by Susan Couso
Our neighbor to the north, Modoc County, has a lot in common with Lassen County. The climate, wildlife and the people are the same, and the sparsely populated county faces the same problems of being isolated from the rest of California. But those tough Modocians have always tried to keep up with the rest of the world, and when airplanes began to soar overhead it sparked the idea that this new mode of transportation could help shorten the long trips to just about anywhere.
They decided to build an airport in Alturas and those early flyers were ecstatic. In 1931 they held a huge celebration to let the rest of the world know that Modoc County was ready to greet them.
The celebration was dubbed the Alturas Air Rodeo, and the event promoters headed by Tex Frolich worked diligently to bring the best flyers and entertainment to their little ‘neck of the woods’ on August 22nd, 23rd and 24th. The air show’s theme was, “The Bronc Grows Wings”, and it was sponsored by the American Legion and the United Civic Organizations of Modoc County. The final day of the event would include the dedication of the new Laird Field.
The idea of combining a rodeo with an air show was intriguing, and the Air Rodeo replaced the Alturas rodeo which had become an annual event for many years. But this was a modern world and modern ideas needed to be promoted. The Air Rodeo showed that the old and new could not just coexist but work together.
By August 21st all was ready and the celebrities and participants began to arrive. Ten special state traffic officers were brought in to help with the mass of automobiles rushing towards the airfield.
The governors of Nevada, Idaho and Oregon attended, as well as George MacReady, twice holder of the world’s altitude record in his Lockheed racer. McReady was considered to be the Army’s best test pilot.
Also attending were Roy N. Francis, superintendent of the San Francisco Airport and the first Army flight instructor, as well as Guy Turner, superintendent of the Oakland Airport and former All-American Football player and Emery Bronte, co-pilot on the first commercial flight from the mainland to Hawaii.
Standard Oil executives flew in aboard their Boing plane while the Shell Oil executives flew their Lockheed. Associated, and Texas oil companies sent their representatives and airplanes, and the Union Oil company brought a sound system so that the festivities could be heard by all. The Union plane also carried several Hollywood movie stars.
The list continues on with celebrities, politicians and dignitaries galore, and the Army and Navy delighted the crowd with their fleets of aircraft, including the Navy Vought Corsairs.
Fred McKinley flew George Hearst’s (San Francisco Examiner publisher) big tri-motor Stinson cabin plane, filled with California Governor James Rolph’s representatives. The Stinson was the largest in the show.
On the 22nd, the show began with acrobatic flying demonstrations, crowning of the Rodeo Queen, Barbara McGrath, a carnival, a street dance, and numerous other contests and events, even a miniature golf game at the Oasis Grove.
On the 23rd, in the midst of the celebration, two of Mr. Hearst’s guests decided to fly to Reno to try to induce Jack Dempsey, retired world heavyweight champion boxer, to come to Alturas. The two men asked Fred McKinley to fly them to Reno. Miss Barbara McGrath, 25-year-old telephone operator, and now Rodeo Queen was given a flight as part of her ‘queenship’, and she chose this one.
Hearst’s Stinson carrying pilot Fred McKinley, Queen Barbara McGrath, and the two men flew to Reno where the two male passengers deplaned.
On the return trip, with only McKinley and McGrath aboard, a problem arose. Barbara McGrath said that McKinley landed the plane in a field near the town of Likely and tried to assault her. She managed to escape the plane and ran across the field looking for help. But McKinley followed, taxiing the plane behind her. She finally gave up, got back inside the plane, and they flew on to Alturas.
After landing, McKinley prepared to fly again, but McGrath alerted her father, a well-known local businessman, and he had a warrant sworn for McKinley’s arrest.
McKinley was arrested by City Marshal Pat McHugh and securely placed in the jail.
Lassen County District Attorney Grover Julian was attending the show, and when he heard of the alleged assault he returned to Susanville and obtained a warrant for McKinley’s arrest. Julian and Lassen County Sheriff Raker returned to Alturas to take custody of the 35-year-old pilot who was then taken to Susanville and placed in the Lassen County Jail.
On Monday, a relief pilot was flown in to take the dignitaries and the Stinson back to San Francisco.
In Alturas the show continued with a small smudge on an otherwise perfect celebration. It was now Sunday, the final day of the planned games and demonstrations and the dedication of Laird Field. The show was to end with a spectacular parachute jump.
One sensational final event was the race between the cowboys and the airplanes. There were to be three airplanes, each with a pilot and a cowboy. They would circle the field, swoop low to land, and the cowboys would leap from the plane, run to their horses and then race the planes to the ‘finish line’.
When E.E. Moulton, aircraft inspector for Northern California heard of the scheme, he emphatically refused to allow it. It was terribly dangerous. The promoters pleaded with him, explaining that they had already advertised the event with flyers and charged admission. Finally, Moulton relented, but only allowing one airplane.
So, the first cowboy, Charles Russell climbed aboard the plane. The pilot flew perfectly and offered a smooth landing. Russell climbed out onto the wing, jumped off and tripped and fell to the ground, narrowly missing the whirling propeller. Airplane 1, cowboys 0.
The plane took off again with the second cowboy, who upon landing hurriedly stepped out onto the wing and put his foot through the fabric covering the framework of the wing. Airplane 2, cowboys 0.
The third and final attempt to show the talent of the cowboys rested upon the shoulders of eighteen-year-old Ralph Leonard. Leonard was ready. The pilot again provided a perfect landing. Leonard climbed from the plane, stood on the wing, and took a giant lunge forward, headfirst into the spinning propeller. Airplane 3, cowboys 0.
In front of thousands of people, dignitaries, politicians, celebrities, and regular citizens including delicate women and small children, Ralph Leonard was almost completely decapitated.
Thus ended the 1931 Alturas Air Rodeo.
But, in Susanville, Fred McKinley’s trial was the center of discussion. McKinley’s brother paid $1,500 bond to get his sibling released. Papers were filed with County Clerk Maud Toombs, and the court case, after several delays, including the plaintiff’s illness, went to trial on October 29th, with Hardin Barry and Ben Curler representing McKinley.
The trial was held behind closed doors, not even reporters were allowed in. But some information had already come out during previous legal procedures. McKinley claimed that he had been flying back to Alturas from Reno when Miss McGrath complained of being sick. He landed the Stinson on the dry lakebed of Honey Lake. At first, she refused to get back aboard the plane, but then relented and he flew on to Alturas.
During the trial, Barbara McGrath asked that the case be dismissed, saying that it was too difficult for her, but Judge Harry D. Burroughs declined her request.
At the end of the day a jury of eight men and four women returned a verdict of ‘not guilty’, after an hour and a half deliberation. And Fred McKinley was a free man, probably never intending to set foot in Northeastern California again.
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