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192:(NASA). He was a keen observer of atmospheric phenomena encouraging others to look skyward to see the optical effects of clouds, raindrops, and ice crystals. He painted still lives and landscapes. He wrote books and articles on topics ranging from Long Island Craftsmen to Shadow Bands and Searchlights. His lectures to local groups on these topics were very popular. In his eighties and nineties he embarked on an "uncollecting" program in which he gave antiques to the
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Preston R. Bassett, from a photo that depicted the final meeting of the
National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) on August 21, 1958. T. Keith Glennan (to the left of Bassett in the original) was sworn in as the first Administrator of NASA, and was seen here speaking to Preston R. Bassett
74:. He married Jeanne Reed Mordorf in 1919 and had four children. Jeanne Reed Mordorf was born November 1, 1893, in Trenton, NJ, graduated from Vassar College in 1915. They were married in Brooklyn May 24, 1919. Their home from 1925 to 1952 was 104 Broadway,
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for his whole career, where he rose from research engineer (1914) to Chief
Engineer (1929), Vice-President in Charge of Engineering (1932), General Manager (1944), and President (1945-1956). He was also Vice President of the merged
32:(center—cropped to show him only), member of the NACA Committee on Aerodynamics, and Charles J. McCarthy (who was on Bassett's right), Chairman of the Board of Chance Vought Aircraft, Inc. Original photo can be seen at
172:(1964-1975). He served as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn (1952-1961). He was a director of Abilities, Inc., a company that employed the handicapped. He was a fellow of the
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use arc light and gyroscope technology to measure the speed of light at Mount Wilson in June, 1924. He also developed the first soundproofing systems for airplanes and worked closely with Sperry founder
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164:(1968-1972). He served as Vice President of the Society for the Preservation of Long Island Antiquities (1962-1972) and
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Early
Contributions to Aviation Online Course, including (in Session 3) Bassett's role in blind flying and searchlights
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in 1913-1914. He received two honorary degrees, an M.A. and a D.Sc., from
Amherst College, and an honorary LLD from
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95:(1950-1957). He held 35 patents awarded between 1920 and 1937, including several for improved high-intensity
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42:(March 20, 1892 – April 30, 1992) was an inventor, engineer, and pioneer in instruments for aviation.
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US Patent search page, search for
Preston and Bassett in Inventor name, 1790-present
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Bassett, Preston R with
Margaret F. Bartlett; illustrated by Jim Arnosky.
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The
Bulletin of the Antiquarian and Landmarks Society of Connecticut,
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Bassett, Preston R. Sperry's Forty Years in the
Progress of Science.
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Interview with
Preston R. Bassett on Motion Pictures and Blind Flying
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on several flight instruments based on gyroscopes, especially the
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184:, and Institute of Aeronautical Sciences. He was a member of the
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Bassett, Preston R. Passenger
Comfort in Air Transportation.
278:(24 pp, Columbia University: Oral History Project, July 1980)
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Michelson and the Speed of Light, Biography of a Scientist
152:(1947), Nassau Historical Society (1947-1954), Friends of
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Bassett's many interests in addition to aviation included
301:(244 pp, Uniondale, New York: Salisbury Printers, 1969)
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Bassett, Preston R. The Local Potters of Long Island.
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Bassett, Preston R. Long Island, Cradle of Aviation.
188:(NACA) from 1954 to 1958, when it became the present
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https://www.flickr.com/photos/nasa_appel/4525536545/
304:Bassett, Preston R. Shadow Bands and Searchlights.
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American Association for the Advancement of Science
182:American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
287:(197 pp, Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1960)
252:The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography
190:National Aeronautics and Space Administration
140:collecting, early technology, and history of
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346:Bassett, Preston R. The Silver Betty Lamp.
186:National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics
350:Vol. XXXVI, No 1, pp 9–10, February, 1970.
294:(40 pp., New York: Four Winds Press, 1981)
339:Bassett, Preston R. Towns in the Ridges.
62:was his sister. He received an A.B. from
399:Fellows of the American Physical Society
322:Amityville, NY, pp 1–42, November, 1950.
308:Vol. XXXIII, No 4, pp 1–5, April, 1925.
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297:Bassett, Preston R; Arthur L. Hodges.
343:Vol. XVII, No 1, pp 6–10, July, 1965.
246:Life and Times of Preston R. Bassett.
166:New York State Historical Association
58:and Annie Preston Bassett. Geologist
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226:"History of the Bassett Planetarium"
336:Vol. 1, No 1, pp 1–14, March, 1965.
50:Preston Rogers Bassett was born in
327:Sperry Scope Corporate Newsletter,
248:(privately published, April, 1976)
150:Institute of Aeronautical Sciences
128:in 1929 using Sperry instruments.
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68:Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn
299:The History of Rockville Centre.
394:20th-century American inventors
389:20th-century American engineers
124:) was made by aviation pioneer
315:Vol. 2, pp 48–50, March, 1935.
254:(New York, J. T. White: 1892-)
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313:Journal Aeronautical Science,
384:American aerospace engineers
148:. He was President of the
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379:American men centenarians
174:American Physical Society
156:Village (1966-1970), and
66:in 1913 and attended the
334:The Long Island Courant,
204:, Old Bethpage Village,
160:Preservation Society in
88:Sperry Gyroscope Company
194:Smithsonian Institution
162:Ridgefield, Connecticut
86:Bassett worked for the
54:, son of urban planner
364:Amherst College alumni
99:used in anti-aircraft
40:Preston Rogers Bassett
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170:Cooperstown, New York
60:Isabel Bassett Wasson
56:Edward Murray Bassett
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244:Bassett, Preston R.
114:Elmer Ambrose Sperry
76:Rockville Centre, NY
132:Later life and work
109:Albert A. Michelson
320:Long Island Forum,
306:Popular Astronomy,
122:instrument landing
93:Sperry Corporation
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18:Preston R. Bassett
292:Raindrop stories.
228:. Amherst College
198:Henry Ford Museum
97:carbon arc lights
52:Buffalo, New York
16:(Redirected from
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206:Farmers' Museum
202:Mead Art Museum
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64:Amherst College
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154:Old Bethpage
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107:. He helped
101:searchlights
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374:1992 deaths
369:1892 births
146:New England
142:Long Island
118:gyrocompass
358:Categories
232:2008-05-09
212:References
46:Biography
138:antique
329:1950.
144:and
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