had not reached Salt Lake City. I went to Alpine and reported hearing it at the store about 1 p.m. Returning to the store at 5 p.m., I was informed by Sheriff Durnell of Utah County about the plane being lost. But I didn't see the wreck itself until June 11, 1937.
Q. Exactly when did you first reach the plane?
A. I saw parts of the plane at the scene of the crash about 8 a.m. June 6, 1937, when I first reached the crash.
Q. What first met your eyes?
A. Letters, found by Frank Bateman and Will Healey of Alpine [on] May 25, 1937, localized the search in the Lone Peak area. I had spent 20 days since Feb. 13 searching. On the morning of June 6, Emory Andrews and I left my home at 5 o'clock to continue looking. We proceeded up the mountain, until we reached the region where it was thought the plane would be found. Andrews climbed one ridge, while I took another. As I was climbing, I noticed a piece of metal shining in the sun. Upon arriving at the spot, I tore a piece off the fuselage, which was buried in the snow. This was about 8 a.m. Mail, pieces of landing gear, and part of one propeller were lying scattered around.
Q. Were there any survivors?
A. There were no survivors.
Q. Give us a full description of the wreck.
A. The plane had crashed within 15 ft. of the top of the mountain near Lone Peak and had toppled over to drop 1000 ft. to rest in Hoagum [sic] Canyon on the north side of the mountain. There it was covered by the snow that day and all of the winter's snow. The main body ws located June 9, 1937 and dug out of the snow on June 11. There were no bodies found in the cabin as the floor of the plane was torn out by the crash. The bodies were thrown clear of the wreakage [sic]. The motors were later found about 2000 ft. from the spot where the plane hit the floor of the canyon. One wing was still intact. The other was lying parallel with the main body. The tail was broken off next to the baggage compartment. The tires were found within 100 ft. of the plane. One body was found about 200 ft. from the scene of the crash and the others were found within 100 ft. Mail was scattered as far as three miles.
Old newspaper photos show crew members above. Below is Hogum Basin...where the plane ended up.
Q. How many persons were killed?
A. There were 7 persons killed--a crew of three and four passengers.
Q. How many people were in your party?
A. I was given a job helping dig out the wreakage [sic], carrying out the mail, and bodies. The first body was recovered July 3, 1937, and the last was removed August 11, 1937. To remove all of the bodies and mail, etc. was no easy task. We were in constant danger of rock and snow slides. Everything had to be lifted out of Hoagum [sic] Canyon, over the pass which was 500 ft. above, and carried down the steep mountain side to the horses, a distance of two miles. They were then placed on pack horses and carried down mountain to the Alpine power house, a distances of about 5 miles. As the snow melted back it became very hazzardious [sic] to carry the stretchers over the piles of granite boulders [which varied] from rocks the size of water buckets to huge boulders the size of houses. We had to step or jump over huge holes not knowing how sure our footing would be. There were ususally 8 or 9 men in the parties when the bodies were carried out.
Q. Where did you take the victims?
A. The victims were removed from the Alpine power house to Salt Lake City by the Joseph William Taylor Mortuary.
Q. What was done with the wreckage?
A. The radios, carborators [sic], instruments and propellers were removed to the offices of the Wester Air Express Company in Salt Lake City for inspection. The rest of the wreckage is still in Hoagum [sic] Canyon.
Q. Were you the first person to reach the scene?
A. I was the first person to reach the scene of the crash.
Q. What are you doing now?
A. I am unemployed and looking for work at the present time.
More to Come...
So far I have presented the story from three different perspectives...Grandma Zetta's scrapbook, my father Tad's recollections, and now my Grandpa Mel's account. When writing of historical events, there may be many different view points...but added all together...they often tell one heck of a story. There are even more stories to be told pertaining to this adventure...many questions to be asked. For instance...did Amelia Earhart give up on the Lost Plane after failing to find it in December of 1936? And another important question...would "Pigeon Post" aid in the recovery efforts and would it revolutionize the newspaper business? Tune in another day to find out!
The Lost Plane...Chapter 5
LIFE Magazine, June 21, 1937
A Timeline of Events...
LIFE Magazine, June 21, 1937
Putting LIFE into perspective...
