For Immediate Release: August 31, 2009

Oakland History Room to Host Feng Ru: Conquering Pacific Skies 

An International Dialogue about Oakland’s Involvement
in the Dawn of Pacific Coast and Chinese Aviation

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(Oakland, CA)— In advance of groundbreaking for a monument commemorating the centennial of the first successful flight of a self-propelled, mechanized aircraft on the Pacific Coast – a feat accomplished by Feng Ru in the hills above Oakland – the Oakland History Room is presenting an evening in recognition of the flier and his lasting legacy to aviation in China. This event will be held on Thursday, September 17, 2009, at 6:15 PM, at the Oakland Public Library’s Main Library, 125 14 th St.

Feng Ru, known locally as Fung Joe Guey, designed and constructed an airplane in workshops in and around Oakland’s Chinatown that took him into the skies from a knoll above the hillside estate of local real estate magnate William Dingee in what is now the Montclair district on September 21, 1909. Local newspapers recognized the event as the first successful flight of an “aeroplane” on the Pacific Coast, a claim that would later be co-opted by other aviation pioneers, most notably Glenn L. Martin, founder of a major military aviation manufacturer in Southern California. Feng’s accomplishments were largely dismissed by the aviation community of his era, in large part due to his ethnic heritage.

Following his success here, Feng, born in Guangdong Province, China, was recruited to return to his birthplace where he launched the aviation industry during that nation’s transition into a democratic republic under political activist Sun Yat-sen.

The event will feature Roger Glenn, organizer of a local committee working to complete a monument, a talk by Steven Lavoie of the Oakland History Room on his research debunking claims to earlier success in the skies by other fliers, along with a live interactive videocast of scholars in Canada and patrons and experts in China, where Feng was recognized as “The Pioneer of Aviation” by Sun Yat-sen himself. The audience will be encouraged to communicate directly in this international dialogue. Interpreters will be on hand to bridge any language barriers.

The dialogue is part of a centennial commemoration of Feng’s first flight that is being recognized by the construction of a monument on the campus of Laney College that includes a bronze bust by Chinese sculptor Long Xiang, donated by the publisher of Qianjiang ( China) Evening News.

For further information about this event, contact Steven Lavoie in the Oakland History Room at 510-238-6571 or by email at slavoie@oaklandlibrary.org. For information about the Oakland Public Library, call 510-238-3271 or visit the Library’s Web site: www.oaklandlibrary.org. Please refrain from wearing scented products to library events. The Oakland Public Library is a department of the City of Oakland.