Aviation meet postal card
The Post Office Department granted permission for mail to be flown at the Santa Rosa, California, Driving Park Aviation Meet on May 17 and May 18, 1913, as Route No. 676,003. Due to high winds, the meet was canceled on May 17, but the following day, aviator Thaddeus Kearns flew a pouch of mail a distance of about two miles and dropped it to postal officials at a point near the post office. No mail is known for May 17. A total of 493 pieces were handled on May 18.
The circular postmark on this cover, addressed to Alvon Kenneth Gammon, San Francisco, California, is one of those applied on May 18, 1913. It reads, "AEROPLANE MAIL SERVICE / Santa Rosa, Cal. / MAY 18, 1913 / Aviation Field Substation." No time is included. The magenta postmark cancels the 2-cent Panama-Pacific Exposition issue, released in 1913. It features an image of the Panama Canal's Pedro Miguel Locks.
