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Item Information     Who else has...     Unknown     Purnell, Louis R.     National Air and Space Museum     National Air and Space Museum (U.S.).     National Museum of Natural History (U.S.).     Department of Paleobiology (NMNH).     United States.     Tuskegee Airmen, Inc.     Museum curators     Museums -- Employees     Museum curators     Smithsonian Institution -- Employees     Air pilots     African American air pilots     African Americans

Louis R. Purnell, Jr., Curator of Astronautics, in Front of Airplane at NASM   Catalog:  Historic Images of the Smithsonian Title:  Louis R. Purnell, Jr., Curator of Astronautics, in Front of Airplane at NASM Date:  c. 1980s Author/Creator:  Unknown Contained In:  Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 9578, Box 1, Folder: 1 Summary:  Louis R. Purnell, 1920-2001, curator of Astronautics at the National Air and Space Museum, stands in front of an aircraft in the museum. Early in his life he was able to realize his dream of becoming a pilot when the Civilian Pilot Training Program was instituted on the campus of his undergraduate institution, Lincoln University. In 1942, he was accepted into the seventh class of African American Army Air Force aviation cadets stationed at the Tuskegee Army Air Field in Tuskegee, Alabama (the Tuskegee Airmen), and in 1943 joined the all-Black 99th Fighter Squadron. During World War II, he completed two tours of duty in North Africa and southern Italy with the 99th, and later the 332nd Fighter Group. After his return to the United States, Purnell worked with the Office of the Quartermaster General and the United States Book Exchange at the Library of Congress. In 1961, Purnell joined the Division of Invertebrate Paleontology and Paleobotany in the National Museum of Natural History. In 1968, he moved to the Department of Astronautics of the National Air and Space Museum. During his career in the Astronautics Department (renamed the Department of Space Science and Exploration in 1980), he progressed through the ranks from Museum Specialist to Curator until his retirement in January 1985. Usage:  Restrictions: No restrictions Physical_Description:  Number of Images: 1; Color: Black and white; Size: 5w x 7h; Type of Image: Person, Candid; Medium: Photographic print Negative Number:  SIA2008-3012 Ordering Information:  For permission to reproduce or publish, contact osiaref@si.edu or call 202-357-1420. To order reproductions, call 202-633-1933 or contact photos@si.edu. Digital Reference:  Digital Copies:  SIA2008-3012.tif, 600 dpi, Subject:  Purnell, Louis R. National Air and Space Museum National Air and Space Museum (U.S.). Dept. of Astronautics. National Museum of Natural History (U.S.). Dept. of Paleobiology. Division of Invertebrate Paleontology Department of Paleobiology (NMNH). Division of Invertebrate Paleontology United States. Army Air Forces. Fighter Group, 332nd Tuskegee Airmen, Inc. Museum curators Museums -- Employees Museum curators -- Washington (D.C.) Smithsonian Institution -- Employees Air pilots African American air pilots African Americans Contact Information:  Institutional History Division, Smithsonian Archives, 600 Maryland Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20024-2520, SIHistory@si.edu Copy/Holding information Catalog   Historic Images of the Smithsonian Add Copy to MyList Format: HTMLPlain textDelimited Subject:   Email to:

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