Lindbergh Flight Featured in Class Project on 250th Anniversary of the City of St. Louis

By Mark Nankivil

 Miriam School Celebrates the 250th Anniversary of St. Louis On February 7th, Miriam School held a celebration honoring the 250th Anniversary of the Founding of St. Louis.  The 4th Grade Class chose to feature Charles Lindbergh and the Spirit of St. Louis, the aircraft Lindbergh flew solo across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927, in their class project.  Jack Nankivil,  4th grader and son of Greater St. Louis Air & Space Museum President Mark Nankivil, tackled the subject with energy and focus by researching the history of the Spirit of St. Louis, the origin of the aircraft's name and Charles Lindbergh's contribution to St. Louis aviation history from the 1920s onward. Jack took inspiration from the Spirit of St. Louis cockpit replica and display board presently on long term loan to the Greater St. Louis Air & Space Museum from the nearby Missouri History Museum when deciding on his contribution to the project.  He then created a replica of the instrument panel, incorporating opening doors with placards describing the various decisions Charles Lindbergh made in equipping his aircraft for its epic journey across the Atlantic. The classroom also included other photos and artifacts on display from the Greater St. Louis Air & Space Museum's archives and photo collection to give the children from the other classes at the school an understanding of Charles Lindbergh's accomplishment.

Well done Jack!



Jack Nankivil with his Spirit of St. Louis Cockpit Project

Classmates learn from Jack Nankivil's class project

Classmates learn from Jack Nankivil's class project

Memorabilia from Lindbergh's flight

Spirit of St. Louis cockpit replica in the museum

Display board with the cockpit replica explains its features

Jack Nankivil and Mark Nankivil in a Boeing 727 cockpit