In the Museum: Lindbergh for Sale
Stanley King's memorabilia collection.
- By Diane Tedeschi
- Air & Space magazine, September 2006
Stanley King started with buttons. An artist, musician, and founder of a lucrative fabric-design business in New York City, King has had the financial wherewithal to buy thousands of pieces of memorabilia relating to some of his favorite subjects: George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, American jazz, and, perhaps most passionately, Charles Lindbergh. In 2002, King donated his vast collection of Lindbergh memorabilia to the National Air and Space Museum, and on June 20, nearly 400 of the artifacts went on display at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in northern Virginia.
Born two years after Lindbergh’s 1927 New York-to-Paris solo flight, King, as a child, became fascinated by Lindbergh. “Here was a young man who changed the world,” he says. Later, a 20-something King bought his first chunk of Lindbergh memorabilia. “There was a little hobby store in Manhattan that I walked into, and they had a bunch of stuff from Lindbergh’s 1927 welcome to New York,” he says. He happily paid 25 cents apiece for dozens of buttons and ribbons, but that was just the beginning. Lindbergh, flying the Spirit of St. Louis, had toured the 48 states following his return to New York, and at every stop, souvenirs were for sale. King soon discovered that Lindbergh had spawned a merchandising bonanza. “There was china,” he says. “And the next thing, it’s curtain fabric and drapery and tapestry and clothing and pillowcases. And quilting. And I’m saying ‘This is unbelievable.’ ”
King says that during the 50-plus years he has collected all things Lindbergh, he has spent about $200,000. “I’ve never been shy with something,” he says. “If somebody said, ‘This is $500,’ that was it. I wanted it, and I thought it was important. But I started collecting when those buttons were 25 cents, and then the market moved along. I mean there are things I’ve paid 10 and 20 thousand dollars for. There’s one group of telegrams that were bought from the estate of his lawyer. All the congratulatory telegrams” that were sent after Lindbergh’s transatlantic triumph. To find these treasures, King patronized such auction houses as Christie’s and Sotheby’s, and he regularly peruses the goods available from the online auction house eBay, where he bought a toy Spirit of St. Louis glider, the only example he’s ever seen.
Before King sold his textile business in 2003, he lived and worked on an entire story of a building on Fifth Avenue. Half of the space was a studio for King’s staff, and the other half was a cavernous apartment dominated by the Lindbergh collection. “I must have had 20 Spirit of St. Louis’s hanging from the ceiling,” says King. “And volumes of memorabilia” displayed on lighted shelves. “I had weather vanes from farms that were done like the Spirit of St. Louis. Imagine people coming up and just absolutely flipping out. And then I’d serve them lunch as well.”
As much as King enjoyed living in a virtual museum, he started wondering what he should do with all the Lindbergh stuff. His children didn’t want the collection, and King had no desire to sell it. “I said I should give it to some place that it could be shared with a lot of people,” he says. His first choice was the Museum, since that is where Lindbergh’s airplane is displayed, and aeronautics curator Dom Pisano was delighted to accept. The King collection has 800 major objects and thousands of smaller pieces, including sheet music, menus from banquets Lindbergh attended, and photographs.
Museum specialist Carl Bobrow has spent more than a year cataloging each Lindbergh item. Much of the King collection is now viewable online at www.nasm.si.edu/collections. “To work with Lindbergh items is just a treat,” says Bobrow. In fact, he has been inspired to write a book documenting the King collection as well as other Lindbergh artifacts.
As for King, he looks forward to making the trip from New York to see his collection on display. He won’t come empty-handed: “I must have another 20 items to bring down,” he says.
Related topics: Flight Hobbies Charles Lindbergh Golden Age of Flight
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Comments (10)
I was reading an older issue of Air & Space that contained an article about Stanley King's Charles Lindbergh memorabilia and his donation to the NASM. Was wondering if any effort has been directed towards finding the Holy Grail of Lindbergh history - the original flight log of his infamous flight from NY to Paris! Apparently it was taken from the "Spirit of St. Louis" upon his landing but was never recovered. Please contact me with any information you may have.
