William Boeing and Eddie Hubbard deliver the first shipment of international airmail on March 3, 1919.

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On March 3, 1919, Willam E. Boeing (1881-1956) and Eddie Hubbard (1889-1928) deliver the first bag of international U.S. Air Mail. The men flew a Boeing-built C-700 seaplane for the demonstration trip from Vancouver, B.C., to Seattle’s Lake Union, and Hubbard later won the contract for regular service.

Like Boeing, Eddie Hubbard had taken his first flight with daredevil Terah Maroney and earned his license from Boeing’s Pacific Aero Club. William Boeing was not initially interested in air mail, but he changed his mind as his company’s military orders dwindled after the end of World War I.

Following this first successful flight, Hubbard purchased a Boeing-built B-I seaplane for routine air mail service between Victoria, B.C., and Seattle. He later prevailed on Boeing to compete for the Chicago-San Francisco route, and thereby planted the seed for Boeing’s future dominance in air transport.

Sources:
Peter M. Bowers, Boeing Aircraft Since 1916 (London: Putnam Aeronautical Books, 1993), 44-51; Jim Brown, Hubbard, The Forgotten Boeing Aviator (Seattle: Peanut Butter Publishing, 1996), 1-39; Boeing Historical Archives, Year By Year, 75 Years of Boeing History, 1916-1991 (Seattle: Boeing Co., 1991), 3.
Note: This file was revised and corrected on August 13, 2002. An earlier version misstated that Hubbard's airmail service linked Seattle and Vancouver, rather than Seattle and Victoria.

By Walt Crowley, November 23, 1998

Eddie Hubbard and William Boeing (right) arrive at Lake Union with first bag of international airmail, March 3, 1919
Courtesy Boeing Archives