Georgia's Pioneer Aviator--Micajah Clark Dyer (A Book Review)

Book cover design by Karen Turnage Merrill

A delightful and beautiful book has just come to me via its author, Sylvia Dyer Turnage. This great, great granddaughter of inventor Micajah Clark Dyer has long been interested in what this farmer-inventor accomplished back in the nineteenth century as he worked diligently to invent and improve, and yes, even fly what he called, appropriately, “An Apparatus for Navigating the Air.”

In our Dyer family, we had heard stories of Clark Dyer and his flying machine. Was this invention for real? Did he really make a vehicle that would take to the air and fly? As Sylvia Dyer Turnage and I were growing up in our home community of Choestoe, these tales of her great, great grandfather and my great, great uncle just would not die. Too many people had heard the tales. Two people, at least, in our acquaintance, my Uncle Herschel Dyer and a cousin, John Wimpey, had seen the fabulous machine. And both of them were truthful men. They would not tell a lie.

And so the legend stayed alive, passed down from generation to generation. Many had a share in perpetuating the legend, among whom were Watson Benjamin Dyer who wrote about it in his first edition of “Dyer Family History” published in 1967, and his subsequent edition in 1980.

In 1980, a great, great great grandson of Clark Dyer, Kenneth Akins, did much research on the Dyer legend, and found, with the help of historian Robert Davis, that several credible people whom they interviewed were convinced that the story of Clark Dyer’s flying machine was more than legend, that the flying machine had indeed been invented.

Persistence often results in bringing major rewards. Sylvia Dyer Turnage herself, taken by the story of her ancestor’s exploits, wrote and published in 1994 a book entitled The Legend of Clark Dyer’s Flying Machine. In the book, she told what she then knew of the story. Included was a poem she entitled “Ode to Clark Dyer,” which was set to music and sung by her (and perhaps others) at Dyer family reunions, gatherings and anyplace an interest was shown in this nineteenth century farmer-inventor’s life story.

Finally the breakthrough came that proved a remarkable boon and proof that the legend was indeed fact. In late 2004, two others of Clark Dyer’s descendants, great, great great grandsons Stephen and Joey Dyer, brothers, found a patent online at the US Patent and Copyright Office, Patent No. 154,654, dated September 1, 1874. Entitled “An Apparatus for Navigating the Air,” it was signed by M. C. Dyer! Was this maybe the ancestor whom they had heard invented a plane near Rattlesnake Mountain in the 1870’s?

Indeed it was! In addition to the patent, the young men found copies of newspaper articles from “The St. Louis Globe Democrat” (July 31, 1875) and “The Eagle” (Gainesville, GA, July 31, 1875) that told of M. C. Dyer of Blairsville, who had “been studying the subject of air navigation for thirty years,” and was eager to construct the machine and “board the ship and commit himself to the wind.”

Then, with proof in hand, copies of the patent, and a proposed resolution introduced to the Georgia Legislature by then representative Charles F. Jenkins of Blairsville, a fitting memorial was in order for the mountain genius whose work had predated the Wright brothers. Georgia Highway 180 from US Highway 129/19 to the Brasstown Bald Mountain Spur was named “The Micajah Clark Dyer Parkway” to honor this pioneer aviator who worked so diligently to bring his dream to fruition. In a touching and meaningful ceremony at the Dyer-Souther Heritage Association Reunion on July 15, 2006, before a crowd of more than 300 descendants and interested citizens, the road sign was unveiled and the road dedicated to the inventor. That was an auspicious day, indeed, but it wasn’t the end of the story or the celebration.

Since then, the Clark Dyer Foundation has been formed. His gravesite in Old Choestoe Cemetery has been restored and a more suitable monument erected giving credit to his work as an inventor. Numerous programs have been held to tell “The Clark Dyer Story.”

And in this newest book from author Sylvia Dyer Turnage’s pen, the story from legend to reality, from word-of-mouth to printed proof, from theory to the actual patent, are collected for us to enjoy.

