The Ryan B-1 Brougham

The Yanks Air Museum in Chino, California, apparently has the only known flyable Ryan B-1 Brougham.  Yanks Air has produced a beautiful slide show of the aircraft.  The photos will really help you have a much better understanding of what that aircraft was (is) like.

Here's the website: https://yanksair.org/collection/ryan-b-1-brougham-2/

Rescue Route

The rescue of Leo The Lion is easily one of the many compelling chapters of the saga. Rim Country Pioneers Boy and Sam Haught rounded up some cowboy Friends, packed up some supplies and harnessed two mules to bring back the lion alive.  The Flyin' Lion Story simply wouldn't be complete without understanding the route that so-called "rescue posse" traveled to find and retrieve the lion.

There is considerable confusion in various accounts of the rescue about who first found the lion and who led the rescue team to their goal.  For the purposes ofthis post, those two questions will be addressed in a separate blog post.

The only written "estimate" of the trail the rescue group used appears in "Frank Gillette's privately published 1984 book "Pleasant Valley." Gillette was not a member of the rescue effort so his narrative is obviously based on second hand information, perhaps long after the incident.  His narrative appears below.

Frankly, after reading Gillette's narrative we couldn't make heads or tails out of his route description.  We then decided to do whatever it took to determine that route.  First, we stopped at the Gila County Sheriff's Office in Payson. The Deputy there had never heard of Leo The Lion and recommended we contact Tonto Rim Search & Rescue.  Repeated attempts to contact TRSAR proved fruitless.  Then we attempted to contact the Tonto National Forest and no one returned our emails.  And then we attempted to contact the Gila County Cattle Growers Association.  Once again, no one replied.

So we were stumped, shut out and discouraged.  That's when we remembered Hike Arizona Dot Com (HAZ).  HAZ is without doubt America's finest hiking website.  In fact, it is probably the finest hiking website in the entire world, if not the galaxy.  We originally joined HAZ in early 2002 and put up over 450 posts there before physical afflictions ended our day hiking days.  So, we reactivated our account and asked for help.  Boy-oh-boy did we get help!

HAZ Founder Joe Bartels quickly put together a "most probable" route from Bear Flat to the crash site area.  Joe's map helped us put it all together and we now more or less fully understand the Rescue Route.   (HAZ links appear at end of post.) We will be forever indebted to Joe and HAZ members: CannondaleKid, toddak, Srenfield and nonot for their kind and thoughtful assistance in this arcane quest. HAZ, Joe and members will be recognized in the Acknowledgement section of the upcoming ebook about the Leo The Lion saga.

Comments are below each photo or graphic.

Payson Postmaster Bill Boardman took this photo of the Rescue Team shortly after they arrived in Bear Flat.  We hope to obvtain assistance to identify each of the participants.  Below in  bold italics is Frank Gillette's description of the route back from the crash site.  Note that Gillette misspelled Gordon Canyon.

"For the first couple of miles, they worked their way up the big ridge, heading canyons and taking 
advantage of the swales and ridges. But by the time they reached the cross trails, the picture was beginning to change. There was a pretty good trail running east and west from Bear Flat across to Gorden Canyon. It was a plain, well beaten horse trail that was plenty wide for a horse and rider, and the packs on pack mules, if a man happened to be leading a pack train. The trail went east to Gorden Canyon where it joined the trail running north and south from the ranches in Gorden Canyon area to Pleasant Valley. Once they hit the main east-west trail, they turned left toward Hole in the Rock. The trail led straight off of a steep mountain. There were several switchbacks before they hit the bottom. The grade was about forty percent. The team was now beginning to show the rigors of the hard pull they had already made. They were acting docile, like any well-broken team, but Green Valley Sam hadn't forgotten the way they had acted earlier when they were trying to hook them to the sled. Several times he made them stop and breathe for a few minutes when they were strained and breathing heavily from a hard pull. By the way the crow flies, it probably wasn't over six miles from Bear Flat to the plane wreck. But the way they would have to go, it was probably ten or twelve. Slide off the mountain to the bottom of the Canyon at the Hole in the Rock. Let the men and animals take on a good cool drink of spring water, rest a little while and it was time to move out. The trail leading out from the Hole in the Rock was precarious and winding, narrow in places and skirting bluffs with ten to twenty foot drop. If the sled went over the edge and jerked the team over with it, it would be one of the gol darndest mix-ups a man ever laid eyes on. Sam could envision a tanglement of squealing, kicking mules and a snarling lion, all tied together by cage and chain. They were part way up the mountain when the sled became wedged against a rock. The mules made a couple of feeble pulls, and let up as though they were all in.

