MS-165: Peter B
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MS-165: Peter B. Kline Papers Collection Number: MS-165 Title: Peter B. Kline Papers Dates: 1822-1986 (bulk 1917-1986) Creator: Kline, Peter B., 1918-1986 Summary/Abstract: The Peter B. Kline Papers is a large collection of files and information on a wide variety of aviation subjects. Kline was an Aeronautical Engineer at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and a collector of aviation materials. The collection contains clippings, journal articles, photographs, mechanical specifications, illustrations, and miscellaneous information about particular aircraft. The papers also includes technical manuals, correspondence with other aviation collectors and book dealers, information on aircraft and military insignia, aviation ephemera, scrapbooks, and a small amount of family and personal papers. Quantity/Physical Description: 20 linear feet Language(s): English Repository: Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, Wright State University, Dayton, OH 45435-0001, (937) 775-2092 Restrictions on Access: There are no restrictions on accessing material in this collection. Restrictions on Use: Copyright restrictions may apply. Unpublished manuscripts are protected by copyright. Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository and the copyright holder. Preferred Citation: [Description of item, Date, Box #, Folder #], MS-165, Peter B. Kline Papers, Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio. Acquisition: The Peter B. Kline Papers were accessioned by Wright State University Archives and Special Collections in 1986. Other Finding Aid: The finding aid is available on the Special Collections & Archives, Wright State University Libraries web site at https://www.libraries.wright.edu/special/collectionguides/files/ms165.pdf. It is also available in the OhioLINK Finding Aid Repository at http://ead.ohiolink.edu/xtf-ead/. MS-165: Peter B. Kline Papers 1 Related Material: MS-344 Walter Matthews Jefferies Aviation Collection (https://libraries.wright.edu/special/collectionguides/files/ms344.pdf) MS-353 Robert L. Cavanagh Aviation Collection (https://libraries.wright.edu/special/collectionguides/files/ms353.pdf) MS-376 Robert E. William Aviation Collection (https://libraries.wright.edu/special/collectionguides/files/ms376.pdf) MS-412 Hans Dam Aviation Collection (https://libraries.wright.edu/special/collectionguides/files/ms412.pdf) Separated Material: Many books were cataloged and separated to the reading room at the time of processing. One folder of aviation art and a sketch of Jeanette Kline was separated to oversize flat files (staff will find locations in the Oversize Database). Processed by: Kathleen Spray in August 1987. Revisions: Finding aid revised according to DACS standards, including the writing of a biography and scope and content note, by Alyssa Stark and Toni Vanden Bos, February 2019. Arrangement: The Peter B. Kline Papers are arranged into six series. Series I: Aircraft Identification, 1913-1985 Subseries IA: Aircraft by Manufacturer, 1917-1980 Subseries IB: Racers and Air Races, 1929-1980 Subseries IC: War Planes and Aerial Warfare, 1909-1975 Subseries ID: U.S. Aircraft Identifications (mostly military), 1913-1981 Subseries IE: Multinational Aircraft (mostly military), 1918-1985 Subseries IF: Aircraft Types, 1920-1978 Subseries IG: Scrapbooks (includes photographs), 1917-1984 Series II: Aircraft Construction (Full size and models), 1917-1984 Subseries IIA: Large Drawings and Blueprints of Aircraft, 1935-1981 Subseries IIB: Aircraft Components and Accessories/General Pilot’s Manuals/ Theory of Aerodynamics, 1917-1971 Subseries IIC: Aircraft Colors and Insignia, 1920-1983 Subseries IID: Scale Models, 1930-1984 Series III: Aviation History, 1918-1985 Subseries IIIA: General Aviation History, 1928-1975 Subseries IIIB: Museums, Air Shows, and Aviation Collections, 1930-1985 Subseries IIIC: Aviation Book Sellers and Book Reviews, 1944-1982 MS-165: Peter B. Kline Papers 2 Subseries IIID: Aviation Organizations and Magazines/Aviation Magazines, 1934-1984 Subseries IIIE: Military Squadron, Unit, and Base Histories, 1929-1981 Subseries IIIF: People in Aviation, 1925-1980 Subseries IIIG: Aviation Stories, Poetry, Cartoons, and Movies, 1918-1981 Subseries IIIH: Aeronautical Charts, 1959-1967 Series IV: Personal Papers, 1948-1981 Series V: Photographs, 1914-1983 Subseries VA: Photographic prints (includes some negatives), 1914-1983 Subseries VB: Color slides, undated Series VI: Aviation Art (primarily by Peter Kline), 1942-1944 Biographical/Historical Note: Peter Boyd Kline was born on May 12, 1918 in Whitesville, West Virginia to Boyd Harrison Kline and Charleen Texanna Megee. Peter’s father, Boyd Kline, was a salesman. Peter attended Pleasant Hill