Sylvia’s immediate family all played a vital role in the production of this lovely, “coffee table” quality book. She, being the writer in her family, wrote the manuscript of the book. Her husband, Billy Turnage, a photographer by hobby but also by expertise, made exquisite photographs of the history of bringing to light the real story of Micajah Clark Dyer. These are included in the book, in full color. Her daughter, Karen Dyer Merrill of California designed the book’s cover and assisted in the proofreading and editorial production of the book. Her son, Andrew Turnage, set up and maintains the Micajah Clark Dyer website which any interested persons can access. He also helped to found the Micajah Clark Dyer Foundation, the goals of which are listed in the book on pages 35-36. He also assisted with the production of the book. Yee Yee, Sylvia’s delightful daughter-in-law, and wife of Andrew, who, by carefully reading the description in Clark’s patent, made the first interpretive drawing of the flying machine.

The book, authored by Sylvia Dyer Turnage, poet, author, speaker, accountant (retired), and assisted by her immediate family, has been a labor of love in memory of that beloved great, great grandfather who saw the birds flying over the mountains of Choestoe and wondered, “Why can’t I, too, fly?”

Search out how you might purchase a copy for yourself by checking at your local book store, online at micajahclarkdyer.org, or contacting Sylvia at her own Turnage Publishing Co., Inc. 805 Low Gap Road, Blairsville, GA 30512.

Congratulations to Sylvia and her family for this addition to the corpus of county history, family history, and history in general. She uses this appropriate quotation from Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. on the back cover of her book: “Man’s mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions.” Micajah Clark Dyer’s mind was indeed “stretched by a new idea.” And look what happened.

c 2010 by Ethelene Dyer Jones; published Mar. 11, 2010 in The Union Sentinel, Blairsville, GA. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Reunion Reflections and Revolutionary Remembrances

Pardon my very personal and proud approach to reporting on our annual Dyer-Souther Heritage Association Reunion held Saturday, July 18, 2009 at Choestoe Baptist Church Family Life Center. We gathered some 213 strong (according to registration count) for a day of reflecting upon the past, greeting people both new to us and regular attendees, and hearing the accounts of some of our ancestors who fought to gain freedom from Great Britain during the American Revolution.

I thank all who worked hard to set up for the day and plan and implement the program. These events do not just happen. The trustees and officers of the association are Bill Collins, president, Reid Dyer, vice-president, Janice Lance, secretary, Marie Knight, treasurer of the Old Liberty Cemetery Fund, assisted by Lee Knight, Ethelene Jones, historian and newsletter editor, Keith Jones, Trustee, and Joe Dyer, Trustee emeritus. This group carries on the work of the association between reunions, plans for and advertises the reunion, and, with the help of others, sets up the meeting place for the anticipated crowd of attendees. Bill Collins concluded his long term as president at the end of this reunion. Reid Dyer became the new president and Bill will remain on the Board as a Trustee.

Andrew Turnage announced plans to further promote the work of inventor Micajah Clark Dyer (1822-1891) who received a patent (# 154,654) in 1874 for his "Apparatus for Navigating the Air." A foundation has been set up to receive funds for upgrading his gravestone in the Old Choestoe Cemetery. Plans are also under way to get his invention listed in the Aviation Hall of Fame and to build a working model of his invention according to specifications and drawings he set forth in his application for the patent. For more information, interested persons may go to this website www.MicajahClarkDyer.org or e-mail for information at MicajahClarkDyer@gmail. com.

A drawing for the proposed grave marker for Bluford Elisha Dyer, Jr. (ca 1785-1847) was presented by Keith Jones, Trustee. The approximate location of the grave, unmarked, has been found on property where Dyer settled when he and his wife, Elizabeth Clark Dyer, moved to the Choestoe Valley along Cane Creek in the early 1830's, becoming the first Dyer settlers in the area. Another historical preservation project is to locate the old Souther Family Cemetery near New Liberty Baptist Church where John and Mary Combs Souther buried some of their children who died prior to the establishment and development of the church and cemetery on land John Souther gave for that purpose. The Heritage Association aims to locate, if possible, this burial site and mark it.

