Witness # |
Witness Type |
Name |
Witness Age |
Genl Location |
Specific Location |
Time |
Weather |
Description |
Witness Background |
Special Quals |
Date came fwd |
Source |
1 |
Hear |
Miss Julia Day |
unk |
Old Perlican |
none specified |
"At about the same time" as other Harbour Grace area witnesses |
not specified |
"Notified the superintendent of the system that she heard an airplane." |
Government telegraph operator at Old Perlican |
|
May 12 1927 |
NYT May 13, 1927; pg 1 col. 1 |
2 |
See |
Arthur Doyle |
45 |
Gull Island |
in his garden on hill about 200 feet MSL, ten minutes from his home |
5/9/27
9:20 |
none specified |
Heard the airplane. Looking toward the sound saw large white airplane coming in off the Atlantic Ocean between Bacalieu and where I stood. |
|
two nephews at brother's house nearby saw same thing |
July 3 1927 |
NYT, July 4, 1927 |
3 |
See |
Leo Doyle |
21 |
Gull Island |
working in front of his home |
5/9/27
9:15 AM |
none specified |
Heard plane coming from east northeast. It passed a little to the west of him over his uncle's farm. |
|
|
July 3 1927 |
NYT, July 4, 1927 |
4 |
See |
William J. Doyle |
19 |
Gull Island |
leaving for school |
5/9/27
9:20 |
none specified |
Just leaving door of my house. Leo called to me to look at the airplane then diectly over my head or just to the west of us. It was going very fast and must have been 1,000 feet high. |
Brother of Leo Doyle |
|
July 3 1927 |
NYT, July 4, 1927 |
5 |
See |
Maurice Oliver |
9 |
Gull Island |
The house in the country where Arthur Doyle was working |
none specified |
none specified |
Called his mother to see the big white bird and they both watched it go out of sight. |
|
|
July 3 1927 |
NYT, July 4, 1927 |
6 |
Hear |
Patrick O'Brien |
30 |
Harbour Grace |
Watering his cattle a few hundred yards from his home on St. Jetton's Hill northwest of Harbour Grace |
"Between 9:30 and 10:00 o'clock Monday morning" |
"Dull and hazy with poor visibility. Wind from NW. Clouds so low not possible to see hills 3 miles away." |
"Distinctly heard aircraft passing overhead the sound was something to the northwest." Heard "working of propellers." After two minutes was lost in southwesterly direction. |
farmer living on hill above Harbour Grace |
Heard Handley Page in 1919 |
May 11 1927 |
NYT May 13, 1927; pg 1 col. 1 and pg 2. col. 1 |
7 |
Hear |
John Stapleton |
71 |
Harbour Grace |
"working in a field near the cable station with Patrick Moriarity" |
none specified but implication about same as other HG witnesses |
none specified |
"heard the noise and looked up thinking the machine was in sight because the sound was so clear." |
former fisherman and former "battery man" with Imperial Cable Co. |
|
May 11 1927 but after O'Brien |
NYT May 13, 1927; pg 1 col. 1 |
8 |
Hear |
Patrick Moriarity |
19 |
Harbour Grace |
with Stapleton |
same as Stapleton |
none specified |
Stapleton said the kid heard it too. |
working with John Stapleton |
|
same as Stapleton |
NYT May 13, 1927; pg 1 col. 1 |
9 |
Hear |
Ebenezer Peddle |
56 |
Bears Cove |
working in a field near their house, about 2 miles from O'Brien's |
soon after 9:30 Monday morning |
Hazy |
Heard a strange noise above them which they thought was an airplane. Original report said Peddle senior saw plane but later corrected. Only James saw plane. |
|
|
May 14 1927 when came into Harbour Grace to do weekly marketing |
NYT May 15, 1927; pg 1 col. 6 |
10 |
Hear |
Mrs. Lily Hinton |
unk |
Harbour Grace |
in a room in her house with windows open (NYT) In her kitchen (Evening Telegram) |
between 9 and 11 o'clock Monday morning (Evening Telegram of St. John's 5/12/27) |
none specified |
Ran to window, saw nothing "How absurd to expect airplane here" (NYT). Passed in a northerly direction. (Evening Telegram) |
Wife of Imperial Cable Co. manager at Harbour Grace |
lived near seaplane base in England during war |
May 11 1927 (implied) |
NYT May 13, 1927; pg 1 col. 1 |
11 |
See |
James Peddle |
18 |
Harbour Grace |
Working on cottage road not far from Handley Page aerodrome |
Soon after 9:30 Monday morning |
Hazy |
Heard sounds of a plane coming out from the northeast direction toward the island of Bacelieu. "About two minutes afterward I saw what I am positive was an airplane of white color coming over from the northeast bearing." |
Laborer, son of Ebenezer Peddle |
Familiar with Handley Page |
May 14 1927 |
NYT May 15, 1927; pg 1 col. 6 |
12 |
Hear |
Mrs. Margaret Whittle |
unk |
Harbour Grace |
Mrs. Hinton's house in Harbour Grace |
same as Mrs. Hinton |
none specified |
Heard a loud noise "What can they be doing upstairs." |
Charwoman (cleaning lady) at Mrs.Hinton's house |
|
May 11 1927 (implied) |
NYT May 13, 1927; pg 2 col. 1 |
13 |
Hear |
Mrs. Elizabeth Munn |
unk |
Harbour Grace |
feeding her chickens in the garden |
between 9:30 and 10:00 o'clock (Evening Telegram 5/12/27) |
none specified |
Heard the noise. Sure it was an airplane. So violent it frightened chickens (NYT) "passing away to the northwest" (Evening Telegram) |
Wife of Robert Munn, a merchant in Harbour Grace |
|
May 11 1927 (implied) |
NYT May 13, 1927; pg 2 col. 1 |
14 |
Hear |
Mrs. Samuel Stevenson |
unk |
Stevenson's Village |
in her yard with her chickens |
Monday morning |
air was thick with fog |
Heard what she took to be the noise of an airplane. Scared the chickens. |
none given |
|
prior to May 13, 1927 |
Evening Telegram, May 18, 1927 |
15 |
See |
Mrs. Ann Kelly |
70 |
Otterbury |
1.5 miles from O'Brien's place, in her garden working with poultry |
Monday morning between 9:30 and 10:00 o'clock |
none specified |
Heard "queer loud noise overhead," and saw "two large white birds going southward" |
none specified |
familiar with Handley Page |
May 14 1927 |
NYT May 15, 1927; pg 1 col. 6 |
16 |
unclear |
"several people" |
|
Brigus district |
unk |
none specified |
none specified |
Several people reported that an aeroplane had passed over, after which they heard several loud explosions |
|
|
prior to June 9, 1927 |
Cotton report |
17 |
unclear |
"several people" |
|
Ocean Pond |
unk |
none specified |
none specified |
Several people reported that an aeroplane had passed over, after which they heard several loud explosions |
|
|
prior to June 9, 1927 |
Cotton report |
18 |
See |
John Dobbin |
unk |
St.Mary's |
Hill east of St. Mary's cutting wood& |
none specified |
none specified |
Saw flash of light like reflection off windshield and smoke (white?) from aircraft on Red Head on fire. More detail from Yetman interviews. |
Carpenter who worked for James Crawley of Holyrood |
|
June 17 1927 |
Cotton diary |
19 |
See |
"witnesses" |
unk |
St. Mary's |
unk |
none specified |
none specified |
"Machine on fire on Red Head" |
character verified by magistarate and priest |
|
June 17 1927 |
Cotton diary |