By Jackie Shalberg,
National Model Aviation Museum Archivist and Historian | jackies@modelaircraft.org
A NEW COLLECTION received in June 2025 contains photographs of model aircraft and aeromodeling events, newspaper clippings from the Massachusetts and New Hampshire areas, and an event program. Because we do not know the name of the person who originally collected all of the items (the donor was not the original collector), the name of the collection reflects its contents: 1950s-1970s Aeromodeling Photographs and Papers Collection, #0533.
Included with the photographic material are a handful of U.S. Air Force photo prints. Stamped on the backs of these are the words “U.S. AIR FORCE PHOTO, Released by BASE PHOTO LAB, L.G. HANSCOM FIELD, BEDFORD, MASS.” Although these are U.S. Air Force photos, we believe the images are likely of a Nats contest held at a U.S. naval air station in the 1950s or 1960s. I have not yet identified the specific year or location. Looking at Nats photos of the same era in other museum collections and in Nats articles, I have yet to make a match, so I am a bit stumped.
We’ve shared these Air Force photographs here, and you can also find them in the Museum’s Digital Collections at www.modelaircraft.pastperfectonline.com. Based on the images and descriptions presented in this article, can you help us verify whether they were taken at a Nats, identify the year or location, or identify people in the photos?
Photos A and B: Shown in both of these photos is a man in a suit holding a model airplane, a woman in a dress, and men in military uniforms. On the left side in Photo B is another man in plain clothing holding the wing of a model airplane. The man and woman at the center of the photos appear to be of importance—perhaps local hosts making their way to a public presentation—but we have yet to identify them. Do you know who they are?
In Photo B, many spectators, airplane hangars, and full-scale U.S. Navy aircraft can be seen in the background. Maybe the hangars in the background will jog a reader’s memory of the location.
Photo C: This photo is of the modeling contest in progress. Eleven unidentified adults stand, some in military uniform, and two youths sit on the grass. Most are looking up at the sky, likely watching a model airplane in flight. One of the men is holding a transmitter and is assumed to be flying a model. Oddly, though, it looks like the people spectating are focused on a different spot in the sky than the man holding the transmitter. Could there be more than one aircraft flying in the air? We can only guess at this point.
Photo D: Another shot of the contest in progress, this photo is of eight standing adults, three kneeling adults, and two youths sitting on the grass, some looking up at the sky. Likely, again, they are looking at an aircraft in flight. In the far background are full-scale U.S. Navy aircraft, spectators, trees, and a large plume of smoke. The person kneeling in the foreground and wearing a pith helmet (popular headgear at the 1950s and 1960s Nats) is working on an RC model airplane; you can also see the Sampey and Co. 404 transmitter and Sig toolbox.
Photos C and D are related images, with many of the same people in them.
Photo E: This photo is a true action shot—a model airplane in flight, flying just over the runway. Although “RCAA 14” and “AMA 2312” appear on the wing, I could not match this model to a current AMA member. Full-scale U.S. Navy aircraft, a large spectator crowd, buildings, and rolling hills with trees are in the background. White lines that appear in the image are likely just lens flares or physical damage to the original negative from which the print was made, but they add to the action-feel of this photo.
Photo F: This final photo shows two vendors standing behind booth tables in a building, possibly one of the airplane hangars appearing in Photo B. One of the men is wearing a heavily decorated pith helmet. Spectators stand at rope barriers at the entrance of the building, facing the full-scale aircraft outdoors. Products on the tables include an Ares model (“ARES” and “AMA 703” appear on its wing) and other flying models, Ambroid products, model kits, and static models. Boxes at the foot of the tables, which are used to hold up printed publications and presumably to transport modeling items to this event, advertise other products, including Hershey’s, Rinso Blue detergent, and Ajax.
To potentially help put a date on this series of photographs, I looked up information about Hershey’s, which was advertised on one of the boxes in Photo F. That box states the candy bars had cost 5¢. According to the Hershey Community Archives website (2018), Hershey Chocolate Company’s standard-size chocolate bars were priced at 5¢ from 1900 to 1969. I also searched for the dates of Rinso Blue; Wikipedia’s page on Rinso declares Rinso Blue as an early 1950s to mid-1960s product. The Sig logo spotted in Photo D means these photos could not have been taken earlier than 1951; per Hazel Sig’s biography, she and her husband, Glen Sigafoose, started Sig Manufacturing Company that year. This evidence helps affirm the 1950s/1960s date but still doesn’t narrow it down to a specific year.
To help narrow the potential location of these images, I went to our Nats locations spreadsheet, which is linked on the AMA History Project webpage at www.modelaircraft.org/museum/history-recognition/ama-history-project. Based on this spreadsheet, Nats Outdoor events from 1951 through the 1960s were held at only five naval air station locations:
- Dallas, Texas: 1951, 1956, 1960, 1964
- Glenview, Illinois: 1954, 1958, 1962, 1966
- Los Alamitos, California: 1952, 1955, 1959, 1963, 1967
- Olathe, Kansas: 1968
- Willow Grove, Pennsylvania: 1953, 1957, 1961, 1965, 1969
So far, I have been unsuccessful in identifying the location based on the evidence in the photos. However, I’ll keep this on my radar as I process other collections related to Nats of this era. Maybe our Nats location and year list will aid our sleuthing readers in helping us to solve this mystery, or some of the people in the photos will be recognized. Let us know if you figure it out (our contact information is in the next section), and stay tuned for updates in future “History Preserved” columns.
SOURCES:
A2025.04.02, A2025.04.03, A2025.04.04,
A2025.04.05, A2025.04.06, & A2025.04.07
1950s-1970s Aeromodeling Photographs and Papers Collection, #0533 National Model Aviation Museum, Muncie IN
AMA History Project Presents:
Biography of Hazel Sig-Hester
www.modelaircraft.org/sites/default/files/files/SigHesterHazel.pdf
Hershey Community Archives
www.hersheyarchives.org/encyclopedia/hersheys-milk-chocolate-bar-wrappers-overthe-years
Rinso
Wikipedia
Photo A & B person holding plane could be astronaut Frank Boreman. He was Air Force so doesn’t make sense for him to be at a Navy NATS.
Photo B person holding wing tip could be Bill Northrup. Bill wrote for Model Airplane News and later created Model Builder Magazine.
Just my guesses
All the aircraft in the background are Air Force aircraft. C-130, C-119, F-89 and F-100. The Air Force used to have a national contest for model airplanes held for Air Force personnel. When I was at basic training at Lackland AFB in summer of 1965 they were holding the contest at a parade grounds near our barracks. Oh I wanted to go see them fly. But if the TI even saw your eyeballs moving in that direction, it was ass chewing time.