Coats in Harnett County, North Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)
Alton Stewart
1897-1929
Photographed by Robert Cole, June 8, 2010
1. Alton Stewart Marker
Erected 2005 by North Carolina Office of Archives and History. (Marker Number H-113.)
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Air & Space • Entertainment. In addition, it is included in the North Carolina Division of Archives and History series list. A significant historical date for this entry is December 25, 1929.
Location. 35° 24.308′ N, 78° 40.343′ W. Marker is in Coats, North Carolina, in Harnett County. It is at the intersection of South McKinley Street (State Highway 55) and West Hamer Street, on the right when traveling south on South McKinley Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 190 S McKinley St, Coats NC 27521, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in North Carolina’s Coastal Plain and in the Piedmont. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Upper South. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the original Thirteen Colonies, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 8 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Campbell University (approx. 3.8 miles away); Campbell House (approx. 4½ miles away); Paul Eliot Green (approx. 4½ miles away); Smiley's Falls (approx. 6½ miles away); Dunn High School Sit-Ins (approx. 7.2 miles away); William C. Lee (approx. 7½ miles away); G. B. Cashwell (approx. 7.6 miles away); Cornelius Harnett (approx. 7.8 miles away).
Also see . . .
this page online
1. Waymarking: Alton Stewart (H-113) Coats, NC. (Submitted on June 8, 2010, by Cleo Robertson of Fort Lauderdale, Florida.)
2. News Release: Pioneers of Aviation tells the stories of Tar Heel inventors, daredevils, etc. (Submitted on June 8, 2010, by Cleo Robertson of Fort Lauderdale, Florida.)
Additional commentary.
1. Alton Stewart
Alton Stewart developed his interest in flying at Camp Braggs Pope Field, during World War I. About two years after the war he began flying regularly and, from 1924 to 1929, worked with Curtiss-Wright Flying Service in Raleigh. He often gave public exhibitions and became one of the best-known pilots in the state. Press accounts of the period give Stewart considerable credit for popularizing aviation in the state.
Ben Dixon McNeill of the Raleigh News and Observer documented his exploits. McNeill wrote the story of Stewarts death in a crash in Dunn on Christmas Day of 1929. The newspaper paid tribute to Stewart with an editorial page drawing captioned “He died in mans conquest of the air.” In his story McNeill wrote that Stewart was “the first North Carolina pilot to be licensed by the Department of Commerce.”
The best evidence indicates that there was no national or state agency certifying pilots in aviations earliest days. When such authorization
Photographed by Robert Cole, June 8, 2010
2. Alton Stewart Marker
Northward view of marker along South McKinley Street.
Family members have upheld the memory of Stewart. In 1968 they erected a tombstone in Coats bearing information about his 1926 license, certified by the “Federal Aeronautique International” and signed by Orville Wright. That document and other memorabilia since have been donated to the North Carolina Museum of History.
References:
(1) Dunn Daily Record, July 30, 1968
(2) Raleigh News and Observer, December 26, 1929; June 17, 1968; and March 10, 2004
(3) Thomas C. Parramore, First to Fly: North Carolina and the Beginnings of Aviation (2002)
— Submitted June 12, 2010, by Cleo Robertson of Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Photographed by Robert Cole, June 8, 2010
3. Alton Stewart Marker
Southward view of marker along South McKinley Street in Coats.
Photographed by Robert Cole, June 8, 2010
4. Alton Stewart Gravesite Headstone
Headstone located at coordinates 35.405496N 78.676481W within fenced area in cemetery closest to West Jackson Street.
Photographed by Robert Cole, June 8, 2010
5. Alton Stewart Gravesite Headstone
"1st. licensed aviator in North Carolina. 221st licensed aviator in U.S. License signed by Orville Wright."
Photographed by Robert Cole, June 8, 2010
6. Alton Stewart Gravesite Headstone
"Broken Wings, 1929. Alton Stewart. He died in man's conquest of the air. Alton Stewart, May 29, 1897, Dec 25, 1929."
Photographed by Robert Cole, June 8, 2010
7. Alton Stewart Gravesite Headstone
United States of America
LICENSE ISSUED TO
Mr. ALTON STEWART
Place of Birth DUNN, N.C.
Date of Birth MAY 29, 1897
Orville Wright
Contest Committee Chairman
----
Year of 1926
F.A.I. Certificate No. 6387
Origin of Certificate N.A.A.
Type of Air Craft – Aviator
Signature of licensee
Alton Stewart
License No. 221
Valid until December 31st of the
year of issuance
Photographed by Robert Cole, June 8, 2010
8. Alton Stewart Photo
Photographed by Robert Cole, June 8, 2010
9. Aviation mural painted for the 2005 Centennial Celebration
Commemorative painting of Alton Stewart's achievements to aviation history and to the local community on a building in downtown Coats along South McKinley Street.
Photographed by Robert Cole
10. Max Hayes Beasley's Memorial Mural
Building in Coats where Mr. Beasley painted his memorial to Alton Stewart.
Photographed by Robert Cole
11. Plaque on Mural
Born Here * Lived Here * Died Here
Mr. Garrett Love assisted Mr. Beasley on this mural.
Al Stewarts Family
Credits. This page was last revised on April 7, 2023. It was originally submitted on June 8, 2010, by Cleo Robertson of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. This page has been viewed 1,906 times since then and 24 times this year. Last updated on April 5, 2023, by Michael Buckner of Durham, North Carolina. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. submitted on June 8, 2010, by Cleo Robertson of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. 10, 11. submitted on June 10, 2010, by Cleo Robertson of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. • J. Makali Bruton was the editor who published this page.
