February 1, 1919 – Bustleton Field
February 10, 1919 – Belmont Park
September 20, 1919 – College Park
July 29, 1920 – Chicago
September 16, 1920 – Omaha
October 16, 1920 – Chicago
March 1, 1921 – Minneapolis
July 1, 1921 – Omaha
August 1, 1921 – Chicago
June 10, 1924 – Hazelhurst
December 16, 1924 – Hadley Field
January 1, 1925 – Maywood, Illinois
Along with Jack Knight, E. Hamilton Lee was one of the most remarkable pilots to come out of the U.S. Air Mail Service. Lee was born in Paris, Illinois on April 18, 1892. He made his first solo flight on June 16, 1916 at Ashburn Field in Chicago.
Many of the U.S. Air Mail Pilots were in love with the danger of flight, as much as the fun and excitement, and many took risks that were not part of flying the mail. Lee could certainly count himself among that crowd, until a particular incident in which he survived a crash after trying to "buzz" a group of men on a Mississippi River boat. Lee did not see wires that lined the side of one river bank, and his landing gear and one wing caught them, forcing him down. Fortunately, he survived the crash, but determined then and there to live to the credo that there are "old pilots and there are bold pilots, but there are no old, bold, pilots."
After his airmail service ended, Lee flew for United Airlines, retiring from the company in 1949. At the time of his retirement, he had flown longer and farther than any other flyer alive.
- Courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration
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