Raymond Orteig Testimonial Dinner Program

This collection consists of a booklet entitled "Testimonial Dinner given to Mr. Raymond Orteig by his friends in appreciation of the great services he has rendered aviation in the United States and France […]" The booklet includes proceedings from that dinner and from the presentation of the Raymond Orteig $25,000 Prize to Charles A. Lindbergh at the Hotel Brevoort following his solo nonstop transatlantic flight from New York to Paris; an account of a dinner dance given by Mr. and Mrs. Raymond Orteig in honor of the Trustees of the prize; and the prize rules, regulations, and entry form.

Born in France, Raymond Orteig (1870-1939) emigrated to the United States as a child. As an adult he achieved social and financial success as the owner of the Hotel Brevoort and Hotel Lafayette in New York City, and was well-known in the local Franco-American community. Enthralled by Alcock and Brown's transatlantic flight in 1919, Orteig put up a purse of $25,000 to the first aviator to fly nonstop from Paris to New York or New York to Paris. Orteig made his offer good for five years, but five years came and went without anyone accomplishing the feat; in 1926, Orteig extended the term of his offer for another five years. On May 21, 1927, Charles Augustus Lindbergh (1902-1974) successfully completed the first solo nonstop transatlantic flight in history, winning the Orteig prize by flying his Ryan NYP Spirit of St. Louis (r/n N-X-211) 5,810 kilometers (3,610 miles) between Roosevelt Field on Long Island, New York, and Paris, France, in 33 hours, 30 minutes. When he landed at Le Bourget Field in Paris, Lindbergh became a world hero who would remain in the public eye for decades. Following his historic New York to Paris flight, Lindbergh and the Spirit of St. Louis returned to the United States aboard the USS Memphis, arriving at Washington, D. C. on June 11, 1927. Two days later, on June 13, he flew in the Spirit of St. Louis to New York City where he was honored with a tickertape parade. Celebrations continued on June 14 with the "WE" banquet at the Hotel Commodore sponsored by the Mayor's Committee on Receptions. On June 16, Raymond Orteig presented the prize check to Lindbergh during a tea held at the Hotel Brevoort. Later that evening Lindbergh proceeded on to a dinner held in his honor at the Hotel Waldorf-Astoria by the Aeronautical Chamber of Commerce of America. The Hotel Brevoort, located on Fifth Avenue between 8th and 9th Streets, New York City, was demolished in 1954. Colonel George W. Burleigh, Vice-Chairman of the Raymond Orteig Prize and emcee of the testimonial dinner, was the great uncle of the donor.