Temple, Bell County
Pioneer commercial aircraft developed by engineering genius George W. Williams, who with Roy Sanderford, George Carroll, and his brother E.K. Williams, formed Texas Aero Corporation in 1927. The firm obtained (June 23, 1928) Approved Type Certificate No. 45 of the U.S. Department of Commerce, to make and sell the Temple Monoplane. Primarily designed for airmail, this craft was equipped for night flight - an innovation in that era. Despite successes, plant closed after 1929 Wall Street crash and death on Aug. 15, 1930, of George Williams in a student training disaster. (1970)