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The aircraft shown here was owned by Nantucket Lumber Co. It is a Fairchild C-119 built in Hagertown Maryland and delivered to the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station in Cherry Point, NC. It also saw duty in Miami, Minneapolis, and Seattle. It was also stationed at the Naval Air Station in Lyautey, Morocco while assigned to VMR-252 where the squadron furnished logistical support to Marine ground forces during the 1958 crisis in Lebanon.
After being released from the military, it served as a lumber freighter. During this period, it hauled the lumber to Block Island, Rhode Island that was used in the movement of Southeast Lighthouse.
It is currently owned by the Mid Atlantic Air Museum where it is still maintained in flyable condition. It is believed to be the only airworthy C-119 in the United States today. This museum is located in Reading, Pennsylvania where it, along with numerous other aircraft are displayed for the educational benefit of the public. By the way, if you are interested, I give guided tours at the Museum every Tuesday between 9:30am and 4pm.
This story appeared in the
April 1996 edition of Lighthouse Digest Magazine. The print edition contains more stories than our internet edition, and each story generally contains more photographs - often many more - in the print edition. For subscription information about the print edition, click here.
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