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After an active 1914 summer season Minnerly and C.A. Herman rebuilt the Thomas flying boat at Bath,New York and then shipped it south for the winter at West Palm Beach, Florida. While there Minnerly also made a flight up the east coast to Daytona Beach with stops along the route, one at what is now Cape [[crossed-out]]Kenndedy [[/crossed-out]]Canaveral when it was a reed-covered sandy island. In 1916 Minnerly took a Nieuport plane, with rotary engine, to Guatemala where he engaged to fly it in the army of Estrada Cabrerra. His assignment was to fly regular sorties over rebel camps for reconnaissance and to drop homemade bombs into their area. His plane was underpowered and, with[[crossed-out]]his disposable leads[[/crossed-out]]the bomb loads was risky to fly. [[crossed-out]]which eventually resulted in[[/crossed-out]]led to a bad smashup when he was seriously injured, sustaining a fractured skull and a bad concussion.[[crossed-out]]Minnerly laid[[/crossed-out]]He lay unconscious in a Guatemala hospital for over a week, then slowly recovered and eventually got out of the country with his wife and baby just before the victorious rebels had an oppor- tunity to carry out their avowed threat to execute him. He returned to New York State where he was some time[[crossed-out]]recovering from his serious injuries. [[/crossed-out]]regaining his strength. At the beginning of World War I Minnerly tried to enlist in the Air service but was rejected to his continuing disabilities, so he went to work as a fore- man and Senior Factory Test Inspector on OX engines for Curtiss at Hammondsport, New York. Later during the war[[crossed-out]]period[[/crossed-out]]he was a civilian flying instructor with the Army signal Corps at Garden City, Long Island, New York. There when Minnerly [[crossed-out]]washed out[[/crossed-out]]refused to approve the solo efforts of the son of a well-known United States Senator from New York, the Army discharged him from the Service. After World War I Minnerly moved his family back to Missoul, Montana where he became a fireman for the Northern Pacific Railroad, later advancing to engineer, a position he held for some forty years before retirement on September 15th, 1960. In Montana Minnerly evidently continued to fly to some extent until about 1920 when he abandoned aviation entirely. Following several heart attacks Mr. Minnerly passed away on February 23rd, 1974, at age 84. He was survived by his wife, Marie, one daughter and one son. Burial was in St. Marys Annex Cemetery, Missoula, Montna. He was a member of the Loco- motive Engineers and Railroad Retirement Association. 3