Calbraith Perry Rodgers performed one of the greatest feats in early aviation history when he completed the first transcontinental trip by air from Sept. 17 to Nov. 5, 1911. Despite the importance of his achievement as a milestone on the path to practical applications of aero- nautics for travel, transport of goods, commerce and postal communication, it has been largely neglected by historians.

Rodgers and his Wright Model EX biplane (named by Orville Wright as short for “exhibition racer”) are missing not only from school textbooks, but even from The History of Air Cargo and Airmail from the 18th Century by Camille Allaz, a seminal 400-page volume published in 2004, “the most comprehensive refer- ence available on this subject [which] will become an indispensable aid to anyone involved or interested in aviation or postal history,” according to the publisher.

Here Linn’s will recount the heroic and ultimately tragic story that historians ought to tell about Rodgers’ flight, illustrated by collectible keepsakes that are prized by both airmail and picture postcard hobbyists who compete to possess them.