Airship "Hindenburg" Disaster, Naval Air Station Lakehurst in Manchester Township, New Jersey, May 6, 1937
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Artifact Overview
The German airship Hindenburg was just minutes away from completing a transatlantic flight when it burst into flames at Lakehurst, New Jersey, on May 6, 1937. The fierce inferno, fueled by the airship's hydrogen lifting gas, claimed 36 lives. Debate continues about the fire's origin. Investigators considered everything from static electricity, to lightning, to deliberate sabotage.
Artifact Details
Artifact
Photographic print
Subject Date
06 May 1937
Creators
Creator Notes
Original photography by Murray Becker. Copy photographer unidentified.
Collection Title
Location
By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center
Object ID
92.1.1774.P.CO.7484
Credit
From the Collections of The Henry Ford. Gift of the Family of Henry Austin Clark, Jr.
Material
Paper (Fiber product)
Technique
Gelatin silver process
Color
Black-and-white (Colors)
Dimensions
Height: 4.5 in
Width: 3.625 in
Keywords |
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Related Content
Set
Airships
- 15 Artifacts
"Airship" refers to any lighter-than-air craft that moves under its own power. Lift is achieved using a gas, like hydrogen or helium, that is less dense than surrounding air. Non-rigid airships -- blimps -- use the gas's pressure on the containment envelope to maintain their shape. Rigid airships -- Zeppelins -- support their gas cells with an internal framework. In peace and in war, airships have known triumph and tragedy.