neilhg Posted July 19, 2011 Share #1 Posted July 19, 2011 got thease from my great uncle thease belonged to my great great uncle who was a Maj. in the lafayette escadrille in wwi his name was raymond "king" kelly after the war he flew airshows and was crippled after he crashed he died in his 50's i belive not kids or wife. also not pictured is a american legion beret that reads american legion aviation post chicago illinos also somewhere we have his aviation helmet and goggles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilhg Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share #2 Posted July 19, 2011 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilhg Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share #3 Posted July 19, 2011 his aviators leather neck his heather suspenders and belt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilhg Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share #4 Posted July 19, 2011 his swagger stick and info its not for sale but does anyone have any idea on what this is worth? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack's Son Posted July 19, 2011 Share #5 Posted July 19, 2011 That's a nice family heirloom. Have you started research on it yet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Hudson Posted July 19, 2011 Share #6 Posted July 19, 2011 its not for sale but does anyone have any idea on what this is worth? That trunk appears to be from his time with the "Aviation Service" as the US Army flight branch was known then. To determine value you first need documentation to establish that he was in the Lafayette Escadrille. There is a roster of members who survived the war,: I did not see his name on it, but I have trouble scanning small print. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilhg Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share #7 Posted July 19, 2011 its been hard toresearch theres some celeberty with the same name as for the list i dident see his name but i am certain he was in it is it possible they missed him? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zepher11 Posted July 19, 2011 Share #8 Posted July 19, 2011 What a great grouping of family history artifacts you have there. I really love the look of the trunk! Thanks for sharing... JD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Hudson Posted July 19, 2011 Share #9 Posted July 19, 2011 as for the list i dident see his name but i am certain he was in it is it possible they missed him? Could be they missed him, but family stories can also get diverted along the way so it would be worth doing the research to pin down his WWI service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilhg Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share #10 Posted July 19, 2011 Could be they missed him, but family stories can also get diverted along the way so it would be worth doing the research to pin down his WWI service. alright thank you thats funny how you said they can get diverted that side of the family was quite humble i had a great uncle in the oss in wwii who did two solo combat jums in sicily and italy and all he told us was he was a paratroper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Hudson Posted July 19, 2011 Share #11 Posted July 19, 2011 alright thank youthats funny how you said they can get diverted that side of the family was quite humble i had a great uncle in the oss in wwii who did two solo combat jums in sicily and italy and all he told us was he was a paratroper. What happens is that people add innocent embellishments over the decades. For instance, someone may have been told that an ancestor flew in France in WWI. Well, they hear about the famous unit of Americans flying for the French and associate that with their ancestor. So even if this is never going to be sold, do his memory a favor and track down as much written info as you can about his service. Now remember too, there was the Lafayette Escadrille Squadron and the larger Lafayette Flying Corps and they are often confused. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilhg Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share #12 Posted July 19, 2011 What happens is that people add innocent embellishments over the decades. For instance, someone may have been told that an ancestor flew in France in WWI. Well, they hear about the famous unit of Americans flying for the French and associate that with their ancestor. So even if this is never going to be sold, do his memory a favor and track down as much written info as you can about his service. Now remember too, there was the Lafayette Escadrille Squadron and the larger Lafayette Flying Corps and they are often confused. do you know where i can get info on the Lafayette Flying Corps? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Hudson Posted July 19, 2011 Share #13 Posted July 19, 2011 do you know where i can get info on the Lafayette Flying Corps? A google search should turn up quite a bit: this may have been one of the most researched units of WWI. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilhg Posted July 20, 2011 Author Share #14 Posted July 20, 2011 thank you all for your comments Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skysoldier80 Posted April 22, 2019 Share #15 Posted April 22, 2019 Now that is an awesome WWI Family Grouping. I second doing the research to get everything down. A year ago I started digging into a family story about my Grandfather's Uncle who was supposedly in the Waffen SS during WWII (Grandpa's Dad served in German Army in WWI and immigrated to the US in 1922). After the research, I found that it was not the Uncle (who did serve in the 22d Luftlande Division), but it was my Great Grandmother's (Grandpa's mother) sister's son who was still in Germany who was the WSS guy. I just happened to be given the Funeral Card and photos of him. So I share stating the research is fun and will uncover some family mysteries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Croix de Guerre Posted July 14, 2020 Share #16 Posted July 14, 2020 There is no "Kelly" on the list of recognized Lafayette Flying Corps veterans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Croix de Guerre Posted July 14, 2020 Share #17 Posted July 14, 2020 On 7/18/2011 at 9:13 PM, neilhg said: his aviators leather neck his heather suspenders and belt That is his "Sam Browne" Officers belt and cross strap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Croix de Guerre Posted July 14, 2020 Share #18 Posted July 14, 2020 It appears he was an automobile race after the war. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Croix de Guerre Posted July 14, 2020 Share #19 Posted July 14, 2020 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Croix de Guerre Posted July 14, 2020 Share #20 Posted July 14, 2020 If you have his middle name or initial that would be helpful or any information such as where his was born or his parents name. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BEAST Posted July 15, 2020 Share #21 Posted July 15, 2020 Very nice! In a 1919 from Oak Park, Illinois article, it states that he was assigned to the Lafayette Escadrille and was an ace. It would be interesting to know the truth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
General Apathy Posted July 16, 2020 Share #22 Posted July 16, 2020 On 7/14/2020 at 2:23 AM, Croix de Guerre said: . Hi Croix de Guerre, you mention skating, here is a photograph on Alamy showing a Raymond King Kelly if we have the same person. regards lewis. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Croix de Guerre Posted July 17, 2020 Share #23 Posted July 17, 2020 I am afraid he appears to be another one of those people who felt a need to inflate or fabricate their service. I have not been able to locate any record of him serving with the US military or the French air service much less being a member of the Lafayette Escadrille. If he had shot down six EA as he claims there would be loads of documentation about him and his exploits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manayunkman Posted July 17, 2020 Share #24 Posted July 17, 2020 This is a very interesting read. So we have a race car driver who claims he was a WW1 ace but really isn’t? No record of US military service in WW1? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Rooster Posted July 19, 2020 Share #25 Posted July 19, 2020 Is'nt it possible his records were destroyed in the fire ? Is'nt that a picture of him above in a uniform on the deck of a ship ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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