Display Case - 3rd Floor
"THE ROSENDAHL LIGHTER-THAN-AIR COLLECTION "
The History of Aviation Collection possesses numerous materials about the history of lighter-than-air aviation (blimps, balloons, and dirigibles). Featured is the collection of Vice Admiral Charles Rosendahl who was in charge of the lighter-than-air operations of the U. S. Navy in the 1930s. Highlighted are several different types of airship, including the four rigid airships operated by the United States Navy (Macon, Akron, Shenandoah and Los Angeles), the famous German passenger airship The Graf Zeppelin, and its ill-fated sister ship the Hindenburg, as well as examples of blimps operated by the U. S. Navy in anti-submarine warfare during World War II and the early stages of the Cold War. The exhibit also showcases a number of objects that depict airships in a variety of fashions, including a Nutcracker, salt and pepper shakers, and Jell-O Mold.