"Come on you bastards," Sam shouted, swatting them across the rumps with a rope. "You was acting awful damn tough this morning. Where's all that toughness now?"

The men had pried the sled partly loose with a pole. The mules made a half-hearted pull and gave up. The tarp was still around Leo's cage, shielding him from view. Sam raised the tarp. The mules turned their heads and saw the lion! Snorting shrilly they lunged in terror, loosening the sled and plunging wildly up the hill. If Sam hadn't had hold of the neck ropes, they would have no doubt pulled a runaway. So, all the rest of the trip, when the mules began having difficulty pulling the sled through a rough place, all Sam had to do was raise the curtain!

It had been a hard ride, all right, all agreed, but they were nearly home now. They had rimmed out from the Hole in the Rock, crossed Boscoe Flat, and skirted the side of Bull Tank Canyon. One more steep hill to go off and they would be home. They made it without incident down the last hill and through the back gate onto the meadow.

Sam drove the team across the meadow and up to the house and unhooked the tired mules. Word had spread fast in Payson. There was a sizable crowd there, all anxious to see the lion.

Martin Jensen had gone out into the meadow. Walking as fast as he could to match the long strides of Green Valley Sam, he was talking excitedly. "How is he?" he asked anxiously.

"Ornery as a damned lion." Sam said with a dry smile."

We're not sure who took this photo and haven't yet determined the exact POV of the photographer.

Above is the map that HAZ Founder Joe Bartels prepared for us.  The yellow line shows Joe's best guesstimate of the route between Bear Flat and the crash site area.  Joe was pretty close to reality!
The red line shows the approximate, probably route the pilot traveled on foot to reach Gisela.

Above is the actual most probable route between Bear Flat and the probable crash site area.
The far left end of the red line extends into Leo Canyon.  The push pin represents where the cowboys would have intersected a main east west trail.  The question mark shows the general vicinity of the crash site.

Using Frank Gillette's narrative in combination with both the 1937 Diamond Butte and Promontory Butte USGS topo maps were able to pin down two key points from Gillette's narrative  Notice how closely Joe Bertels guessimate coincides with Gillette's described points.  Our generalized red line map above alters the Bartels Map to account to blend in Gillette's description. 

The push pin on the map above shows where the cowboys would have intersected the main east-west trail in that area.

The push pin on the map above shows were the trail would have cross Bull Tank Canyon before beginning the steep climb up onto Mescal Ridge.

Finally above you can see how the trail traversed Mescal Ridge to reach Bear Flats.

Here is the main HAZ website:

https://hikearizona.com/

Here is a link to the amazing HAZ route mapping functionality:

https://hikearizona.com/map.php

And, if you're a HAZ member, here's the Forum topic used to obtain help on the project

https://hikearizona.com/dex2/viewtopic.php?p=134317#p134317

Many, many Thanks to Joe, HAZ and members.  HAZ ROX!

