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Photographs

Observation Balloon

Image

A World War I observation balloon held Gulliver-like by its airship company. During World War I, balloons were positioned near the front so that observers in the gondola could see troop movements and calculate the effectiveness of artillery.

Date Created:
circa 1910-1919

Publication Information

Date Created circa 1910-1919

Physical Description

Format Image
Extent 1 photograph
Dimensions 3.25 x 2.25 i

Collection Information

Source Collection Alvin C. Reis papers, 1918-1956
Call Number PH 3492
Catalog Record https://search.library.wisc.edu/catalog/999465025102121
Finding Aid https://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-mss00624

Copyright Information

Copyright Status NO COPYRIGHT - UNITED STATES
Rights Holder Wisconsin Historical Society
Unique ID
W011NWD
Legacy ID
WHi 10794

Image

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For a credit line: Wisconsin Historical Society, Creator, Title, Unique Identifier. 

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Balloon Gondola

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The gondola crew of a World War I observation balloon that is about to ascend. Observation balloons were positioned near the front so that men in the gondola could observe troop movements and calcu...

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Alvin Reis

Alvin Reis

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A portrait of Alvin C. Reis of Madison during his service in World War I. During the war, Reis commanded several observation balloon squadrons. Later, he became a Dane County Circuit Court judge.

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Sopwith Camels

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Two Sopwith Camels, somewhere in France. This image is from the photo collection of Alvin Reis of Madison. He made many wartime photos into lantern slides to illustrate his public lectures about Wo...

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Breguet 14

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A view from below of a Breguet 14, a French observation plane that could also be used as a light bomber. When functioning as a bomber, the pilot was the bombardier and the co-pilot manned the machi...

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Observation Balloon

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A training ascension of a captive observation balloon. During their training, soldiers learned how to correctly estimate the effectiveness of artillery on enemy positions.

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Zeppelin Flyover

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An airship flying over the celebration of the opening of the "Iron Hindenburg" monument in Berlin.

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