Ivan R. Gates was an Early Bird of Aviation, receiving his pilot’s license in 1911, and is credited with starting the first flying school on the west coast in California. The collection documents Gates’ aviation business enterprises, including the Gates Flying Circus, Gates Flying Service, and the New York-based Gates Aircraft Corporation, which manufactured the Gates Belgian RSV convertible monoplane/biplane. Gates’ wife Hazel was also a pilot. The majority of the collection is contained within 4 scrapbooks (3 of photographs and 1 of newspaper clippings), along with some loose photographs and documents.
Hazel and Ivan Gates (ms646_sb2_p19) Hazel Gates in cockpit (ms646_sb2_p21) Aerial view of Holmes Airport, NY (ms646_sb2_p27) Gates Aircraft Corporation factory workers with fuselage (ms646_sb3_p31) Gates Belgian RSV airplane on display (ms646_sb3_p35) Gates Aircraft Corporation exterior with employees (ms646_sb3_p44)
For more information about this collection, please review the MS-646: Ivan R. Gates Collection finding aid or contact Special Collections and Archives.