Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials.

Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction .

Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form: http://bit.ly/scuapublication . Please contact Special Collections and University Archives (specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Alfred W. Lawson Collection, 1913, 1948, n.d., Ms2023-053, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Source of Acquisition

The Alfred W. Lawson Collection was donated to Special Collections and University Archives in October 2015.

Processing Information

The processing, arrangement, and description of the Alfred W. Lawson Collection was completed in June 2023.

The processing, arrangement, and description of this collection was created as part of the project, "Piercing the Veil: Creating Access to the Archives of American Aerospace Exploration at Virginia Tech," funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) from 2022 to 2024.

Biographical Note

Alfred William Lawson was born on March 24, 1869, in London, England, to Robert Henry Lawson and Mary Anderson Lawson. Before starting his aviation career, Lawson played professional baseball in the United States, playing for the Boston Beaneaters and Pittsburgh Alleghenys before being sent down to the minor leagues. Lawson's playing career lasted until 1885, but he later managed in the minor leagues from 1905 to 1907.

Lawson began his aviation career in 1908 when he started the magazine Fly , later renamed to Aircraft . In 1917, he founded the Lawson Aircraft Corporation. Lawson's aviation career ended in 1928 after having trobles securing funding for his ideas. After leaving the field of aviation, Lawson turned to the fields of economics and philosophy.

Lawson died on November 29, 1954.

Scope and Content

This collection contains materials relating to Alfred W. Lawson, a professional baseball player and aviator. Documents relate to the Lawson C-2 Airliner. This collection also conatains a copy of the Benefactor Newspaper from 1948 and a copy of Aircraft magazine from 1913. An undated copy from "Who's Who In American Aeronautics" provides some biographical information about Lawson. There is also an oversize copy of sheet music for the song "The Airline March ".

Arrangement

This collection is arranged by material type.

Related Material

The Wisconsin Historical Society, Division of Library, Archives, and Museum Collections maintains the Alfred W. Lawson Books and Ephemera, M2003-104; M2005-041; M2011-085; M2012-058; M2014-011.

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Libraries, Archives Department maintains the George Hardie Papers, UWM Manuscript Collection 65, which contain materials related to Alfred Lawson and the Lawson Airline Company.

Separated Material

The following items were transferred to the Rare Book Collection:

Lawson, Alfred. Aircraft History Detroit, Michigan: Humanity Benefactor Foundation, 1947.

Lawson, Alfred. Historical Documents Aircraft History Detroit, Michigan: Humanity Benefactor Foundation, 1982.

Lawson, Alfred. Fly: The National Aeronautic Magazine Vol. 1 Seattle, Washington: Superior Publishing Company, 1971.

Unknown. Lawson: Aircraft Industry Builder Detroit, Michigan: Humanity Benefactor Foundation, n. d.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Aeronautics
• Archives of American Aerospace Exploration (AAAE)
• Lawson, Alfred W. (Alfred William), 1869-1954
• Science and Technology

Rights Statement for Archival Description

The guide to the Alfred W. Lawson Collection by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 ( https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/ ).