Still another project is to mark in a more appropriate manner the family burial site of the Rev. John M. Dyer, and the gravesites of his wife, Elizabeth Sullivan Dyer and their daughter, Martha Dyer. This year's reunion saw first-time attendees from many places with ties to the Dyer-Souther and collateral families of Choestoe. From Louisiana came Ida Nix Reed and her husband Charles and daughters, Ashleigh Smith of Mississippi and Leslie Doucette of Atlanta, and granddaughter Caroline Smith. From Louisiana came Royce and Velma Dyer, descendants of Jefferson Beauregard and Rhoda Souther Dyer. From Athens, Georgia came Eva Leach Banks who descends from Samantha Dyer Alexander, and others of Eva's kin. From Warrenton, VA came Margaret Harkins Patterson, a great, great, granddaughter of Micajah Clark Dyer. From Cleveland, TN came Ed (and Dortha) Townsend. Ed descends from Sarah Elizabeth (Sally) Dyer and Eli Townsend. Ed has written a valuable family history book entitled Some Townsends of North Georgia. From Brasstown, NC came Tipper Pressley, author and presenter of “Blind Pig and the Acorn,” an on-line newsletter with the purpose of documenting and publishing information about mountain people and ways that are fast vanishing with our modern-day development. These are but a few of the "first time" attendees whom we welcomed warmly. Space precludes my listing them all here, but they, too, are important. Their names will be in the next Chronicle newsletter of the Association. We hope they will return, year after year, as do the scores of "regular" attendees, all of whom, by their presence and support, assist the Trustees to have a wonderful reunion that focuses on family solidarity and honoring the contributions of our ancestors to the American way of life.

The program for the 2009 Reunion was about our ancestors who were soldiers and patriots in the American Revolution. Brief biographical sketches were given about two James Collins soldiers who may be tied to Thompson Collins, first Collins settler in Choestoe Valley. We heard about Elisha and Amey Laws Dyer, assisting with material aid to the Revolution, as did William and Daniel England with their iron forge on Hunting Creek in North Carolina. John Ingraham, Stephen and William Souther, Michael Tanner, John Henry Stonecypher, William Jones, the two named John Nix, and the four sons of Repentance Townsend, all soldiers in the "Overmountain Men," were all briefly eulogized in the program to honor our Revolutionary War patriots. Each deserves his own story, and many have already been written about in this column in years past. Look online to see their biographies. Others will be featured in future columns.

A solemn part of the reunion program is the "In Memoriam" time. This year, we honored the memory of twenty-three of our kin who had passed away since the last reunion. We especially missed the physical presence of our beloved Dora Hunter Allison Spiva who passed away February 24, 2009, and who loved attending the reunions and contributing her sparkling wit and personality to all who came.

We honored our youngest present, little Kaitlyn Girardot from Hoschton, GA, daughter of Kari Bardenwerper Girardot, granddaughter of Judy Dyer Bardenwerper, and great granddaughter of Wilonell Collins Dyer. Our eldest one present for the second year in a row was Mrs. Irene Coker Brown, widow of Emory Brown, who at the wonderful age of 100 enjoyed the reunion and the people. The one who traveled farthest was a brand-new attendee, Simon Napoli from Australia, who was the guest of Dr. Eva Nell Mull Wike and Jim Wike of Oak Ridge, TN. Eva Nell taught Simon's mother in the 1980's as an exchange student, and now the student's son is here visiting the Wikes. He was "awed" by our reunion, and said he had never attended anything like it before in Australia. And from beautiful Hawaii, second in the "farthest distance" traveled were Linda Nahser Beadle and her husband Wes. Linda's mother is Kathleen Dyer Nahser, her grandparents were Franklin Hedden and Dora Nix Dyer, and her great grandparents were Bluford Elisha (III) and Sarah Evaline Souther Dyer. Thanks, Wes and Linda, for traveling so far, and for making sure Linda's mother gets to attend the reunion.

