2001.1.14

The Tribune photo, dated November 5, 1934, has the following caption on the back:   "END OF TRAIL--thousands gathered about the U.S. Naval base at Oakland Airport to see the Lady Southern Cross as SirCharles [Lindbergh?] reunion with his Oakland relatives.  The transpacific ship was serviced and fueled for its Los Angeles hop by naval reserve men."  The photo shows the hangar with a compass arrow on its roof pointing north, and the words U.S. Navy above its open door.  Crowds of people, with their cars parked in rows at the upper left corner, are clustered around the aircraft near the hangar and a small building at left lower. 

On 12/29/2012 S.F. Tomajczyk contacted the museum via e-mail with the following note:

"I'd like to bring to the Museum's attention some information concerning two images posted on its online collection: 

Image 2001.1.14

URL: http://collections.museumca.org/?q=collection-item/2001114. 1) Contrary to what the photo caption speculates, this aircraft was not owned by Charles Lindbergh. The Lady Southern Cross was owned by Australian adventurer Sir Charles Kingsford Smith. He flew into Oakland on November 4, 1934, completing the first eastward transpacific flight from Australia to the US. (Fyi - Smith disappeared a year later over the Andaman Sea. The plane's crash site was allegedly discovered in 2009 by a television film crew.) 2) The scanned photograph is flopped. "US Navy" is printed backwards on the hangar." [NPK]

Used: Oakland Tribune