In the 1980’s an aircraft pilot and mechanic in Caldwell, Idaho rebuilt a Jennie and covered it with Millar so that all the frame and wing and tail assembly could be seen. He exhibited it at various places, including Oshkosh. I don’t know what became of it. I believe a person could contact the Warhawk Air Museum in Nampa, Idaho and find out. By the way, The Warhawk Air Museum is one fine museum and one of Idaho’s hidden secrets.
Bill Cooper, e-mail, 07.07.2022 01:44
In the 1980’s an aircraft pilot and mechanic in Caldwell, Idaho rebuilt a Jennie and covered it with Millar so that all the frame and wing and tail assembly could be seen. He exhibited it at various places, including Oshkosh. I don’t know what became of it. I believe a person could contact the Warhawk Air Museum in Nampa, Idaho and find out. By the way, The Warhawk Air Museum is one fine museum and one of Idaho’s hidden secrets.
Lino Espinoza, e-mail, 10.01.2017 23:26
We love this plane at JBSA Randolph! To whom it may concern: We're gearing up for our 2017 Airshow. We will be incorporating a heritage theme. Q: How can I go about utilizing your Jenny aircraft images for this event. It is a non-profit DoD endeavor and the Jenny would go a long way to providing visual impact. Any help would be appreciated. Lino Espinoza Chief of Graphics JBSA-Randolph. 210.652-4581
Dan, e-mail, 06.09.2016 21:10
Mesmerized by The Jenny for over a half century of my life, I'm jus now starting construction on a Centennial tribute to the Famous JN-4HB of 1917. A tribute that heralds the origins of aviation, in the form of a modern, nostalgic and stylized, electric-assisted bicycle!!!
The slim "chopped" bicycle will feature a blocky frame (instead of round tube)with "a bigger motor" than current typical "e-bikes", angled double struts to reflect the Jenny's offset wing uniqueness, TWO inline seats (actually a passenger seat, uncommon in modern bicycles)and of course an authentic facsimile of "a training bomb" that will house the modern lithium battery for power(hence the "HB" designation for "hidden battery" or bombing trainer). Painted in the typical two-color motif, the flared rear fender will carry a larger, broader fender style that will bear the "flash" colors, and forward the typical roundel of the era, which will be reflected in the "fuselage" number, 1917. Oh, and "a single stick" shift controller not seen on bicycles today.
A unique "barnstormer" and showy bicycle, in a time when there exists little regulation in the new "e-bike" era. Show plaques will accentuate the details of the bicycle, and of course, the Famous and Historical JN-4H of a century ago. Many today will never see a "Jenny" in flight, but it should never be forgotten!!!
Ed Drury, e-mail, 17.02.2015 23:01
I have the history of one JN-4D. I have the prop , name plate, Canadian Name plate and several other plates from it. It crashed in 1922 on Sunset Hill in Staten Island, NY SN 7035 The "flying circus" it flew with is mentioned in my aviation book "Staten Island, the Other Cradle of Aviation"
Robert Sezniak, e-mail, 19.10.2012 21:32
We have an original Jenny radiator to Sell....772.209.9992...
Klaatu83, e-mail, 01.04.2012 15:06
IN 1916 a few early "JN" aircraft accompanied General Pershing's "Punitive Expedition" to Mexico in pursuit of Pancho Villa.
The twin-engine aircraft in the bottom photo was known as the "Twin JN". It was a one-off prototype, built by Curtiss, based upon JN-4 components and powered by two OX-5 engines.
Tom Everhart, e-mail, 13.10.2011 09:08
I am building a Jenny. So I am looking for Jenny parts and an "Original Data Plate", Pictures, info, OX-5 Parts and "What Have You". Can You "Help Me"? (502)422-3076 or deadstick51@gmail.com Thanks, Tom
choqing, 21.06.2011 07:25
The Jenny was generally used for primary flight training, but some were equipped with machine guns and bomb racks for advanced training. After World War I, hundreds were sold on the civilian market.
Bill Tugend, e-mail, 30.04.2011 14:22
My Dad, also Bill Tugend flew a Jenny in the 1920s. He told me many things about them. Some of which I understand better after reading this site. (I was a small boy at the time.) He claimed that 'Jenny' was a common term for JN-4. Pop had an incident which knocked out his two front teeth from kissing the cowling when flying into a pine tree due to a power failure on 'rural' Long Island. (Probably East Queens County or Nassau Co.) He had a flying buddy Named Roy Disbrow who was killed in a crash in a Jenny. (Possibly the same incident?) After that is when Dad settled down and married the woman who was to become my Mom in 1933. s/Bill Tugend
Bill Hendrickson, e-mail, 30.04.2011 01:08
To anyone interested in a good read, try to find a copy of "Jenny Was No Lady", by Jack R. Lincke. It is a very informative read and quite humorous in spots. It seems that Jenny was rather fickle. My wife's uncle may have perished at her hands. He was a pilot in training in the 1915-1920 timeframe.