As I reflect back upon the Reunion of 2009, my very subjective evaluation is "wonderful, marvelous!" If you missed it this year, perhaps you will consider setting aside the third Saturday in July, 2010 to be a part of our gathering. You will find a warm welcome, good food, an enlightening program, and southern hospitality at its height. And you will learn something, too. This year, I took displays of several genealogy and other books and found people with notebook and pen in hand gleaning information on their family lines from the materials. Overall, it was a beautiful, exciting and rewarding day!

c 2009 by Ethelene Dyer Jones; published July 23, 2009 in The Union Sentinel, Blairsville, GA. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Reunion Reflections: Basking in the Afterglow

Sentinel photo/Janie Holbrook Authors displaying their books at the 2008 Dyer-Souther Reunion:

Seated: Dr. Eva Nell Mull Wike (The Matheson Cove in the Shadow of the Devil's Post Office); Ethelene Dyer Jones (The Singing in the Wood and Mother and Child Reunion); Dr. Tom Lumsden (Nacoochee Valley); Sylvia Dyer Turnage (Micajah ClarkDyer and His Amazing Flying Machine; Choestoe Story and other books);

Standing: Dr. Joe Turner (High Humor of the Hills); Charles H. Souther (From the Mules and Wagon to the Space Shuttle); Keith Jones (Mother and Child Reunion, with his mother, Ethelene and an 8-disk CD recording of the collected poems of Byron Herbert Reece). Not pictured (absent because of his mother's illness), William Clyde Collins, Jr. (The Last Deer Trapper.)

The annual Dyer-Souther Reunion is now history, an event of Saturday, July 19, 2008.

Held at Choestoe Baptist Church that some of our ancestors helped to found in 1832, the gathering of 163 people rejoiced at being together, at seeing new faces joining our number, at the sheer pleasure of family and roots and heritage.

The theme of this year's reunion was "Meet Our Authors." We invited those we knew in the "clan" who had written books. Seven were present to sign their books and to talk about the stories that had inspired them to write history, comedy and poetry.

Absent was president of the association, Bill Collins, whose book, The Last Deer Trapper, also was featured, by vice-president Keith Jones reading a story from "The Deer Trapper." Dr. Joe Turner, Dr. Eva Nell Mull Wike, Dr. Tom Lumsden, Sylvia Dyer Turnage, Charles Souther, Keith Jones and Ethelene Jones were present and folks enjoyed talking to them and getting signed copies of the author's books. Reports coming in by e-mail since the reunion term the event "fun and enjoyable," and "I loved hearing the authors."

All the long journey back to my present home in Milledgeville gave me four hours to reflect upon the reunion. Many thoughts went through my mind.

I thought of the "In Memoriam" period of our reunion program. Each year the list of our honored dead who have passed in the last year seems to increase. It is a solemn time of remembering. We recall going to school and church together, keeping in touch spasmodically as the years roll by, enjoying a once-a-year reunion when family ties are renewed. Maybe seeing them as "looking over the windows of heaven" to see us below is only a fanciful idea I have of re-identification with our beloved departed. But I imagined that "great cloud of witnesses" Paul the Apostle writes about. I see them applauding us. They are happy that we still remember the important virtues of family togetherness. The reunion was a little preview of heaven right here on earth.

Our honored dead who passed during the last year were James Perry Dyer (1923-2008), Anna Mae Dyer Burnett (1922- 2008), Harry Vaughn Dyer (1929- 2007), Carolyn Collins Kelly (1950-2008); James Vaughn Dyer (1916-2008), Connor Andrew Brock Carmichael (3 months, 2007), Dr. Howard Van Ness Morter (1916-2007), Opal L. Sullivan (1917-2007), Clara Belle Collins Duckworth (1919-2008), Raymond Sullivan (1919-2007), Robert Edward Moose (1970-2008), John Chester Dyer (1932-2008), Clinton Samuel Kelly (1927- 2007), Pearl Souther Smallwood (1919-2007) and Francis Homer Hunter, Jr. (1922-2007). These had a relationship to members of the Dyer-Souther family: Mildred Ensley Brown Turner Haigler (1930-2007) and Ruby Gibson Shook (1916-2008). We sang together "Amazing Grace" after standing in tribute as names were read.

I missed people who were not present. Mrs. Dora Hunter Allison Spiva has been our "oldest present" since the death of our historian emeritus, Watson Benjamin Dyer. Had she been present this year, at age 103, she would have received again the "eldest present” certificate. Mrs. Dora, Aunt Dora, Teacher Dora, know that we missed you. The reunion just wasn't the same without you. Several of her nieces and nephews, usually present, were not in attendance. This segment of our family line was sorely missed.

The oldest present was Mrs. Irene Coker Brown, widow of Emory Brown. At age 99, she amazed us all by her keenness and ability to walk on her own. She is a tower of fortitude and inspiration.

