Thomas Selfridge
| Thomas Etholen Selfridge | |
|---|---|
Lieutenant Thomas Selfridge (1882-1908)
|
|
| Born |
February 8, 1882 San Francisco, California |
| Died | September 17, 1908 (aged 26) Fort Myer, Virginia |
| Buried at | Arlington National Cemetery |
| Allegiance |
 United States of America
|
| Service/branch |
 United States Army
|
| Years of service | 1903 - 1908 |
| Rank | First Lieutenant |
| Unit | Aeronautical Division, U.S. Signal Corps |
| Relations |
Thomas O. Selfridge Sr. (Grandfather) Thomas Oliver Selfridge, Jr. (Uncle) |
Thomas Etholen Selfridge (February 8, 1882 – September 17, 1908) was a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army. He became the first person to die in the crash of a powered airplane as a passenger on a demonstration flight piloted by Orville Wright.
Selfridge was born on February 8, 1882 in San Francisco, California. He was the grandson of Rear Admiral Thomas Oliver Selfridge Sr. He graduated from United States Military Academy in 1903 and received his commission in the Artillery Corps. He was 31st in a class of 96; Douglas MacArthur was first. In 1907, when the Artillery Corps was separated into the Field Artillery and Coast Artillery Corps, Selfridge was assigned to the 5th Field Artillery Regiment and the following year to the 1st Field Artillery Regiment.
In 1906 Selfridge, a native San Franciscan, was stationed at the Presidio during the great earthquake in April. His unit participated in search and rescue as well as clean up. In 1907 he was assigned to the Aeronautical Division, U.S. Signal Corps at Fort Myer, Virginia. There, he was one of three pilots trained to fly the Army Dirigible Number One, purchased in July, 1908 from Thomas Scott Baldwin. He was also the United States government representative to the Aerial Experiment Association, which was chaired by Alexander Graham Bell, and became its first secretary.
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