Thanks!
Ted Wise
North Palm Beach, FL
Posted by Ted Wise on February 5,2009 | 08:09 AM
I have a souvenir tapestry of the Lindbergh NYC to Paris flight of the Spirit of St. Louis. I found it many years ago in a used furniture store. I have always wondered about it's history. Does anyone know where those tapistries were made and sold and if they have any value.
Thank you for any information.
Posted by Michael Freiband on April 1,2009 | 12:00 PM
I own a stamped celluloid Spirit of St. Louis toy, and have not been able to establish anything about it's origin. It is 4 3/4" wide by 7" long.
If anyone has any knowledge of it's origin or manufacturer, I would appreciate the information.
I will be happy to send photos to anyone willing to help in this discovery.
Thanks,
Stu Neyland
Posted by Stu Neyland on June 25,2009 | 08:13 AM
I have a coin bank like the one in the King collection. Only this one has "spirit of savings" on it. Also it has a stamp on the wing that says "Southeast Saving & Loan Huntington Park Cal" It was manufactured by Bank Manufacturing Co. in Hollywood Calif. I was wondering if this is worth anything. Thank-you Denis Marvin EDITORS' REPLY: Again, the Smithsonian cannot provide appraisals of value. We encourage everyone with similar questions to see how much similar items are selling for on eBay, and to check with dealers and auction houses that specialize in these kinds of vintage artifacts. Best of luck.
Posted by Denis Marvin on March 27,2010 | 12:52 AM
I also have a tapestry along with another aviation memorabilia tapestry too. My NYC/Paris one was made in France and the other one was Belgium. Do you have any new info?
Posted by Susan Blum on May 19,2010 | 06:13 PM
I have access to the only (to the best of our knowledge) 35MM film of the Final Test Flight and signing off of the acceptance of the Spirit of St. Louis done at the San Diego California Airport just PRIOR to the famous flight. It was wonderful to have the opportunity to see the event. Pictured in the film are Frank Mahoney(Owner), Charles Lindbergh, and Donald Hall(Engineer).
Posted by Suella Smith on July 19,2010 | 01:57 PM
i have a hand written letter from lindy's mom evangeline dated july 5 1927 thanking the head chef at st francis in san fran for the 100 lb cake he sent to her son. she says that president edsel ford and the mayos enjoyed it at a party for charles. it's written her stationery and is a great letter.
Posted by terry blue on October 2,2010 | 10:55 AM
I found a box of 14 original Ryan Electronic pictures (numbered) with typed narratives attached never displayed. One of the set is signed by Charles Lindbergh. I was thrilled to see such a wonderful set with some other momentos of the 40th flight of Lindbergh celebrated in San Diego. My dad an enthusiast and brother obtained these photos at the SD air show and put them away. They were lost in a box in the garage with a high school paper written by my brother in 1967 on Lindbergh.
Posted by sandra gardei on October 9,2010 | 12:25 PM
I own a tapestry that is a souvenir of the Lindbergh New York to Paris flight. New York is on the left and Paris on the right with the Spirit of St Louis flying accross the sea depicted. Lindbergh's likeness is in the middle with other pilots from the period, such as Byrd, Chamberlin and a Miss Ruth Elder. It was made in France it says. Can anyone tell anything about this and if a lot were made?
Posted by William Boyer on August 20,2011 | 01:48 AM
We have a wooden carving approciamtely 5'5" in height of Charles Lindbergh. This statue was located in California prior to our purchase. We beleive that it was carved for display during his tour of the 48 states. If anyone has information regarding an unvaling during his tour or information that can help us validate our facts, please email with photos or information. Detailed photos will be sent upon request. Thank you.
Tammy Bailey
thesportstershop@live.com
Posted by Tammy Bailey on November 26,2011 | 10:58 PM