History on a Shirt
Cart 0

Knights Without Parachutes — ivy league

Ivy League officers: cost or benefit to USAF? - 1917 perspective

ivy league

Ivy League officers: cost or benefit to USAF? - 1917 perspective

Cornell University's chapter of the National Society of Scabbard and Blade likes to point out that Cornell contributed 4598 officers overall, more than any other institution, including West Point or Annapolis. This effort caused a lot of upheaval at the university, considering that in 1916 Cornell only had 4537 men enrolled.

Read more →


Can dropouts fit in with Ivy League pilots?

field kindley ivy league

Can dropouts fit in with Ivy League pilots?

Before becoming a World War 1 pilot, Field Kindley was a high school dropout and movie projectionist. Neither description had as negative career connotations then as now, but when he got into the 148th Aero Squadron, he was surrounded by fellow pilots from a very different class. According to War Bird Ace: The Great War Exploits of Capt. Field E. Kindley, Lt Springs was from Princeton, Lt Oliver was from Yale and the son of a senator, Lt Callahan was from Cornell, and the squadron commander was a Harvard quarterback. Not everyone was Ivy League, but there was almost a "college-type camaraderie." It would have been easy...

Read more →