William G. "Bill" Skelly, founder of the Skelly Oil Company came to be known as "Mr. Tulsa". In the 1920's he turned his business into one of the world's largest independent oil companies.
While his oil company was growing to be the largest in the world he was excited by airplanes and sponsored the Air Adventures of Jimmie Allen and Captain Midnight radio shows.
In January 1928 he purchased the Mid-Continent Aircraft Company of Tulsa, a firm that had experienced indifferent success in its attempts to manufacture airplanes. Renamed the Spartan Aircraft Company, it marked Skelly Oil Company's first departure from the petroleum industry.
The company was started as an aeronautical college and airplane manufacturer whose early production consisted of open cockpit, canvas bodied biplanes, used for flight training schools, sportsmen fliers, and fixed base operators.
The firm was soon manufacturing the Spartan, a two-place biplane noted for its stability and sturdy construction. The first aircraft produced by the Spartan Aircraft Company was the Spartan C3 open-cockpit biplane. Built in 1926 (first flight 25 October 1926), the C3-1 was the first of a series of variants of the design for flight schools, sportsman aviators, and Fixed-Base Operators (FBO).
To boost sales the company in 1929 established the Spartan School of Aeronautics to train prospective buyers of the aircraft. The company was known for the luxurious Spartan Executive aircraft produced in the late 1930s and early 1940s.
The economic depression strained Skelly's personal finances, and in 1935, J. Paul Getty purchased a controlling interest in the company from Skelly.
When World War II broke out J. Paul Getty tried to enlist, going directly to the Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox. Instead, Knox told Getty he would serve his country better if he helped manage Spartan Aircraft to help with the production of planes for the war.
After World War II, Getty ended aircraft production and converted the company to manufacturing trailers under the Spartan Manor brand — made a variety of trailers from single-axle models to huge mobile homes that were beautifully crafted, subsequently ending all production in 1961.
Spartan Aircraft Company