The youngest present was little Maddox Kidd, two-and-one half week old infant of Jessica Kidd. Proud grandmother Deborah Rich Leach and proud great grandmother Ann Rich were present to see this newest member of the clan receive a certificate. This family descends through Nancy Dyer Rich.

Roma Sue Turner Collins, having recently sustained a fall and serious bone breaks, was in the Northeast Georgia Medical Center at Gainesville in intense therapy section. Her husband Clyde, and her son, Bill (president of our Association) were in Gainesville visiting Sue. We missed you - and prayed for you. Edna Ruth England Rich was thoughtful enough to bring a huge "get well" card to be signed to take to Sue.

The "farthest distance" people were from Hawaii- our cousin Linda Nahser Beadle and her husband Wes. They came by way of Wetumpka, AL where Linda's sister, Sandra Nahser Gilley and her husband, Scott, joined in the entourage to bring the girls' mother, beautiful Kathleen Dyer Nahser to the reunion. I needed a camera in hand when mother and daughters stood together talking to me. They formed a trio of classic beauty, poise and love. Thank you, Linda, for traveling so far to the reunion!

My "children" from Liberia, West Africa were present, Magdalene and David Sunday-gar. But we could not count them as "traveling farthest." They have lived in Gainesville since 2000. David earned an AA from Gainesville College and a BS in Business Administration from North Georgia College. He is now in seminary working on his master's degree. They plan to return to Africa after David completes his education. Ethelene and Grover met David when they went to Africa for a mission trip in the summer of 1986, and they have kept in close contact with David since. "It's a small world, after all."

Many were present for the first time, and we heartily welcomed them to the gathering. We expect to hear from them and to see them back in forthcoming years.

The food was unbelievable. Thanks to those who volunteered to get the tables spread with the most delectable-looking food imaginable. Somehow, a food serving committee was not appointed this year. Volunteers, you know who you are, thank you! You came through with flying colors.

In business session, Reid Dyer was elected vice-president. The other officers remain the same: Bill Collins, President; Janice Lance, Secretary; Marie Knight and Lee Knight, Treasurers of New Liberty Cemetery Fund; Ethelene Jones, Historian and Newsletter Editor; and these named officers are also trustees, as is Keith Jones, who has served for several years as vice-president. Joe Dyer remains as an advisory member of the Trustees. A committee appointed to draw plans and implement the monument honoring Elisha Dyer, Jr. was given to Reid Dyer, Harold Dyer, Lee Knight, and Ethelene Jones, Historian. We heard that $11,000 is now in the cemetery fund drawing interest for upkeep and care of the cemetery, and the newsletter/ reunion fund has a balance of $2,600, with some bills current for postage and newsletter distribution. Edward Dyer reported that the Dyer Family Bible is now on display at the Union County Historical Society in a lovely display case. Edna Ruth England Rich told the group of the Historical Society's latest project, the "history cards."

The miles rolled away and I left the beloved mountains of Choestoe behind. But the reflections of a day at the reunion will remain as a sweet aura surrounding me for the next year. I will bask in the afterglow- until we meet again.

c 2008 by Ethelene Dyer Jones; published July 24, 2008 in The Union Sentinel, Blairsville, GA. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Post reunion reflections

Last week's column looked forward to the Dyer-Souther Heritage Association annual reunion held on Saturday, July 15, 2006. We anticipate it each year with great joy, knowing that we will meet more kin that hear about it and make their way to the gathering. Like children looking for Christmas, we think it will never come. Then the big day arrives, we enjoy it tremendously and it is too soon gone.

I don't want to belabor the point, but this year's reunion may have been one of our best. Registration showed 214 in attendance for the morning, noon and early afternoon gathering. Many more came for the program at 3:00 p. m. commemorating the invention of Micajah Clark Dyer's "Apparatus for Navigating the Air," and the naming of a portion of Georgia Highway 180 the Micajah Clark Dyer Parkway. The new arrivals lifted the attendance count to 300 or more.

