Virgil “Gus” Grissom: Apollo I Astronaut from Indiana
In July 1969, the world watched as American astronauts landed on the moon. They left behind several mementos to commemorate the occasion, including a patch listing the names of three American astronauts who died tragically in the nation's quest to reach the moon: Roger Chaffee, Ed White, and the leader of the team, Hoosier astronaut Virgil “Gus” Grissom.
“He had the dedication, the experience, and the patriotism to give up his life for the American space program. That's something that should not be forgotten; it should be remembered always,” says historian and author Ray Boomhower.
Grissom grew up in a modest home in tiny Mitchell, Indiana. One of his most cherished childhood memories was when he was introduced to a local barnstorming pilot who, for a small fee, would take residents for a ride. Grissom had no money, but gladly traded his prized BB gun for an opportunity to soar high through the Hoosier sky.
“It was a way for him to escape from perhaps some small-town life, to have this thrill of getting an airplane ride when most kids his age didn't have that same advantage as he did. I think that really encouraged him, perhaps one day, to be a pilot himself,” Boomhower states.
By 1950, Grissom had a degree in mechanical engineering from Purdue University and was a fighter pilot serving in the Korean War, completing 100 missions over enemy airspace.
“Gus was a good pilot. He had a very even keel,” Boomhower describes. “That's a characteristic of any pilot; you have to have a cool character and keep calm in pressure situations.”
The Space Race, Project Mercury and Project Gemini
Boomhower explains, “On October 4th, 1957, the Soviet Union really shocked the world, and particularly Americans, by announcing that they had launched the first artificial satellite, Sputnik, into space. It engendered a crisis of confidence in the American public.”
Priorities within NASA, the fledgling American space program, were suddenly launched into high gear, and they began reaching out to several of the country's top pilots, including Gus Grissom.
“This puts the astronauts in the spotlight and puts a lot of pressure on them, particularly for Gus's mission into space, which happened in July 1961,” says Boomhower.
During NASA's initial Project Mercury program, Grissom was scheduled for a 15-minute test flight aboard a vessel he named the Liberty Bell 7. The test was a success, but as military helicopters descended to rescue the ship and Grissom, the hatch of the capsule suddenly blew off, causing thousands of gallons of seawater to flood the ship.
“More and more water is coming in the space suit. He’s losing his buoyancy. Luckily for him, that other helicopter comes by, throws him a line, winches him out of the water and gets him aboard,” describes Boomhower.
Some in the press looked to blame Grissom for the blown hatch, though most with NASA never held him directly responsible.
In less than five years, Grissom would again be chosen to head one of NASA's next biggest initiatives, Project Gemini.
“The Gemini III mission went off really without a hitch, and the astronauts were lionized,” Boomhower explains. “They went to the White House. Gus was honored for being the first person to fly in space twice. They had ticker-tape parades in New York and Chicago.”
The Apollo I Fire and Its Legacy
By the start of 1967, NASA announced its next phase of space exploration with the launch of the Apollo Program, the initiative that would eventually land astronauts on the moon. Along with fellow astronauts Ed White and Roger Chaffee, Grissom ran a series of ground tests aboard the Apollo I space capsule on January 27th, 1967.
“While all this is going on, there's a scuffed electrical wire in the miles of all this wiring in the spacecraft that's been chafed, and there is an open wire. Suddenly, something happens: it sparks. In that pure oxygen atmosphere, under pressure, the tiniest thing like that can cause a blazing inferno, and they die on the launchpad,” says Boomhower.
“Without Gus’ sacrifices and the sacrifice of Ed White and Roger Chaffee, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins could not have made it to the moon and back, as they did in July 1969,” Boomhower explains.
In June 2022, leaders from NASA joined the families of Grissom, White and Chaffee to dedicate a new historical marker at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, D.C., a memorial that pays tribute to the Apollo I crew and their contribution to one of the greatest scientific accomplishments in history.
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The above video is a clip from Journey Indiana from WTIU. You can watch more segments and full episodes at pbs.org/show/journey-indiana/
