Writes of Passage

8419 State Route
Hammondsport, NY 14840

The museum has just opened a week ago after a renovation.

Curtiss  (May 21, 1878

New York 14840.

Wiki puts the total population at 731, 2000 census.  It’s at the south end of Keuka Lake, one of the Finger lakes. The most famous resident was Glenn Curtiss, the designer of famous Flying Tigers.

We’ve lunch at Park Inn on Shethar St., facing the town square. Two burgers and a Ruben and a Cuban panini. All basic and all good. The soup is pretty tasty.

For a town of this size which is smaller than my kids’ high school graduating class, their library is huge and beautiful. A little inn by the lake.

There are few bed and breakfast

One of the major Finger Lakes at Hammondsport. The water is super clear.

Duckies are happily playing.

At Glenn Curtiss museum, a cool place. At the moment, they’re restoring a P-4 at the rare hall, adjacent to the main building.

Yes there is a girl! According to this gent in beige there are about 12 P-4s in the world in mint condition – can fly; and all in private hands.

 
Explains where and how this P-4 is from

According to Mr. Red, the museum purchased this wreckage for $50,000 from the guy who dug it up. “It wasn’t like this at all when we got it.” I could image. The digger used to drag it around trying to sell this fuselage.

Curtiss P-40 Warhawk (wiki; Tomahawk / Kittyhawk) had a remarkable history: it first flew in 1938, appearing on British P-40s in North Africa in 1940; known as The Flying Tigers to fight the Japs in China between Dec 1941 and July 1942. In this period they downed 286 Jap aircraft and lost only 12 of their own in combat. This photo to the left is 3/4 scale.

People in the shop, girls too are volunteers. I wish it’s closer so I could volunteer too!