Howard's Early History Of The NEDS
(put together in 2011 by Jim Knox from notes and photos supplied by Howard Ogushwitz)

Keeping in mind that I alternated flying models (5 to 10 years) with going off and flying full-sized aircraft (5 to 10 years), depending on where my jobs took me and what I was doing, this is what I remember.

We had an early youth modeling club in Willimantic CT in about 1938 called the Windham Model Aero Club.  It was for rubber powered models. Bill Bacon was a member of this club and would remember more than I do because I went off to study aeronautics at NYU in New York.  We have records of this club's activities in Model Airplane News magazine of April, 1938 (page 57)*.

Another local group of model enthusiasts (Ray Hamel, Larry Shaw, Paul Lambert, Dick Spenser, Walter Bub and others) met at Recreation Park in Willimantic. They had gotten permission to put on a control line flying demo at the park in the summer of 1950. A month later my sons and I had built a gas-powered control-line model, and we found that this group had scheduled another session at the park.  We joined them. We crashed, and we started discussing the formation of a club.

NEDS was formed in 1952, about 6 years after I left the service in 1946. The "North East Drone Society" or "New England Drone Society" was named by Ray Hamil.  The Founding Fathers were Ray, Larry Shaw, Paul Lambert, Howard Ogushwitz, and Walter Bub. Some of the earlier members included Dan Spencer, Gene Abel, John Drum. It started as a free flight, control line, gas and rubber powered group and slowly went to radio control. NEDS became an incorporated, non-profit organization around 1967 (one of our members was a lawyer).  Our papers of incorporation were signed by the late Governor Ella Grasso when she was Secretary of State.  Some of the incorporators were Larry Shaw, Ray Hamel and Walter Bub. One of our bi-laws stipulates that to be a member, or to fly with our club, one must be a member of the AMA, which provides each member with liability insurance and has strict rules of safety.  We flew our model airplanes wherever we could do it legally and safely.

It was around 1959 that we got permission to fly in the Mansfield Hollow State Park at the ball diamond and picnic area at Engineer's Field.  The park was sparsely used at this time and so it was fairly safe.  We were getting into radio control but the equipment was not totally reliable so we were very careful.  In the early 70's we asked for the dam area we now use.  I think Ella Grasso (as Governor) was involved.  The Park Supervisor suggested the flood plain behind the Mansfield Hollow Dam. With the help of the Corp of Engineers, we laid out and improved an area to fly from and have been flying there ever since.  The club now mows and keeps the area clean, with no State expenditure for this. When other clubs moved in (model speed boats, sail boats, canoes), we all got together and worked out a yearly schedule that was given to the Park ranger.

There are two reasons for the odd-day fly rule in Mansfield. First, we had some complaints about noise from neighbors in Mansfield Hollow. Second, another complaint from a kid's parent. A youngster (12-15 yrs old) came on the field to watch activities and ask questions.  Our guys made stupid remarks.  The kid told his family who lived nearby.  A fight started over these complaints, and, after a Mansfield town meeting and some helpful phone calls by Governor O'Neill, who was a personal friend of the father of one of our members, Al Sepia, we negotiated a compromise having us flying gas power on odd days only.  The whole thing could have been prevented by "courtesy".  We might have done something smart like inviting families concerned to fly with us and try out the hobby. Otherwise, our use and care of the field has been impeccable for 55 years, and we have had no complaints from the Mansfield Hollow neighborhood since then.

As a result of that incident in Mansfield, a second field was offered to us in the Nathan Hale State Forest in Coventry for flying on the even-numbered days. The club began use of this field (Truman Meadows) by paying a rental fee of $300 per year, and we also maintained it.  It was agreed that quiet gliders and electric-powered planes may be flown on any day at both fields.

*(Jim's note: There is also a news article a month later in the Hartford Courant of May 22, 1938, saying that "Harold Ogushwitz of Willimantic was elected president of the Connecticut Model Airplane Association (presumably the state-wide club) at the annual spring meeting held at the Hartford YMCA." .. "Plans were discussed for the tenth annual meet, oldest one of its type in the country, to be held at Rentschler field."  .. "The affair will culminate with a dinner, at which Igor Sikorsky, world famous aeronautical engineer, will be the guest speaker."  Howard would have been 15 at the time he was elected! See photo.)