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 Summary

This single-item collection consists of an unused Mazer-Cressman cigar box color label (6.5 x 7.75 inches) commemorating Charles A. Lindbergh's solo transatlantic flight in the Ryan NYP Spirit of St. Louis (r/n N-X-211) on May 20-21, 1927.

 Biographical / Historical

On May 20-21, 1927, Charles Lindbergh literally flew into history when he crossed the Atlantic Ocean in his Ryan NYP Spirit of St. Louis, thus becoming the first pilot to fly solo and nonstop from New York to Paris. This flight made Lindbergh a household name and catapulted him into fame and celebrity. Objects of popular culture such as this cigar box label reflect the public adulation for Lindbergh and the powerful commercial response to his celebrity. The Mazer-Cressman Cigar Company Inc. of Detroit, Michigan (once a major United States cigar-making center) filed a trademark for this design with the US Patent Office in July 1927.

 Identifier

NASM.XXXX.0987

Date

circa 1927

Provenance

Robert Jaques, gift, 1973, NASM.XXXX.0987

Extent

0.05 Cubic feet (1 folder)

Archival Repository

National Air and Space Museum Archives

Related Materials

Related artifacts in the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum collection: Ryan NYP Spirit of St. Louis, A19280021000. Cigar Box, Lindbergh, King Collection, A20040295030.

Scope and Contents

This single-item collection consists of an unused 5-cent cigar box label (6.5 x 7.75 inches) issued by the Mazer-Cressman Cigar Co. Inc. (Detroit, Michigan) in honor of Charles A. Lindbergh's solo transatlantic flight in the Ryan NYP Spirit of St. Louis (r/n N-X-211) on May 20-21, 1927. The chromolithograph print, produced for Mazer-Cressman by the American Lithographic Co. (New York), features a right side view of the Spirit of St. Louis in flight over the title in a half-circle, with stylized illustrations of the cities of St. Louis and New York (USA) at left and Paris (France) at right.

Arrangement note

Single-item collection.

Rights

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.

Restrictions

No restrictions on access

Citation

"Spirit of St. Louis" Cigar Box Label, Acc. NASM.XXXX.0987, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

Topics

Aeronautics

Airplanes

Ryan NYP "Spirit of St. Louis"

Cigar boxes

Aeronautics -- Collectibles

Aeronautics -- Flights

Aeronautics -- Records

Type

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Cigar labels

Chromolithographs