That program itself, carefully planned by Clark Dyer's great, great granddaughter, Sylvia Dyer Turnage, was well worth the effort people made to come from great distances, such as California, Oregon, Ohio and Texas to attend the dedication service. Sylvia and her family worked on wonderful displays that told the story of the inventor and his patent for the "Apparatus..." secured in 1874. The displays were given to the Union County Heritage Association Museum where visitors may read and see the story of Micajah Clark Dyer.

Earlier, in the regular reunion part of the program, a spinning wheel was donated to the Union County Historical Society Museum. Made by John Combs Hayes Souther in 1875 when his daughter, Sarah Evaline married Bluford Elisha Dyer, the heritage piece had been lovingly cared for and preserved by Ann and her husband, the late Bill Rich, and had come to them by Bill's mother, the late Nancy Louisa Dyer Rich, a daughter of Sarah Evaline and Bluford Elisha Dyer.

Many attended for the first time this year. Among them were Ralph Collins of Granbury, Texas, who is a great, great grandson of Willliam Dallas Collins (1846-1938) and Sarah Rosannah Souther Collins (1849-1929). Several months ago Ralph Colllins (who has the nickname "Bits" because he was called "Little Bit" as a child) called and introduced himself to me. He had visited my cousin William Clyde Collins of Choestoe and Clyde gave "Bits" my telephone number, telling him I was historian of the Dyer-Souther Heritage Association.

Already, Ralph Collins had learned that his great, great grandfather, Dallas Collins, was the third child and first son of Francis ("Frank") Collins (1816-1864) and Rutha Nix Collins (1822-1893), and Francis was the fourth child of first Collins settlers to Choestoe, Thompson Collins (1785-1858) and Celia Self Collins (1787-1880).

Ralph Collins' great grandfather was the firstborn of Dallas and Rosannah Souther Collins, James Elias ("Eli") Collins and Frankie Jane Jackson Collins (1870-1962). His grandfather was Vance Porter Collins (1897) who was born in Georgia before his father, James Elias, moved to Granbury, Texas. In Texas, Vance Porter Collins married Jessie Linthicum, and their second child, Doyle Collins, became Ralph "Bits" Collins's father.

Ralph and I have been exchanging e-mails and family history information. He and I agree that once one becomes interested in genealogy, it is hard to let go until the missing pieces of the puzzle of family connections are fitted together.

Have you ever met anyone whom you felt, at first contact, that you have known all your life? This was the case when Bits Collins and I first met in person on Sunday, July 15 at the reunion. Cousins whose common ties reach for generations back are inextricably tied together by common family bonds and hardy pioneer stock. His great grandfather "went west" looking for a better way of life, leaving behind the graves of two babies who died as infants, Rannel Collins (1891) and Floyd Collins (1897), buried in the Old Choestoe Cemetery. Without access to any James Elias Collins family journals, we can assume that he and his wife Frankie Jane Jackson Collins moved to Granbury (or Weatherford), Texas about 1902 with their children Leona, Arthur, Vance Porter, Ernest Fulton, and Marion Dallas (born in Georgia in 1901). The last four children of James Elias and Frankie Jane Collins were born in Texas: Tressie (1903), Joseph Taylor (1905), Gusta Roseanne (1909) and Vester Eugene (1912).

I was a child when my great Uncle Dallas Collins died October 18, 1938. His funeral made a lasting impression on me. My mother and father took me to Uncle Dallas' home near New Liberty Baptist Church where they helped with funeral preparations. My father, Jewel Marion Dyer, was handy with tools and he helped to make the casket for Uncle Dallas from seasoned timbers stored in the barn for that purpose. Great Aunt Sarah Rosannah Souther Colllins (1846-1929) had preceded her husband, Great Uncle Dallas, in death. She was my father's great aunt (a daughter of Jesse John and Mary "Polly" Combs Hayes Souther). Her husband, Dallas Collins, was my mother's uncle. This double-relationship was somewhat hard to figure out. We just knew we were "kin" on both sides of the family. I can remember the ladies preparing the body for burial. They also lined the casket with cotton and attached a satiny cloth to its interior before the body was gingerly laid in the homemade coffin. That was in the days before country folks used funeral homes. Mother and other kin also helped her cousin Martha Aria Collins with the cooking for the large crowd that gathered for the funeral. Aria and her husband, Moody Watson Collins, lived with and looked after Uncle Dallas prior to his death. The funeral was held at the house the next day, with a large crowd present.

