18 continued As we know, the Wright brothers made the first controlled powered manned flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, on December 17, 1903. From there the history of flight advanced at breakneck speed enhancing every aspect of life, travel, and war as well. Aerial photography had been around many years before powered flight came along, but up until that moment it had been limited to what could be obtained with balloons and even pigeons with cameras strapped to them. With the advent of aircraft, aerial photography quickly advanced and expanded. The University of Oregon library has aerial photographs of Oregon dating back to at least the late 1920s. A news article in the Central Point American, and others, from July 1937 announces that aerial mapping of Oregon farms will be resuming after the award of a contract to Brubaker Aerial Surveys. The contract was to cover 3,458 square miles at a cost of $2.88 per square mile! The same article notes this type of mapping was first used in Oregon and Washington and rapidly spread across the United States. Talbert “Ted” Abrams was born August 17, 1895, in Tekonsha, Michigan. At the age of 8, Abrams was enamored with flying soon after hearing of the Wright brothers from his father. (The Abrams Foundation) He spent the rest of his life pursuing flight and photography. Soon after the Wright brothers completed their flight, the need for some sort of regulatory process to certify pilots was recognized. The Air Commerce Act came into being in 1926 and implemented pilot testing and a certification process. By June 1926, Talbert Abrams had obtained his pilot’s license, #282, which was signed by none other than Orville Wright. (The Abrams Foundation) Abrams quickly discovered the power of aerial photography and the developing field of photogrammetry. He not only embraced the existing technology, but began a lifelong pursuit of flying, teaching, inventing, and marketing the growing field. During the first world war, Abrams developed his skills as an officer in the Marine Corps Aviation Section. After the war, he started the Abrams Aerial Survey Corporation and the Abrams School of Aerial Surveying and Photo Interpretation. Through the latter organization, he went on to train military personnel about the use of photography for reconnaissance and surveillance. During the time between the world wars, Abrams saw the need for an improved platform to collect aerial photography which led to the photo in that lone Klamath Falls newspaper. In 1937, Abrams unveiled his aircraft “The Explorer.” It sported a glass nose, rear mounted propulsion system, perfected camera mounting systems, oxygen for the crew at high altitudes, and his door within a door technology for collecting photos without opening an outer door of the plane. The following is a summary of the aircraft in Abrams own words: New Plane for Photographic Mapping in the Stratosphere By Talbert Abrams The comparatively new but rapidly growing industry of mapping from the air received a new contribution on November 20, 1937 when “The Explorer,” the first plane built especially for aerial photography, performed successfully on its initial test flight from Brooke Field, Marshall, Michigan, preliminary to Department of Commerce tests to be carried out at an early date. This new craft, so unique in design as to resemble the mythical creation of a “Buck Rogers” Space Ship of the year 2040, differs radically from conventional types in many of its more important features. Careful planning and ten months of actual construction were directed with one goal in view; to produce an airplane capable of more efficient and economical photographic mapping. The prerequisites of such a plane were considered to be the following qualities: perfect forward and downward visibility for the pilot, ability to ascend rapidly to high altitudes, high cruising speed, stability, at least an eighthour fuel supply, super-charged motors, and arrangements for supplying oxygen to the photographic crew at high altitudes. Scan the QR Code and you can read the rest of Talbert’s announcement. Talbert Abrams’ work revolutionized the field of aerial photography and photogrammetry. Surprisingly, only one of The Explorer aircraft was ever built. The needs of World War II required a faster, more durable aircraft to survive the perils of war, and by the end of the war, aircraft technology had passed The Explorer by. It now resides in the Smithsonian awaiting restoration. One restoration attempt was made but failed, and to date, neither a plan nor funding has developed to complete the necessary work. Remembered today as the father of photogrammetry, his dreams and contributions surely led to all of the innovations we enjoy today with LiDAR, drones, and even digital cameras to collect the data. As early as 1975, he predicted that photographic film would become obsolete in favor of electronic recording of images. (The Abrams Foundation) Clearly, he was correct! He is remembered today by The Talbert and Leota Abrams Planetarium on the Michigan State University Campus; Mount Abrams in Antarctica; and the Talbert Abrams Award issued each year by the American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS) for a person making outstanding contributions to aerial photography and mapping. (Military History) As a side note, PLSO’s founder Bert Mason Jr. would have benefitted from the many contributions to the military during World War II. Bert entered the Navy as a clerk (if this author remembers correctly) and quickly found his way to the VD-1 Aerial Photography and Mapping Unit where he spent the rest of the war in the Pacific until discharging in 1945. This unit undoubtedly benefited from Abrams’ contributions, although a direct link between the two was not found as of press time. References • History | The Abrams Foundation (the-abrams-foundation.org) • Talbert Abrams—Wikipedia • Talbert “Ted” Abrams | National Geospatial- Intelligence Agency (nga.mil) • Talbert Abrams—The Father of Aerial Photogrammetry—The American Surveyor (amerisurv.com) • Talbert Abrams | Military Wiki | Fandom • New Plane For Photographic Mapping in the Stratosphere (asprs.org) • Central Point American, Thursday, July 10, 1937 The Oregon Surveyor | Vol. 46, No. 5 The Lost Surveyor
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