Nottingham remembers British Pioneer James Sadler

The first successful balloon flight in Nottingham, UK has been remembered with the unveiling of a commemorative plaque.

Two hundred years ago this month renowned British aeronaut James Sadler launched a balloon from a site on Canal Street, which now houses the Fellows, Morton & Clayton pub, and travelled 32 miles in just one hour.

It was a momentous occasion in ballooning history and was of particular interest to enthusiasts, because artist Richard Bonington drew a sketch of the balloon flying over the Nottingham skyline, which was later printed and duplicated around the world.

On Saturday, balloonists from across the East Midlands came together to see the £300 plaque officially unveiled by the Sheriff of Nottingham, Councillor Ian Malcolm.

Among them was David Hartland, 65, who had travelled from Derby to be there. Mr Hartland owns his own balloon in Derbyshire and has been flying them since 1972.

He said: “It was a remarkable flight, and I’m delighted that we are able to remember it in this way. As a balloonist, I know that 32 miles in one hour is actually quite quick. It must have been a quite a windy day.”

The event also attracted Ian Hooker who is the chairman of British Balloon and Airship Club.

Mr Hooker, who used to be a lecturer in law at Nottingham University, gave a speech before thanking the Nottingham Civic Society for its work in organising for the plaque to be put up.

He said: “I hope this plaque allows us to understand and appreciate our cultural heritage. It is a fascinating bit of history, that will now be forever remembered.”

The world’s first balloon flight took place in 1783 in Paris and it was some 28 years before Sadler’s attempt in Nottingham.

There was another attempted balloon flight, which took place on The Forest Recreation Ground on July 4, 1785, by a man recorded in the history books as a Mr Cracknell.

His gold and silver balloon struggled to inflate and after seven hours of watching, the crowd grew restless and chased away Mr Cracknell and set fire to his gas-making apparatus.

via – Nottingham Post.