I told Ralph "Bits" Collins this remembrance from my childhood of his great, great grandfather's funeral. Sadly, Ralph's great grandfather, James Elias (Eli) Collins did not attend the funeral. This firstborn son of William Dallas Collins preceded his father in death, dying in Granbury, Texas on January 8, 1938.

Back in Milledgeville, Georgia, which is now my dwelling place, I am still reveling in the memories of a marvelous day in the hills of Union County, where the morning mists covered the mountains with an effervescent glow as the sun rose to drive the fog away and provide a marvelous day of beauty. The fellowship, as well, was bright and shining. Selah.

c2006 by Ethelene Dyer Jones; published July 20, 2006 in The Union Sentinel, Blairsville, GA. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Relatives honor a genius By: Joan Crothers

(Note: I am delighted that Joan Crothers, reporter for The Sentinel, gave her permission to reprint this news article she wrote about the Dyer-Souther Reunion at which we named a portion of GA Highway 180 in memory of Micajah Clark Dyer, inventor of “An Apparatus for Navigating the Air.” -Ethelene Dyer Jones)

Standing under the roadsign to be installed this week, are Billy and Sylvia Turnage, and Rep. Charles Jenkins, who was presented with the framed proclamation and the large framed patent and drawings of Dyers flying machine.

A small model of Dyer's flying machine shows the framework and covering, making it look more like a dirigible than what we know as an airplane.

Emcee for the event, Ethelene Dyer Jones, discusses the agenda with Rep. Jenkins.

Great, great, great grandson Kenneth Akins told the large group about his participation in trying to locate information on his relative by talking to many neighbors back in the 80s.

Micajah Clark Dyer was finally getting the due he deserved as relatives and friends gathered at the Choestoe Baptist Church on Saturday, July 15. The beautiful Fellowship Hall was filled to capacity with an estimated 300 people, most of them related to some part of the Dyer family.

Clark Dyer, as the family refers to him, is credited with creating and setting to flight a "flying machine" off of Rattlesnake Mountain in Choestoe, Union County, sometime in the 1870s. His patent has also been found and one person, Johnny Wimpy, now deceased, was 8 years old when "he saw it fly." He had also also helped Dyer build a large rock wall that is still standing. Dyer is also credited with creating a system of logs to pipe running water to his house from a spring. Neighbors saw him work on other inventions, but most ridiculed him for wasting his time on a flying machine, so he kept it quite secret.

However, when he did get a patent for his invention in 1874, he put an article in the St. Louis Globe of July 1975 and the Gainesville Eagle, some now thinking he was trying to get funds to build his flying machine. After he died in 1891 at 69, his wife sold his plans and machine to brothers named Redwine and they reportedly sold them to the Wright brothers.

Silvia Dyer Turnage was the organizer of this recognition of her great, great grandfather and thanked her family for all their support and help. She said she first read about the flying machine in a family history book, but it was 25 years later when the 1874 patent for the flying machine was found through the internet.

Turnage turned a poem she had written about this unusual man into a song, which she sang accompanied by Sam Ensley on the guitar.

The highlight of the event was the unveiling of a road sign, one of three, dedicating part of 180 to Micajah Clark Dyer. This came about through efforts of Representative Charles Jenkins in having the Georgia Legislation approve a proclamation honoring Dyer.

c2006 by Joan Crothers; published July 20, 2006 in The Union Sentinel, Blairsville, GA. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

'Apparatus for Navigating the Air' Micajah Clark Dyer

My January 4, 2004 column for “Through Mountain Mists” told of Micajah Clark Dyer and his remarkable flying machine that predated the Wright Brothers’ flight at Kitty Hawk, NC by several years. I thought that column would wrap up what I know of legend and fact about this Choestoe, Union County, Georgia inventor who lived from July 23, 1822 through January 26, 1891.

However, a remarkable development has occurred to add new light on Mr. Dyer’s invention and to authenticate what had only been passed down by word of mouth from generation to generation about the nineteenth century genius who watched birds fly and mused (to quote a line from a popular song), “Why, then oh why can’t I?”