Crash Site

Image source; San Diego Air & Space Museum

The Flyin' Lion's crash site is located amid some of Arizona's most remote and rugged terrain in Upper Tonto Creek's infamous Hellsgate area.  As pilot Martin Jensen flew deeper into a narrowing canyon, he could see the Hellsgate rampart looming ever larger at the confluence of Tonto and Haigler Creeks.  Jensen knew his heavy plane could not fly over the cliffs and canyons ahead.  Jensen also knew there wasn't a flat spot to be seen.  So, he picked out the tamest looking terrain and made a snap decision to bring the Ryan B-1 Brougham down in a thicket of scrub oak trees deep in the yawning throat of a box canyon.

Aviation forensic experts will perhaps forever debate the "how" of Jensen's crash.  Some say he stalled the aircraft so that it dropped between the oak trees.  Others say he picked an open alley and plowed into the trees.  Whatever Jensen did, he somehow created a miraculous outcome for himself and the caged lion aboard.  Both survived.  Jensen went on to live a long, productive life and died at the age of 92.  The lion became MGM's first onscreen roaring mascot.  Both of those stories are for other blog posts.

This post looks at the crash site itself. Fortunately for future history buffs, The Tonto National Forest rather quickly renamed the crash site "Leo Canyon" in honor of the celebrity beast abound the ill-fated aircraft.  Leo Canyon is easy to find on old and modern USGS topographic maps.

 Above is a screen clip from the 1937 Promontory Butte 1:62500 USGS topo map

Above is a screen clip from the 1943 Diamond Butte 1:62500 USGS topo map.

Above is a screen clip from the 2014 Diamond Butte 1:24000 USGS topo map.

The above screen clip shows the general vicinity of Leo Canyon as see on Google Earth.

All USGS topo maps are sourced here:
https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/topoview/viewer/

The Short Story

America was in a Flying Frenzy in 1927. Charles Lindberg's solo trans-Atlantic flight in May of '27 created a genuine explosion of excitement and enthusiasm for practically anything to do with aviation.  Airplanes, pilots and their daring escapades were THE topic of conversation all across the Nation. No stunt was too wild.  No destination too far.  Everything seemed possible and it often was.

Meanwhile, Hollywood had already exploded and The Big 5 studios craved attention.  There was no such thing as too much publicity for the studios and their stables of stars.  Almost as soon as Lindberg touched down in Europe, anybody and everybody with something to sell or promote began scheming ways to use airplanes for their next big campaign.  Louis B. Mayer, MGM's founder, joined the crowd and told Director of Publicity Peter Smith to come up with an idea to showcase the company's trademark lion, Leo. It didn't take long to hatch a crazy plan to launch Leo The Flying Lion on a cross country trip.

MGM immediately contracted with B.F. Mahoney in San Diego to create a purpose built aircraft containing a large lion cage along with special milk and water tanks to keep the creature happy.

Meanwhile, MGM pulled another bold stroke and hired one of the world's hottest pilots to fly Leo eastward.  Martin (Marty) Jensen had just finished second in the historic Dole Derby, flying 2400 miles from Oakland to Hawaii on August 16-17, 1927.

Once MGM began publicizing the upcoming Leo The Flying Lion episode, animal welfare activists forced MGM to move the flying circus from Los Angeles to San Diego in order to avoid protesters.

 Amid much fanfare, Leo was loaded into his custom cage, Marty schmoozed with B.F. Mahoney and then bid his wife, Marguerite (Peg) farewell on the morning of September 16, just a month to the day when he took off on that incredible flight to Hawaii.

The Ryan B-1 Brougham single engine monoplane was far too heavily loaded for a successful flight. Details and verifiable facts get very sketchy following the 10:20 AM takeoff. Many accounts of the fated flight say the plane carried anywhere from 300 to 450 gallons of extra fuel.  Some say the plane was on a non-stop mission to New York. Even a cursory examination of the aircraft's probable load indicates it almost certainly was only carrying 83 gallons of fuel--the factory capacity built into the aircraft's design.  Some accounts say Jensen flew right past Phoenix.  Others say he stopped in Phoenix to refuel. As of 01/19/20, we don't have enough verifiable sources to say which scenario is most likely more true than others.  However, it doesn't much matter.

