Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
Marshall Cohen—researcher and producer, CNN
Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
BEACHEY, Lincoln
BEACHEY, Lincoln. (San Francisco, CA, Mar. 3, 1887-San Francisco, CA, Mar. 1915). "The Flying Fool." One of America's most daring aviators in the early 1900s, Beachey arrived in Dubuque in September 1911, for a performance at NUTWOOD PARK. Already known for his breathtaking plunge into the Niagara Falls gorge and flight beneath its suspension bridge, Beachey raced and easily beat several local motorcyclists on the first day of his demonstration. A crowd estimated at 25,000, the largest in Nutwood history, watched the aerial daredevil the following day as he plunged his plane toward the earth, only to pull out of the dive at the last minute to soar again into the sky.
Beachey returned to Dubuque in July 1912. He introduced airmail service to the city by flying postmarked cards and letters from Nutwood to 33rd and Jackson STREETS where they were then carried by a post office wagon.
During a performance in August 1914, Beachey demonstrated inverted flight and "loop the loop" flying to the local audience. Doing similar stunts during the Panama-Pacific Exposition in 1915, the wing of the monoplane ripped off causing Beachey to plunge out of control to his death in San Francisco Bay.