Solomon Andrews demonstrated a steerable airship to Lincoln's War Department
Documented · occurred What these labels mean →Solomon Andrews offered his dirigible to the federal government in September 1862, tested a prototype in 1863, and renewed the offer in August 1863 in a letter to President Lincoln. After his petition reached Congress, Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton convened a committee (Special Orders No. 119, March 16, 1864) to consider its feasibility and report to the House Military Committee. On March 21, 1864, Henry (Smithsonian) and Col. Woodruff examined a model in the Library room of the Smithsonian; Henry recorded that the inventor proved the balloon can be steered. The committee's conclusions are in a separate document (Henry Papers Doc. 220) not yet read.
Evidence
| Relation | Record | Note |
|---|---|---|
| documents | siarchives.si.edu | Papers of Joseph Henry vol. 10, Doc. 207 (pp. 364-365) and editorial note 2 (PDF supplied by E 2026-10-18, vault _queue/review/sourcing/e-fetched/andrews-henry-papers-v10-pp364-365.pdf; verbatim lines in andrews.txt): 'Congressional pressure finally resulted in Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton convening a committee to consider the feasibility of Andrews's airship', citing Special Orders No. 119, Adjutant General's Office, War Department, March 16, 1864; Henry, 22 Mar 1864: 'The inventor proved that the balloon can be steered'. Not pulled by this pipeline (siarchives blocks scripts); E downloaded the scans. |
| corroborates | siarchives.si.edu | Joseph Henry, Locked Book, 22 Mar 1864 (SIA scan SIA2012-3313, supplied by E; transcript _queue/review/sourcing/e-fetched/andrews.txt): 'Yesterday met Col. Woodruff to examine Dr. S. Andrew's aerial ship. Dr. Bache, the other member of the commission, was obliged to be absent'; 'The model of the aerial ship was exhibited in the Library room of the Institution. The inventor proved that the balloon can be steered'. |
| corroborates | en.wikipedia.org | Wikipedia |
Sources
| Source | Relation | At |
|---|---|---|
| Bosley on Danny Jones - airships, Paperclip, breakaway (2026) | reports |
Claim
Solomon Andrews offered his dirigible to the federal government in September 1862, tested a prototype in 1863, and renewed the offer in August 1863 in a letter to President Lincoln. After his petition reached Congress, Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton convened a committee (Special Orders No. 119, March 16, 1864) to consider its feasibility and report to the House Military Committee. On March 21, 1864, Henry (Smithsonian) and Col. Woodruff examined a model in the Library room of the Smithsonian; Henry recorded that the inventor proved the balloon can be steered. The committee's conclusions are in a separate document (Henry Papers Doc. 220) not yet read.