To view items in this collection, use the Online Finding Aid
Rutha Luella Curtiss (b. 1881) was the younger sister of Glenn Hammond Curtiss. When she was 6 years old, she fell victim to meningitis, and although she recovered, she lost her hearing in the process. Glenn helped her with finger-spelling and lip-reading and in 1889 the family moved to Rochester so that she could attend the Western New York Institute for Deaf Mutes. In 1897, Rutha became a boarding student there when her family moved again. When she graduated, she continued at the school as a teacher until 1915 when she married Augustus Hesley. In 1918 the couple moved, with Rutha's mother Lua Curtiss, to California. When Lua later decided to move to Miami, she again persuaded Rutha to join her, this time leaving her husband to do so, although the two were never actually divorced.
NASM.XXXX.0690
Curtiss, Rutha
bulk 1909-1910
Unknown
0.05 Cubic feet ((1 folder))
National Air and Space Museum Archives
This collection is a diary kept by Rutha in 1909 while she was teaching at the Institute. She often mentions her brother Glenn and his activities.
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests
No restrictions on access.
Rutha Curtiss Diary, Accession XXXX-0690, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.
Aeronautics
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Diaries