ELREY BORGE JEPPESEN

Elrey B. Jeppesen (Source: NASM)

 

Elrey Jeppesen landed once at Santa Monica, Tuesday, August 13, 1929 at 9:30AM. Photograph, right, from his NASM biographical file (left sidebar), is his official United Airlines portrait. He flew a Travel Air B-4000, S/N 1177, he identified as NC631H. He carried one unidentified passenger. They arrived from Wichita, KS and identified their destination as Cleveland, OH.

We can guess who the passenger was. If you take a look at page six of the Register for August 13th. Jeppesen's name is signed in the pilot column five lines from the bottom of the page, and it is misspelled "Jeppson." In the airplane owner column is signed Mary von Mach (also misspelled "von Mack," suggesting someone other than they signed them in). There is an ampersand between the two names implying that Jeppesen was with her. It is not possible to determine if Mary was the pilot and Jeppeson the passenger or vice versa. Significantly, Jeppesen was signed in the Davis-Monthan Airfield Register just two days later, with the same airplane.

This confuses things, but try to follow my thinking. If you look at three landings by NC631H, one at Clover Field on the 13th and two at Davis-Monthan on the 15th, it was flown from Wichita, KS to Santa Monica by Jeppesen on August 13, 1929. It appears that he then flew from Clover Field to Portland, OR between the 13th and 15th. He returned south from Portland through Tucson on the 15th where he met von Mach who had arrived from Detroit, MI. Together they flew to Santa Monica where von Mach departed for the first Women's Derby of the 1929 National Air Races, headed for Cleveland, OH. The most confusing thing is that von Mach was mentioned in the Clover Field Register on the 13th. Her mention may not mean that she was actually present in the airplane. Rather it was a mention in anticipation of her departure on the 15th with NC631H.

Nevertheless, Jeppesen was born in Lake Arthur, LA on January 28, 1907.  He was a young man when he landed at Santa Monica and had only been a pilot for about six years or so so before he signed in at Clover Field. The 1910 U.S. Census, his first, placed him at age 3 living with his father and mother in a farming area in Hood River County, OR. He had an older brother, Edward (16; 1894-1980). His father's occupation was coded as "Farmer" and Edward worked with him as a farm laborer.

The 1920 Census placed him (12) living with his parents in Multnomah County, OR. Brother Edward was no longer with them. His father was now employed as a "Carpenter" building houses.

Jeppesen married Nadine Audrey Liscomb (1914-1996) on September 24, 1936 in Dunlap, IA. Their marriage license is below.

E.B. Jeppesen & Nadine A. Liscomb Marriage Certificate, September 24, 1936 (Source: ancestry.com)

The 1939 city directory for Salt Lake City, UT placed him and Nadine living at 1919 Yale Avenue, Salt Lake City. That address today is a large, brick home with a detached garage. The 1940 Census placed Jeppesen at age 33 living at the same address. For some reason, Nadine (25) was identified in 1940 as "Maria" by the census-taker. They had a son identified as Jimmy (1) living with them, as well as their maid, Pauline Bonecker (22). Jeppesen was coded as a "Pilot" for the "Airlines." He earned $5,000 per year, a substantial salary for 1940.

In 1930, Jeppesen began collecting navigational information and publishing his results as charts for fellow pilots. Details of his charting business can be found at his Davis-Monthan Airfield link, above. Nadine played a significant part in Jeppesen's successful business. Her contributions were captured in a short biographical statement that appeared at findagrave.com, below. I left the sources intact (the airportjournals.com link is inoperative as of the upload date of this page). The small photograph is from the wai.org link.

"Not surprisingly, Jeppesen had little time for the ladies—until he met Nadine Liscomb, a United Airlines stewardess working the Boeing 247 he was flying from Chicago to Omaha. He called for coffee, and when she entered the cockpit, both were smitten almost instantly.  "I ordered coffee, but I got Nadine," Jeppesen often joked.  They married on Sept. 24, 1936, beginning a love affair and true partnership that would last 60 years. The young couple grew their fledgling chart business and their family, first living in Cheyenne, Wyo., and later, Salt Lake City, Utah. Jeppesen continued to fly for United, while they ran the business from their home. In 1941, he transferred to Denver, and the company moved into a storefront on East Colfax Avenue." Source: Baird, Cary. (2007, Feb). New Book Marks Jeppesen's 100th Birthday. Retrieved from: http://www.airportjournals.com/ Display.cfm?varID=0702007 **************** "Nadine (Liscomb) Jeppesen- A former United Airlines stewardess, who met legendary Elrey B. Jeppesen on a United flight from Chicago to Omaha when he ordered coffee and both were smitten for life. They married 9/24/1936 and had a 60-year partnership in building the world famous Jeppesen "Black book" Airway Manual. They moved to Colorado in 1941, where Nadine managed the storefront Jeppesen Flight Chart store on East Colfax Avenue while Elrey continued flying for United. Nadine hired cartographers, helped design and write copy for promotional materials. She continued to work as secretary/treasurer for the company until the Times Mirror Corporation bought the world-famous Jeppesen Company in 1961. Nadine Jeppesen was awarded the 1994 National Aeronautic Association Katharine Wright Award and in 1995 was inducted into the Women in Aviation Pioneer Hall of Fame."  Source: http://www.wai.org/pioneers

A separate biographical statement for Jeppesen from findagrave.com is below.

Aviation Pioneer. In 1923, he made his first solo flight, bought his first plane and dropped out of high school to join a flying circus. Orville Wright signed his first pilot's license in 1928. He began compiling information on landmarks, elevations of obstructions and runways. He developed procedures for routes, approach and missed approach to be used during poor visibility. He began selling these to fellow pilots for $10 in the 1930's. While working for United Airlines, he continued to develop flight manuals. The United States Navy used his "Jepp Charts" as its standard flight manual during World War II. After the war, the new United States Air Force and many commercial airlines contracted for his flight manuals and navigation charts. The company he started, Jeppesen, continues to produce manuals that are used worldwide and by every commercial pilot within the United States. The Denver International Airport main terminal is named for him, and he is a member of the International Aerospace Hall of Fame.

E.B. Jeppesen, Grave Marker, November 26, 1996 (Source: findagrave.com)

 

Jeppesen flew West on November 26, 1996 from Englewood, Arapaho County, CO, following Nadine by about four months. He was 89 years old. Their grave marker is above, right. They were married 60 years. His full biography is at the link southeast of here in Tucson with more photographs and additional information about his navigational charting business.

Dossier 2.1.104

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