Tony Gallego, e-mail, 26.02.2011 22:00
During WW-2 I flew the PT-17 Stearman,UC-78, B-25 and B-26. Of course I had the most fun flying the Stearmsn which looked much like the old "Jenny". My first plane ride as a kid was in a Jenny from a field somewhere around Slason and Garfield, LA. I new then that I wanted to be a pilot.
karl rogers, e-mail, 28.01.2011 14:49
my grandfather worked at the curtice plant in 1919 he was the lumber inspector .his name burr rogers he lived in lindsey ohio he told me his many experiences .
Rob Mulder, Norway, e-mail, 05.01.2011 08:25
Hi Anne, The word "Jenny" came from the type designation: J-N. People simple started to call it for the JN or Jenny. Cheers Rob
Tom Everhart, e-mail, 12.12.2010 06:13
There is a Jenny Project being Built in the Philippines for an American Owner. It is "Almost Finished" and is slated to be returned to the U.S. where it is going to be "Sold or Traded". Anybody interested?
John Potts, Jr., e-mail, 14.08.2010 20:09
Morton Wood --- The Liberty engine was never used in the JN-4 during WW1. It was far too powerful and heavy for the "Jenny" which was essentially a trainer. The Liberty engine, 400hp, was used to power the DH-4, a British Dehaviland design, manufactured in the U.S. It saw combat in France as an observation/light bomber. My father flew both of them and was training on the new, and first, American designed plane to be designed to be the pride of the U.S. in France, the Thomas-Morse Scout. This plane was intended to fill the mission of the French Spad and British SE-5 fighter planes. Unfortunately the Scout never made it to France as the war was over before it could be deployed. My father was terribly disappointed.
Morton Wood, e-mail, 10.08.2010 18:45
I always thought the liberty engine was used in the jenny . If not where was it used?
marber, e-mail, 03.03.2010 17:54
1915 - Glenn H. Curtiss comes to Buffalo and rents the Thomas Flyer Automobile Manufacturing Plant on Niagara Street. This is where he develops the R-model airplane which will be the forerunner of the famous Curtiss "Jenny." Curtiss soon moves to a plant he builds on Churchill Street. He also rents several other facilities and ultimately (1917) builds a 31 acre plant at 2050 Elmwood Avenue.
1916 - The Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company becomes the largest aircraft manufacturer in the world during World War I and goes public in 1916 with Curtiss as president. Curtiss employs 18,000 at its Buffalo facility and 3,000 at its Hammondsport, New York location. They produce 10,000 aircraft during World War I, more than 100 in a single week. The Curtiss "Jenny," America's most famous World War I airplane, was developed by combining the best features of the Curtiss "J" and "N" models. The JN-3 was modified in 1916 to improve its performance and redesignated the JN-4. With America's entry into World War I on April 6, 1917, the Signal Corps began ordering large quantities of JN-4s, and by the time production was terminated after the Armistice, more than 6,000 had been delivered, the majority of them JN-4D.
The Jenny was generally used for primary flight training, but some were equipped with machine guns and bomb racks for advanced training. After World War I, hundreds were sold on the civilian market.
jack L. Miller, e-mail, 18.02.2010 07:31
The Jenny that is at DIA, was, at its restoration completion, hung in the terminal at Stapleton, predecessor to DIA. The restoration was done by a dedicated team, led by my younger brother, Jerry M. Miller, who now resides in Grand Junction, CO
Vince McMahill, e-mail, 06.02.2010 18:06
Would like to know if there are any jenny-4 privately owned??
johndalek, e-mail, 24.01.2010 08:39
there is a terrific jn-4d hanging up in terminal 2 at denver airport. love to walk under that bird and wish i was up flying the thing--low and slow--all across america
Vance Whitwer, e-mail, 16.10.2009 16:45
This message is for Charles Dare. I have access to a picture of Gene Shank while flying at the Robbinsdale Airport. I tried to e-mail you.
Andres, e-mail, 05.07.2009 11:41
Hi!! I would like to receive the most complete information about Curtiss JN 4, but I don't know where to look for....does anybody have any idea?? Thank you very much
Douglas Grant, e-mail, 02.01.2009 18:57
Anne, I have not heard confirmation of this but it seems natural that the name came from the "JN" designation - easier and more personal to call it a "Jenny" than a JN-4.
Billy Shields, e-mail, 04.05.2008 23:21
You forgot to mention the Curtiss N9-M float plane, which is a Jenny with float's, if I'm not mistaken. You also missed in your line up, is the Curtiss F5-L float plane from the 1920's. I think you've got everything else covered!
Charles Dare, e-mail, 28.04.2008 19:25
My Dad acquired a Jenny in 1928 after losing my mother to illness and flew it for a year or two at Elk River, Minnesota before his remarriage, which apparently resulted in the end of his flying career. Taught to fly by a guy named Gene Shank in a Waco at the Robbinsdale Airport, he easily transferred to the Jenny, but said that sometimes he couldn't get it over 500 feet, probably because of atmospheric conditions or, perhaps, poor engine performance. He took me up once when I was 6, but the only impression I had was that the big gas tank was right in front of me. In 1945 I soloed in a Piper Cub and later bought an Aeronca Chief.
Anne Strome, e-mail, 13.12.2007 07:35
Why is the aircraft called "Jenny"???? Just curious. My dad soloed in a Stearman aicraft in the early 1930s. :) Thanks.