 For whatever reason only history knows, Jensen flew up the Salt River and into the Roosevelt Lake area of Tonto Basin.  Here he realized the plane was too heavy to clear the ominous Sierra Ancha Mountains looming ahead or the Mogollon Rim beyond.  So, Jensen took the path of least resistance and turned left to begin flying up Tonto Creek.

It didn't take long for Jensen to realize he was doomed and there was no way to get the aircraft to fly any higher.  Mid-September Arizona afternoons can be nearly as brutally hot as summer so the air had to be as thin as thin could be.  Jensen was a professional barnstormer and he knew how to make a plane do tricks.  Meanwhile he was famous for being fearless in the face of numerous near disasters.  He said he didn't get scared because if he got scared he'd lose his wits.  So Jensen kept his wits about him and picked out a unique box canyon in which to crash.  It's long since been named Leo Canyon in honor of the Flying Lion.  Even today, it's scary just to stare at a photo or maps of that canyon.  It lies in the heart of what's forever known as Hellsgate and remains one of Arizona's most rugged and remote landscapes.

Accounts vary on how Jensen staged his controlled crash in the canyon.  Probably the best description is that he purposely stalled the slow flying aircraft in a thicket of scrub oak trees.  As the plane then fell to earth, the wings were sheared off and the fuselage came to a test.  However, there are problems with that account--namely problems created by looking at photos of the crash site.  We think it's more likely that he picked an open "alley" amid the oaks and simply plowed in.  That's really the only way the wings could have been ripped off and not be visible beside the plane.  Also, the landing gear was ripped off and the engine was ripped from the cowling mount.  But those details don't really matter.

What matters is that by some inexplicable miracle both the pilot and the lion were alive and well.  Jensen had a cut on his forehead and the lion sustained a few cuts as well but nothing life-threatening.  Jensen was able to climb out a busted cockpit windshield.  He fed the lion some sandwiches he had brought along and dug out a .45 caliber pistol he had secretly smuggled aboard the plane.

And then he set out on foot to find civilization.  Trouble is that civilization wasn't very common in that area in 1927 and Jensen didn't have any maps or even a portable compass.  He knew he had passed over a ranch before crashing so that may be why he headed backwards on this flight path.  He didn't know that going to the other way could have reached civilization much sooner.

So the upshot was that Jensen stumbled around what's now officially known as the Hellsgate Wilderness Area for almost three days before finding some cowboys who took him under their wing, so to speak.  After being fed and allowed 12 hours of sleep, a local rancher took Jensen to the tiny village of Payson, population approximately 400.  There, Jensen was able to coax some other local cowboys into organizing a rescue mission to save the lion

Meanwhile, phone service either wasn't working or was unavailable so someone had to drive to Roosevelt Dam to call Hollywood and tell them about the situation.  Legend has it their first question wasn't about the condition of the pilot.  They barked, "How's The lion?" into the phone. MGM immediately dispatched some resources.

Boy and Sam Haught were the leaders of the cowboy congregation that set forth to rescue Leo.  The story of that rescue is a classic of the Arizona frontier genre and involves too much detail for this short story.

The cowboys cut down a forked tree and made a sled that they hitched up to a pair of freaked out mules.  They pulled the cage out of the aircraft and chained it onto the fork of the tree.  Whenever the makeshift sled would get stuck on an obstacle, the mules would refuse to pull any farther.  So, the cowboys would simply lift the tarp they had put over the cage and the mules would get a glimpse of the lion and flip out and run wildly forward, thus freeing the sled from whatever the obstacle was.

In just a few hours, the cowboys had Leo safely out of the wilderness but much work remained.  Leo's cuts had been attacked by blow flies that laid their eggs in the cuts.  The cowboys had to rope the lion to hold him down while they treated its wounds.  Being experts at treating cattle for similar afflictions, Leo was soon on the mend and completely healed.

