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ly interested in aviation and the two men began to combine their interests.  A.M. Herring, the early aviation experimenter, joined them for a time and jointly the trio planned and built an aeroplane at the Burgess boat yard during the winter months of 1909-1910. They called their first plane the "FLYING FISH" and made the initial short test hops at Plum Island on April 18, 1910 with Burgess and Herring piloting it in turn.  Additionally little jumps were made daily through the 21st, and on April 22nd Curtis made his first brief hop. They were all very encouraged.  The plane was a Biplane using a 30 H.P. 4-cyl. engine with pusher propeller.  Skids only were used for take-off and landing. As a result of their initial meager success it was decided Curtis should make a trip to Europe to study the latest aviation developments in France.  During June 1910 he visited the various French aeroplane and engine companies, bought a Bleriot Monoplane and took the American agency for Clement-Bayard aviation engines.

While Curtis was abroad Herring withdrew from the Burgess venture and as soon as Mr. Curtis returned, Mr. Burgess formed the Burgess Co. and Curtis, at Marblehead, Mass.
Incorporators were W.S. Burgess, Greely S. Curtis and Noble Clark.  Also while Curtis was abroad William Hilliard, a Boston auto race drive, started flying for Burgess, and flights of one to three miles were soon being made at Plum Island with the "FLYING FISH".  Such good progress was made during the summer of 1910 on their developments, that they progressed from Model A to Model C, which had landing wheels and used the 2-cyl. 30 H.P. Clement-Bayard French built engine Curtis had imported.  The company entered two planes in the first Boston-Harvard Air Meet, September 3-13 and Burgess and Hilliard made some flights. Also flying in this event were Walter Brookins, Ralph Johnstone, Glenn Curtiss, Charles Willard, Clifford Harmon and Claude Grahame-White of England.  In this even Burgess planes created much favorable comment for their fine workmanship and excellent construction.

During 1910 Curtis did some reporting for the early American Aviation magazines, first, while he was in Europe, concerning his travels and what he saw there, and later he covered the Boston-Harvard Air Meet events. Later that fall Claude Grahame-White ordered seven Burgess planes for his flying school in England as a result of his interest in their showing at the Boston Meet.  This was their first substantial order.  The planes built for this contract were known as the Burgess       Model E which resembled the French Farman and used the 50 H.P. French built Gnome engine.  The new "Greely Curtis Deflectors" were used on these planes, a new in-