Ellyson, Theodore Gordon, 1885-1928

U.S. naval officer and pioneer aviator; nicknamed "Spuds."

From the description of Papers of Theodore Gordon Ellyson, 1912-1951 (bulk 1913-1920). (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 78530140

Commander, U.S. Navy.

Theodore Gordon Ellyson was the first Navy officer to qualify as an airplane pilot. He entered the U.S. Naval Academy in 1901, graduating with the class of 1905. In December 1910, Ellyson was ordered to Los Angeles, California for instruction in aviation under Glenn Curtiss. In 1917 he had duty at the Naval Academy and with the Midshipmen on cruise on USS Wyoming and Kansas. On 14 February 1918, he was detached for duty at the Submarine Chaser Base, New London, Connecticut and in June arrived in London, England for duty with a submarine chaser squadron at U.S. Naval Base 27 at Plymouth, England. Ellyson was killed on 27 February 1928, his 43rd birthday, in the crash of an aircraft in the lower Chesapeake Bay while on a night flight from Norfolk, Virginia to Annapolis, Maryland.

From the description of Papers, 1918-1928. (Navy Department Library, Naval History & Heritage Command). WorldCat record id: 52880054

Biographical Note

• 1885, Feb. 27: Born, Richmond, Va.
• 1901: Appointed United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md.
• 1905: Graduated United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md.
• 1910: Ordered to Los Angeles, Calif., to take flight lessons offered to the navy by Glenn Curtiss
• 1911: Helped Curtiss design hydroplanes and land planes First passenger to go aloft in a hydroplane Passenger on the first flight of the A-1 aircraft and later made two solo flights, Hammondsport, N.Y. Made first night flight by a naval airman Piloted first aircraft successfully launched from a wire cable, Hammondsport, N.Y.
• 1912: Piloted first aircraft successfully launched from a catapult, Washington Navy Yard, Washington, D.C. Married Helen Mildred Lewis Glenn
• 1913: Detached from naval aviation
• 1913 - 1916 : Served aboard the South Carolina (battleship)
• 1914: Designated Naval Aviator Number One
• 1916 - 1918 : Instructor, United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md., serving aboard the Wyoming (battleship) and Kansas (battleship)
• 1918: Received Naval Aviator Number One certificate Received first pair of gold wings given to a pilot Duty at Submarine Chaser Base, New London, Conn. Duty with Submarine Chaser Squadron, United States Naval Base Twenty-seven, Plymouth, England (later received Navy Cross for developing submarine chasing tactics doctrine)
• 1919: Commander, Crew Number Fourteen, Nucleus (ship) Commander, Zeppelin (steamer)
• 1919 - 1920 : Commander, J. Fred Talbot (destroyer)
• 1920: Commander, successively Little (destroyer) and Brooks (ship)
• 1921: Executive officer, Naval Air Station, Hampton Roads, Va.
• 1921 - 1922 : Head, Plans Division, Bureau of Aeronautics, Washington, D.C.
• 1922 - 1925 : Aviation member, United States Naval Mission to Brazil assisting in the reorganization of the Brazilian navy
• 1925: Returned to Bureau of Aeronautics, Washington, D.C.
• 1926: Executive officer, Wright (airship tender) Duty in connection with fitting out the Lexington, the navy's second aircraft carrier
• 1926 - 1928 : Executive officer, Lexington (aircraft carrier)
• 1928, Feb. 27: Killed in airplane crash over the lower Chesapeake Bay while flying from Norfolk, Va., to Annapolis, Md.
• 1928, Mar. 10: Declared dead by United States Navy
• 1928, Apr. 11: Body washed ashore at Willoughby Spit near Hampton Roads, Va.

From the guide to the Theodore Gordon Ellyson Papers, 1912-1951, (bulk 1913-1920), (Manuscript Division Library of Congress)