School in Waynesboro, Virginia eventually graduating from the Fishburne Military School in Waynesboro in 1937 at the age of 19. He immediately enrolled at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville and studied mechanical engineering. He studied at the University of Virginia until he was drafted into the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) in 1943 where he was stationed at Boca Raton Army Air Field in Florida. While in service, Peter earned his pilot’s license and worked on aircraft for the Army. Peter remained active duty until November 1945 when he was honorably discharged as a 2nd Lieutenant. Peter’s previous education in mechanical engineering and new fondness for aircraft likely shaped his decision to transfer to the Virginia Polytechnic Institution in Blacksburg, Virginia to study aeronautical engineering. In June of 1947, he graduated with a bachelor’s of science in aeronautical engineering. His first job following graduation was in conduction flight research and development at Wright Field in Dayton, Ohio. He also married Janet Mary Forrestel during this time. Later, he moved to Patuxent, Maryland to work at the Naval Air Test Center. In 1952, four years after moving to Maryland, the couple relocated to Washington, D. C. and Peter continued to conduct research for the Navy in the Bureau of Aeronautics. In 1953, Peter returned to Dayton, Ohio to work at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. Peter and his wife remained in the area for the rest of their lives. Janet passed away on June 12, 1978 at the age of 55. Peter passed away on January 19, 1986. This biographical note was creating using the limited number of family papers in this collection located in Series IV. MS-165: Peter B. Kline Papers 3 Scope and Content Note: Aeronautical engineer Peter B. Kline collected articles, drawings, mechanical specifications, photographs, and research pertaining to a variety of aircraft and aviation topics. He specialized in materials about the WWI era and military aircraft, in general, but his collection covers a wide range of aviation subjects. Arranged into six series, the bulk of the collection is about aviation, but one small series of personal papers does provide a glimpse into Peter and his wife’s lives. Series I: Aircraft Identification, contains files on a wide variety of aircraft spanning as early as 1913 up to the mid-1980s. The series is divided into subseries by categories of aircraft, such as aircraft by manufacturer, racers, war planes, U.S. aircraft, and international aircraft. Subseries IG: Scrapbooks, contains clippings, aircraft histories, descriptions, photographs, and 3-view drawings of aircraft, arranged by manufacturer. The scrapbooks in this series were removed from binders and foldered. Series II: Aircraft Construction (full size and models), focuses on drawings and blueprints of aircraft, which are organized alphabetically by manufacturer. Series IIB: Aircraft Components and Accessories/General Pilot’s Manuals Theory of Aerodynamics (P. B. Kline’s class notes), includes notes and papers written by Kline as part of his coursework at the University of Virginia and Virginia Polytechnic Institution. Also included in this series are research files on aircraft colors and insignia, and scale models, many of which come from publications. The entire series spans 1917-1984. Series III: Aviation History, 1918-1985 spans a wide scope of aviation history and sources of aviation history. Files on air shows; military squadron, unit, and base histories; and on aviators and aviation figures are included in this series. Aviation figures include the early Birds, WWI aviators, American Aces, and recognizable names such as Charles Lindbergh and Amelia Earhart. Also included in this series are aviation materials reflected in popular culture such as aviation poems, songs, cartoons, lists of movies, and magazines like Dare-Devil Aces, a pulp magazine from the 1930s and 1940s. Series IV: Personal Papers, 1822-1981, consists of just four folders, but it provides details into Peter Kline’s career as an aeronautical engineer, and some insight into his service during WWII, and includes a photograph of Kline in uniform, a few diary entries, his identification card as a 2nd Lt., and a letter written on Boca Raton Field stationary dated September, 1943. The series also provides some history on Janet Forrestel Kline, Peter’s wife. It includes the oldest item in the collection, a scrapbook from the family of Janet Forrestel Kline, dated 1844, containing news clippings about family members and of poetry. The clippings mostly refer to people living in the area of Saratoga, New York. Inside the front cover, which is completely detached, are loose pages from a ledger book with entries dated 1822-1832. Note that the scrapbook