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Title: Archive of letters, documents, blueprints, photographs and other material relating to Harlan D. Fowler and his invention of the Fowler flap Author: Fowler, Harlan D. Place: Various places Publisher: Date: c.1915-1940 Description: Archive comprised of hundreds of letters, offprints, blueprints, patent documents, wind tunnel tests, photographs and other material, described below. The archive fills a box measuring 12x9½x10”. Important archive of primary source material relating to the development and marketing of one of the key contributions to aeronautic design and flight. The Fowler flap, invented around 1924 by Harlan Fowler, a young aeronautical engineer who worked for the U.S. Army Air Corps, is a flap normally forming a part of the trailing edge of an airplane wing, capable of being moved backward and rotated downward in order to increase lift through increased camber and wing area. It enables greater lift at low speeds, while not hindering performance at high speeds. The material in the archive, dated from around 1915 to 1940, traces his early aeronautical studies, development and refinement of the flap, his efforts at marketing the innovation, and finally the drawn out defense of his patents from others, as well as his fight against litigation for his own alleged patent infringement. The archive includes, but is not limited to: Six-page pencil ms. by Fowler, on translucent paper, titled “The Fowler Wing,” giving an overview of the wing design and operation, and its advantages: “Have you ever thought of the powerful advantage the birds of the air possess by their ability to expand or contract their wing spread and to alter the curvature of the feathered ribs? …Man has conquered the air, an achievement, perhaps, of far greater consequence than any invention produced by him… The airplane, as we know it today, is probably in principle correct… But the demand of progress in carrying larger loads and to obtain higher cruising speeds is leading towards two serious factors. Increased power, representing an uneconomic development, and high stalling speed, representing an unsound safety development… The development and perfection of the Fowler Variable Area Wing presents a very sound and practical solution…” * U.S. War Department “Full-Flight Report on trail of Model Vought Advanced Training Aircraft (P-23),” 1918, with 11 blueprint leaves of the typed report, 2 blueprint graphs, and 2 original photographs of the plane. * Notebook containing inserted typed excerpts on such subjects as “The Lift of a Wing. Locating the Center of Lift in a biplane”; “Rudder Design. Resistance, Frictional”; “Relative Strength of Clear Spruce and Elm”; “Types of Wings employed by various manufacturers,” etc. The writings are very scientific in nature, and while some may be the work of Fowler, most seem to have been gleaned from other sources. The notebook is undated, but one of the sources referenced is dated 1914. * War Department “Report on Study of Parasite Areas” by B.F. Senart, 1923. 14 blueprint leaves of typescript, graphs, tables, etc., plus 47 original photographs of airplanes, 7x9”, mounted on blue leaves. The planes pictured include a Thomas-Morse MB-3; Verveille (also known as Marseille) VCP-1 and PW-1; Fokker D-7 and D-8; Dayton-Wright TA-3; Loening PA-1; and many others. * Report by Fowler, “Structural Analysis, Pitcairn ‘Fleetwing II’ Model PA-4. Report Nos. 1015-1020 inc.” dated June 10, 1927, Pitcairn Aircraft, Inc., Bryn Athyn, Pa. Approx. 87 blueprint leaves of typescript, diagrams, measured drawings, etc., some folding. * 1929 ms. “Report of Test Flight of MCA-1” by John Miller Pilot, 3 pp., on letterhead of The Miller Corporation, New Brunswick Airport, New Brunswick, NJ: “Landed plane at 9:10 am and taxied off shore. Considerable spray was developed by wheels and landing gear in water… Stopped motors and drifted off beach. Inspected hull for leaks and none were found… Started motors and attempted to ta