After treating Leo, they drove the beast to Payson where he was put up in a large auto repair garage on Main Street. School was dismissed so the kids could cluster around and peer at the lion.  By and by, the Hollywood People arrived and took control of the situation.  They transported Leo down a rough road to Roosevelt Dam and thence down the Apache Trail to The Valley of The Sun.  Leo was put in a special train car and carried back to stardom.

Leo was the generic name for the MGM Lion.  The actual lion's name was Jackie.  Jackie became the very first lion to perform the now famous "roar" at the beginning of every movie.  Prior to 1928, the MGM lion did not have a speaking roar.  Jackie lived for many more years and was eventually sent to the loving care of an animal trainer in New Jersey.  When Jackie died, the trainer planted a pine tree over Jackie's grave "so the roots would hold that lion down."

Jensen and his wife went on to further fame in a variety of aviation endeavors.  Jensen revisited the crash site in 1961 and brought back the fabric from the tail.  He often proudly displayed the tail fabric for the remainder of his life.  He lived a long and happy life and passed on February 8, 1992 at the age of 92.

The Story of Leo The Flying Lion quickly became a local legend and ultimately a statewide story, too.  It has been told and retold countless times over the generations in the 93 years since it took place.

In the early 1980's an Arizona pilot heard the story and became very curious after learning the wreckage was supposedly still in Hellsgate.  In 1991 he was legally able to obtain ownership of the wreckage and removed it via helicopter to a hangar at the Prescott, Arizona, airport.  He has supposedly restored the aircraft and it is now purportedly located in McMinnville, Oregon.

Payson

Payson, Arizona, began life in the early 1880's and was called Green Valley. Around that time efforts began to obtain a post office.  Illinois Congressman Lewis Edwin Payson is said to have helped obtain a Post Office and therefore the community name was changed to honor his assistance. The Post Office opened in March 1884. (You can read more about Congressman Payson below the page break at the end of this post.) This photo is circa 1880's or 1890's and shows the east-west Main Street. The Pine Road is also shown coming in from the north.

Payson, Arizona, plays a prominent role in the Flyin' Lion Story.  Consequently, we're trying to understand what Payson might have looked like in 1927.  Historic photos of Payson from 1927 are few and far between so we're having to try to put some pieces together to interpolate a glimpse of Payson back then.

For starters, there weren't many people in 1927 Payson--probably around 400 and definitely not more than 500.  Also, Payson was very, very small and few outsiders wandered through on any given day.  It would have been a Very Big Deal for a renowned pilot to be brought into town trying to find help to rescue a stranded lion from Hellsgate.

Our first Payson project (after looking for old photos) was to determine the approximate size of Payson back then.  Unfortunately, there isn't a specific 1927 map of Payson.  However, there is a really good 1936 map of the community.  Considering that Payson wasn't growing during the Great Depression, it's a reasonable speculation that 1936 Payson would have looked a lot like 1927 Payson.

Comments are below each graphic.

Above is an enlarged snippet from the 1936 USGS Payson topographic map.

This graphic shows our map work space.  After selecting the 1936 topo we were able to zoom in on Payson itself and obtain the longitude and latitude of each of the points shown at the arrow tips.

Here are those long-lats.  The top arrow shows the Pine Road's ingress/egress to Payson. The left arrow shows the west end of Main Street.  The bottom middle arrow shows the approx. middle of downtown Payson on Main Street.  The right arrow shows the ingress/egress of the South Road.

And so here ya go.  We took the long-lats and put them on today's Google Map of Payson.  You can see the four points delineating Old Payson in context of the 15,000 population of New Payson.  Back in 1927 Payson would have been a very, very small rural ranching community.

We hope to find some 1920's photos of Payson to accompany this post.

Below the page break, you can read a Payson Roundup story about Congressman Payson.

Photo Files