Straightaway I have these to thank for discovering the registered patent in the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office and allowing me access to a copy. First, Jimmy Powell, cartoonist of note, went on the Google search engine, typing “Micajah Dyer Patent.” He followed the links to the U. S. Patent office. Jimmy is tied to Micajah Clark Dyer by marriage. His wife, Roxanne Dyer Powell, is the daughter of Wayne Dyer who goes directly back to her great, great, great grandfather Micajah Clark through Johnny, Samuel, Jasper Washington, first born of Micajah Clark Dyer. Then Jimmy Powell told a great, great granddaughter of Clark Dyer, Sylvia Dyer Turnage, who herself went online, and after some difficulty found and paid the cost for a printable copy. This was the long-missing link to prove that Micajah Clark Dyer did, indeed, get his machine far enough along to secure a patent on it. I thank them also for giving me permission to write another column about the inventor and his patent.

And speaking of patents, several of us who have written about his flying machine have noted that the patent application was evidently lost because there seemed to be no documents in Dyer’s papers to show that he received a patent. It was believed by family members that the patent was lost in transit between Choestoe and Washington, DC.

The fact that it was not lost, and that proof of the patent came into the hands of his descendants 130 years later are wonderful authentications of this man’s outstanding work. In fact, September is a good month to be writing about the title he gave to his patent, “Apparatus for Navigating the Air,” for the patent was granted on September 1, 1874, 130 years ago this month. His descendants are elated to learn that drawings of the “apparatus” were a part of the patent, together with extensive written descriptions of the lettered and numbered parts of the drawings.

Usually a model of the machine for which the inventor was applying for a patent accompanied the drawings and the official application. So far, the model has not been discovered at the patent office, but it may have been burned in the fire that devastated parts of the building in Washington in the early twentieth century.

Witnesses at Choestoe to Micajah Dyer’s illustrated and written document were Francis M. Swain (a neighbor) and M. C. Dyer, Jr. (the “other” Micajah Clark Dyer who, to distinguish the two, signed Jr. after his name. He was an uncle to the inventor Micajah Clark Dyer, but they were reared as brothers by Elisha Dyer, Jr., grandfather of Micajah). The document was dated February 16, 1874. It was filed in the patent office on June 10, 1874, and was approved there on September 1, 1874. Official signatures on the front of the document were D. G. Stuart and Leo Van Kiswick, evidently of the patent office. Micajah Dyer’s signature is affixed as inventor. The name of the attorney for the inventor is somewhat difficult to decipher: was he P. Harney or P. Hanney?

The beginning of the written description leads one to believe that there could have been prior applications; certainly prior attempts at an “Apparatus for Navigating the Air.” His opening statement reads:

Be it known that I, Micajah Dyer, of Blairsville, in the county of Union and State of Georgia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for Navigating the Air; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and use it, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form part of this specification…

In the written account are minute details giving specifications for building the frame, the wings, the large balloon, the rotating paddle wheels, shafts, cranks, connecting rods—no part seems to have been omitted from his description of the apparatus which he so painstakingly thought through, drew and, from testimony of several who saw it, built in his workshop. The description is far too technical and long to include in this account.

No date is given for the “trial run” Micajah Clark Dyer gave his ‘Apparatus for Navigating the Air” on the runway he built to launch it on his property at Choestoe underneath the shadow of Rattlesnake Mountain. The fact that he did so is not a part of the patent but by word passed from generation to generation by people of integrity and honesty.

His great, great granddaughter, Sylvia Dyer Turnage, said: “People said he continued to work on perfecting the machine until his death on January 26, 1891 at age 68. Since the patent we’ve found was registered on September 1, 1874, I believe he had a later and more advanced design in those 17 years.”

I have not authenticated this with another great, great grandson of the inventor, Larry Dyer, but word has it that he is constructing a replica of Micajah Clark Dyer’s machine. Larry, if you read this, and if, indeed you are working on reproducing the “Apparatus for Navigating the Air,” please make a big day of its launch in the field near Rattlesnake Mountain and invite us all to the event. You and we owe this debt of gratitude to a genius of the mountains, one Micajah Clark Dyer.

c2004 by Ethelene Dyer Jones; published September 16, 2004 in The Union Sentinel, Blairsville, GA. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.