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World War I
Military and Veterans ➔ Propeller Blueprint
Identifier:
2022.143.17Description:
This is a blueprint for a two-blade propeller, built according to specification 29,500-D. It was given to Flottorp Manufacturing Company by the United States Army Air Service Department during World War I.In 1917, Flottorp Manufacturing, a Chicago manufacturing company contracted by the United States Army to manufacture propellers during the war, opened a production site on the first and second floors of the Nelson Matter Furniture Company warehouse located at Lyon Street in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Local furniture makers such as Pierson R. Kime, the donor's great-grandfather, directed their skills toward producing these propellers to aid the war effort.
This blueprint is part of a collection of tools, blueprints, documents, and photographs related to Pierson R. Kime's time at Flottorp Manufacturing Company between 1917 and 1921. They were donated by his great-granddaughter Louann Kohlbeck after having been passed down through the family.
Date:
1918Materials:
PaperDimensions:
40" h 62.5" wCurrent Location Status:
In StorageCollection Tier:
Tier 2Source:
Gift of the Family Descendants of Pierson R. KimeRelated Entities:
Louann Kohlbeck (donor) Pierson R. Kime (is related to)Pierson R. Kime was born in Geneva, New York in June of 1868. He moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan, and worked as a furniture maker until 1917 when he began working at Flottorp Manufacturing Company crafting airplane propellers for the United States Army. This work lasted until 1921 when the company ceased production. Kime passed away on June 21st, 1958. Flottorp Manufacturing Company (used by)
The Flottorp Manufacturing Company was founded in Chicago, Illinois by Ole Flottorp in 1912. The company manufactured nearly 175 models of fixed and controllable pitch wood propellers and was contracted by the United States Government during World War I to make airplane propellers. In 1917, Flottorp opened a production site in Grand Rapids, Michigan on the first and second floors of the Nelson Matter Furniture Company warehouse located at Lyon Street and produced propellers for the government until 1921. The company was acquired by the Univair Aircraft Corporation of Aurora, Colorado in the later 1950s. United States Army (creator)
The United States Army is a service branch of the United States Armed Forces that specializes in ground-based offensive and defensive warfare. The mission of the United States Army is to fight and win our Nation's wars, by providing prompt, sustained, land dominance, across the full range of military operations and the spectrum of conflict, in support of combatant commanders.The United States Army we know today has roots that can be traced back to the Continental Army which was formed in 1775 during the American Revolutionary War. After the War, The Congress of the Confederation officially created the United States Army in 1784 to replace the disbanded Continental Army. The United States Army is the largest military branch of the armed forces in which participates in disputes worldwide today through preserving peace and security and providing for the defense of the United States.
