Draft:John Richard Harding

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John (Jack) Richard Harding, IV was born in Nashville, Tennessee June 2, 1896. His parents were John Richard Harding, III and Roberta Chase Harding.[1] John Harding, IV was known as John Harding, Jr.[2]

John paid his own way through the Webb Preparatory School, in Bell Buckle, Tennessee and Vanderbilt School of Engineering in Nashville.[3] His education was disrupted from college when he volunteered for the Army Air Service in World War I. He rose from private to Sargent when it was discovered he was a mechanical genius. He was trained as an Air Service Master Signal Electrician and Airplane Mechanician working at the Dayton, Ohio air facility[4]. A pilot discovered his abilities, and recruited him as a back-seat mechanic, which eventually led to his commission as a 2nd Lieutenant Army pilot.[5]

Lt. John Harding was one of four Army Air Service officers that completed the first aerial circumnavigation world flight in 1924.[6] Lt. Harding was the co-pilot of the Douglas World Cruiser: New Orleans[7]. He and the other aviators were all awarded the Distinguished Service Medal, the French Legion of Honor[8] and the Japanese Order of the Sacred Treasure for the first circumnavigation of the earth by air.[9]

In 1925 John married Blondena H. Carstens of Davenport, Iowa.[10]

Lt. Harding and The First World Flight author Lowell Thomas, subsequently proceeded on an international lecture tour about the world flight. The lecture series lasted two years.[11]

John Harding went on to work as a service manager for Boeing Aircraft Company, for Pump Engineering Service Corporation[12], and founded Harding Devices Company in Dallas, Texas which manufactured aircraft components.[13]

John Richard Harding, IV died at the age of 71 in La Jolla, California.[14]





References[edit]

  1. ^ Harding, John (1925). The First World Flight (1st ed.). Boston: Boston Houghton Mifflin. p. 43. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  2. ^ Harding, John (20 December 2023). "The Tales of Smiling Jack Harding". The Contributor. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  3. ^ Harding, John (1925). The First World Flight (1st ed.). Boston: Boston Houghton Mifflin. p. 44. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  4. ^ Harding, John (1925). The First World Flight (1st ed.). Boston: Boston Houghton Mifflin. p. 45. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  5. ^ Harding, John (1925). The First World Flight (1st ed.). Boston: Boston Houghton Mifflin. p. 45. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  6. ^ Harding, John (18 August 1924). "Lieut. John Harding Here For The Holidays". The Nashville Banner. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  7. ^ Harding, John (1925). The First World Flight (1st ed.). Boston: Boston Houghton Mifflin. p. 46. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  8. ^ Harding, John (1925). The First World Flight (1st ed.). Boston: Boston Houghton Mifflin. p. 325. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  9. ^ Harding, John (12 November 1926). "Lieut. Harding, World Flier, Honored by Japs". The Tennessean. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  10. ^ Harding, John (20 December 2023). "The Tales of Smiling Jack Harding". The Contributor. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  11. ^ Harding, John (8 June 1925). "World Flier Here For Short Visit". The Nashville Banner. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  12. ^ Harding, John (14 May 1937). "Many Nashville Business Heads Converge". The Nashville Banner. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  13. ^ Harding, John (29 September 1943). "Nashville Recalls First World Flight". The Tennessean. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  14. ^ Harding, John (27 May 1968). "Globe-Girdling Pilot Dies". The Register. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
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