Joseph Cordner: An early Irish Aviator

Swan writes of Cordner’s plane: “All components were manufactured locally except the engine, which came from London. It was carefully fitted and from the White Strand of Buncrana on an autumn day in 1908 the first flight was a success. It was over a shallow part of Lough Swilly. Cordner was accompanied on the flight by a youth named Frank McGuinness of Buncrana.

At further trials men who later were to be the millionaires of the aircraft industry came to watch from London. The British Government, too, had a representative present. But Mr Cordner made no money out of planes. He was interested only in the technical end.”

Building Aeroplanes in County Derry

As so often with good stories there are discrepancies. There is absolutely no doubt that Joseph Cordner was building aeroplanes in Derry and attempting to fly them in the time period 1908 to 1912. There is doubt, however, over the claim that he was the first Irishman to build and fly his own plane.

It is clear that Joseph Cordner did build a plane and fly it at Fahan, County Donegal as an article of the day on ‘Pioneers of Flight in Ireland’ which appeared in a Dublin newspaper, Lady of the House, dated 14 September 1912, carried a photograph of Joseph Cordner of Londonderry sitting at the controls of “his new monoplane at Lough Swilly, where he hopes to make a few flights this week.” 

The article goes on to say: “The earliest aeroplane constructed in Ireland was that designed by Mr Ferguson, the latest is the invention of a Londonderry gentleman, Mr Cordner, so that Ulster has been the earliest and latest in this department of the science.”

This would tend to confirm that, although Joseph Cordner was an early aviation pioneer, he was not the first Irishman to build and fly his own plane.

A Test Flight 70 Years Ago

In another newspaper article in Derry Journal, of 25 September 1981, with headline ‘A Test Flight 70 Years Ago’ there is a photograph, taken in 1911, of Jospeh Cordner sitting at the controls of his monoplane at Fahan, County Donegal (Figure 1). The article continues: 

“He built it at his bicycle shop in John Street. Although it crashed on its maiden flight, it succeeded in flying over 400 yards before the mishap which wrecked it.

The engine was of French origin, and most of the parts were made from bicycle frames. The peculiar triangular openings in the wings had flaps that could be adjusted to bank the plane from left to right, and these were fabricated in tin by the late Lester Jackson, who later designed and built motor cars. Mr Cordner did not fly the plane himself but had an Englishman called Pratt, who was an engineer, to do so. Pratt was injured in the crash by the piano wire which was used to support the wings and as far as is known did not fly again.

There is no mention of the flight in the newspapers of the time, as Cordner kept the flight secret, and had in fact sent the plane as ‘machinery’ by the Lough Swilly goods train to Fahan railway station where he collected it and took it down to the beach to assemble it.

The only witnesses to the flight were Cordner, Pratt and Harries, who had a photographic studio in Bishop Street at the time, and who took the picture of the plane.”

Harries refers to Ernest George Harries, photographer of 3 Bishop Street, Derry who died, at age of 56, on 7 August 1936 and is buried in Derry City Cemetery. He was born in Reading, England.

At Figures 2 and 3, published in Derry Journal of 17 June 1912, are an advertisement and further details of ‘Aeroplane Exhibition in Derry’ in which ‘an opportunity of viewing the aeroplane which has been designed and constructed by Mr Joseph Cordner, Royal Cycle Works, 5, John Street, Derry, will be afforded during this week and next.’ The public were invited to ‘Come and See Cordner’s Patent Monoplane at Bond’s Hotel Yard, Carlisle Road’ before it left Derry for Dublin.

Michael Clarke of Holywood, County Down, believes Joseph Cordner built three aeroplanes in Derry; the first plane was flight tested at Lisfannan, between Fahan and Buncrana, County Donegal c. 1909. He then modified the plane in his workshop at his home in Pine Street in the Waterside district of Derry and flight tested it in a nearby football field at Bond’s Hill.  

Memoirs of Joseph Cordner's son Edward - Emigrated to Australia

Finally, based on the memoirs of Joseph Cordner’s son Edward, who emigrated to Australia, Joseph Cordner then built a third plane around 1912 which he took to a field on Hyndman’s farm in townland of Campsey Upper, four miles northeast of Derry city. Many spectators came to watch. Seemingly when the motor started up, with the throttle open, Joseph Cordner had insufficient time to get into the plane. The plane started up with Joseph Cordner and his son Joseph hanging on to the wings and Edward hanging onto the rudder. As the plane started to rise they had to let go and the plane crashed into a tree.

Joseph Cordner was not a native of County Derry. He came to the city of Derry from Portadown, County Armagh to manage and set up a business making, selling and repairing bicycles. 

Derry as a place of enterprise and Opportunity

At the turn of the 20th century Derry was both a place of enterprise and opportunity, offering good employment prospects. Her growing industries attracted workers and families from outside the city and county of Derry. The 1901 census returns for Argyle Terrace demonstrate this; of 31 families living here, 19 of them had origins outside the city and county of Derry. Ten of the heads of households were born in Scotland, while eight had come from County Donegal. 

Derry was at the pinnacle of its prosperity in the first decade of the 20th century. In shirt making, shipbuilding and distilling Derry competed successfully with the rest of the world. In the 90-year period 1821 to 1911 the population of the city quadrupled to 40,780. In the 19th century, apart from Derry and Belfast, expansion was the exception rather than the norm within Ireland.

In this period Derry stamped her dominance over local rivals and emerged as an important urban centre within Ireland. In 1821 Derry was the 12th largest town in Ireland, by 1911 she was the 4th. In 1821 Derry was only twice as big as her rivals, Strabane and Coleraine, and 4 times the size of Letterkenny. By 1911 she was 5 times as big as Coleraine, 8 times the size of Strabane and 18 times the size of Letterkenny.

Brian Mitchell
Derry Genealogy 

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