I have an old copy of LIFE Magazine from 1937. I bought it because there was an article or picture concerning the "Lost Plane." I often will do a Google search to see if I can find any more information about the plane crash that has figured so prominently in our family stories. I was pleased to find a full-page lay-out...
Page 27
LIFE Magazine is so large...11" by 14"...that it's too big for the scanner.
The article was to be found on page 27 in the "LIFE ON THE AMERICAN NEWSFRONT" section. I had hoped to find some tidbit of information that was new to me...maybe even a mention of my Grandpa Mel. But no...that which is of vital importance to me and my family, was deserving of only a passing interest to the American public. This is where "perspective" comes in. The years 1936 to 1937 were filled with turmoil and amazing historical events. It's important when writing Family History to be able to see the timeline of events around your family story. When you know the history of the time...you can visualize how those events affected your family.
Imagine a late-1930s housewife reading this issue of LIFE. When she gets to pages 26 and 27...which story do you think she will find most intriguing...finding a missing aircraft, or...
Page 26...Jean Harlow dies.
... the death of blonde bombshell Jean Harlow, whose "platinum blonde" hair made her famous overnight? It's a no brainer. I'm not saying that the housewife has no brains. In that time of economic woe with rumbles of war on the horizon, she can be forgiven for daydreaming about the lives of Hollywood stars and all of the glitz and glamour that were out of reach for so many everyday Joes and Janes.
Grandpa Mel and Grandma Zetta could barely make ends meet...scraping a living from the mountain soil of their little fruit farm. They couldn't even afford a radio so they could be more aware of what was happening in the outside world. When Mel wanted to hear the latest news, he traveled down the canyon to Alpine to get the news from the local store. No wonder a radio was on Mel's wish list after receiving his share of the reward money.
Page 7
$36.95? That was a king's ransom back then.
I want to share with you...my readers and family...some of the things going on in the world during the years of 1936 and 1937.
1936...
Dustbowl
Drought and depletion of the soil worsen the dustbowl in the midwest. Desperate farmers pack up their families and possessions and move to fertile areas further west...like California.
Hindenberg takes flight.
It was a wonder to behold. Measuring over 800 feet in length, the dirigible Hindenberg makes the first of its transatlantic flights as it arrives in Lakehurst, New Jersey.
Hoover Dam is completed.
Bruno Hauptmann.
Bruno Hauptmann, who was convicted of kidnapping and murdering the Lindberg baby (Charles Lindberg III) was executed in April.
In May "Gone With the Wind" was published.
In August Jesse Owens upset Hitler by winning four Gold Medals.
December 15...Western Air Express plane crashes on mountain above Alpine, Utah.
This was copied from Grandma Zetta's scrapbook.
Not best surviving newspaper page, but included date and time in her own handwriting.
1937...
In May, the Hindenberg explodes as it nears its mooring in Lakehurst, New Jersey.
Page 19
LIFE Magazine story on "Cinderella Man" James Braddock.
Joe Louis knocked him out for World Heavy Weight Boxing title.
Golden Gate Bridge is dedicated.
June 6, 1937...Grandpa Mel finds first pieces of missing plane.
July 2, 1937...Amelia Earhart disappears.
The following is a paragraph from the first blog post I wrote about the Lost Plane. The Lost Plane This version was written for my grandchildren:
"The first victim was found on July 4, 1937. Her name was Hazel Skinner and she was just returning home to Chicago with her new husband. They had been honeymooning in Mexico. Gradually over the next few weeks the rest of the bodies were located. Do you want to hear a strange coincidence? On that very same Fourth of July, the Salt Lake Tribune announced that Amelia Earhart had disappeared somewhere between Lae, New Guinea and Howland Island in the Pacific and was never heard from again! What happened to Amelia is one of the twentieth century's biggest mysteries."
In the grand scheme of things, we each live very small lives. Isn't it wonderful to know that there is One who is greater than even kings and presidents...and He knows us. And knowing this helps put things into perspective for me.
When you sit down to write the stories of your family, what will your timeline look like? What was going on the year that you were born? How did the history of our country and world events influence the way you lived your life? Maybe it's time to start writing that story...before it's too late.
