This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

Hindenburg program at Wall Township Library August 8

Join us at the Wall Township Library on Thursday, August 8 at 7 p.m. for a look back at The Hindenburg Disaster on its 76th anniversary. The Library is located at 2700 Allaire Road, Wall 07719.

 

Carl Jablonski, President of the Navy Lakehurst Historical Society, will present an oral and visual presentation on the history of airships, the Hindenburg, and Lakehurst Naval Station today.

Find out what's happening in Wallwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

 
At 804 feet in length, Hindenburg was among the largest and most luxurious aircraft ever devised. In its day, the zeppelin cut the travel time of transatlantic ocean liners in half, operating at a speed of almost 80 miles per hour which made the trip between Frankfurt, Germany and Lakehurst possible in 2 1/2-days.

 

Find out what's happening in Wallwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The zeppelins had captured popular imagination in the 1930s as a symbol of modern technology and national power. However, a ticket on Hindenburg wasn’t cheap. Round-trip airfare cost $740 in 1937 — nearly $12,000 in 2013 money when adjusted for inflation


As the Hindenburg was preparing to dock at what was then Lakehurst Naval Air Station at about 7:25 p.m. on May 6, 1937, the rear of the hydrogen-filled zeppelin burst into a fireball, the flames of which spread rapidly to the entire vessel. Within moments, the Hindenburg crashed and disintegrated, killing 36 crewmen and passengers, including a member of the ground crew.

 

The disaster had the distinction of being the first to be caught on film, as reporters and newsreel photographers were on the scene to chronicle the arrival of the behemoth airship. Herb Morrison’s emotional radio broadcast of the disaster for WLS in Chicago became famous.

 

Find out more about this infamous day in history! For questions on the program, please call the Wall Township Library at 732-449-8877. For more information on programming at the Monmouth County Library, please visit the Library’s webpage at www.monmouthcountylib.org

 





We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?