Banknote signed by fellow travelers, common during WWII
A short snorter is a
banknote inscribed by people traveling together on an aircraft. The tradition was started by
Alaskanbush flyers in the 1920s and spread through the
military and
commercial aviation.[1][2] During World War II short snorters were signed by flight crews and conveyed good luck to soldiers crossing the Atlantic.[3] Friends would take the local currency and sign each other's bills creating a "keepsake of your buddy's signatures".[4]
The General
Hoyt Vandenberg short snorter was started in June 1942 flight over the mid-Atlantic. The
Harry Hopkins short snorter was collected on July 25, 1942, by an aide of
Franklin D. Roosevelt at a London Conference. The D. Ray Comish short snorter was collected January 1943 at the
Casablanca Conference by Dixie Clipper. The
Averell Harriman short snorter was collected by him at the January 1943 Casablanca Conference as well. The General
George S. Patton snorter signatures were also collected at the Casablanca Conference. The Yalta short snorter signatures were collected on February 4–11, 1945 by Steve Early at
Yalta, on the
Crimean Peninsula.
Etymology
Merriam-Webster defines a short snorter as either "a member of an informal club for which a pilot, crew member, or passenger who has made a transoceanic flight is eligible"; or "a piece of paper money (as a dollar bill) endorsed by short snorters as a membership certificate for a new member."[5] "Snort" is slang for a "mixed drink,"[6] and "short" specifies less than a full measure.[7][8]
According to a November 2002 article in The Numismatist, "About 100 years ago, a 'short snort' was a slang expression for less than a full shot of liquor. Pouring short snorts guaranteed barkeepers a little extra profit in each bottle. Also, drinking only a short snort allowed the imbiber to honestly point to his moderation. Years before federal aviation regulations, pilots discovered that alcohol and airplanes do not mix, and fly-boys who drank heavily did not live long. Soon, pilots jokingly were calling each other 'short snorter'."[9]
History
The tradition is believed to have been started in August 1925, by
Bush pilots in Alaska, United States,[7] spreading through the United States military during World War II. When the short snorter was signed, the collector would have to produce it upon request, if not, they are bound to give the signer a drink.[1][7] Short snorters sell on
eBay and at other auction venues.
During World War II reunions, short snorters were often compared by veterans. John McGarry, executive director of the Lakeshore Museum Center in Muskegon, Michigan, said that every short snorter is "unique because every soldier's story is different."[10][11]
The Short Snorter Project
In March 2009, Thomas Sparks founded The Short Snorter Project, an American
501(c)3 tax-exempt
nonprofit organized and registered in
Washington "for educational purposes" pertaining to short snorters.[12] One aspect of the Project's mission is "to illuminate the Short Snorter and those associated with the tradition and provide a means to educate the general public about these artifacts brought home from the war."[13]
A
Fiji 5 shilling note is another example of a short snorter owned by
Eleanor Roosevelt and signed by Maj. Robert Arnoldus. This same short snorter was later signed by Col.
Ed Whitcomb, another of the first class of celestial navigators, class 40-A, taught by Charlie Lunn of Pan Am airlines in Florida. That first class also included celestial navigator 2Lt Louis Gustav Moslener, Jr, one of the first American casualties of WW-II when the first bombs fell on Hickam Field, 7 Dec 1941.
Marlene Dietrich short snorter
The actress
Marlene Dietrich had a short snorter consisting of 83 pieces of currency signed by more than 1,000 dignitaries including Irving Berlin, Ernest Hemingway, and George S. Patton.[22] This short snorter was sold at auction for $5,200 on November 7, 2017.[23]
First Experimental Aircraft Association short snorter
The first short snorter in
Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) history was signed by founders
Paul Poberezny and Stan Dzik and presented to Robert D. Blacker on February 14, 1958, at
St. Rita of Cascia High School in Chicago, in order to commemorate Mr. Blacker's creating the organization's first junior chapter, his co-founding of
Project Schoolflight, and his building of both the "Spirit of Cascia" Baby Ace and the
EAA Biplane airplanes.[24]
Space-flown snorters
Numismatic souvenirs have accompanied astronauts on early
spaceflights.[25]Mercury astronauts carried small light-weight
mementos on their missions, often in the form of US coins or banknotes. On the first
sub-orbital flight (
Mercury-Redstone 3),
Alan Shepard carried with him four one-dollar
silver certificates which were subsequently signed by him, other Mercury astronauts, and support staff.
John Glenn, piloting the first manned U.S. orbital spaceflight
Mercury-Atlas 6, also carried several one-dollar silver certificates.
Space-flown numismatic items are also known for early
Gemini missions. On the first manned Gemini flight (
Gemini 3),
Gus Grissom and
John Young brought 50 two-dollar bills.[26]
^Marotta, Michael E. (November 2002).
"Short Snorters: Keeping the Memories Alive"(PDF). The Numismatist. Retrieved 7 October 2013. Haunted by the specter of war and the uncertainty of their fate, young soldiers, sailors and airmen forged an unbreakable bond, not of steel but of paper money.
^"THE SHORT SNORTER PROJECT". Corporations Division - Registration Data Search. Washington Secretary of State Corporations Division. 26 March 2009. Retrieved 7 October 2013.
^"Short Snorter Project, The". Charitable Solicitations Program Charity Profile Report. Washington Secretary of State Charities Program. 26 March 2009. Retrieved 7 October 2013.