Grand Champion 2023

Gone West: John Ryburn Bowden

Passed: February 19, 2011

John and Glenna Bowden have been very good Antiquers and long time members of the Texas Antique Chapter. Born December 19, 1929, John passed away February 19, 2011. He was 81 years old.

He operated Deer Pasture Airfield. He hosted two fly-ins a year; Bluebonnet and Deer Pasture. John loved to restore antiques and started with a Stinson 108, then a Taylorcraft. John first attended the Denton fly-in in a C-182, then later purchased a C-1Curtiss Robin in Missouri and brought it to Deer Pasture. It was powered with a Challenger engine and was named Texas Lady. Texas Lady was restored twice and is still hangared at Deer Pasture. Then a red WacoYKS was purchased and John restored it. John then bought an Ingram-Foster, Curtiss Pusher which was restored by John and Ray Kidd. We got to see the engine run at Deer Pasture Airfield. No buyers could be found in Texas, so it is displayed in the Albuquerque Airport Terminal.

After flying Bob Landrum’s Cessna 195, he bought one of his own. He later bought a Waco Custom Cabin, which he restored with the same original color scheme. He then bought a Beech Staggerwing, which he completely restored. He re-stored a number of Cessna’s and a Piper Comanche. His pride and Joy is the Curtiss C-1, which he found to be a refueler and it was painted Texaco Red with a fuel door. In 1937 John got to see Douglas “Wrong Way Corrigan” take off after repairing his broken fuel line. John also flew many of these planes to Antique Airfield in Iowa.

Thanks to John for sharing his spirit of Aviation with us.

Joe Haynes

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