Wyoming Pronghorn Flew to Germany on the Hindenburg in 1936

Have you heard the story of the two pronghorn antelope flying on the Hindenburg?

It sounds like a joke, but it really happened in 1936 when Wyoming rancher Charles J. Belden sent two pronghorn fawns to a zoo in Germany aboard the zeppelin Hindenburg.

In July of 1936, a Wyoming rancher and photographer named Charles J. Belden flew 83 pronghorn antelope fawns to zoos along the east coast. Two of the pronghorn were flown from Lakehurst, New Jersey to a zoo in Berlin, Germany aboard the airship Hindenburg.

Belden received $100 each for the pronghorn, which he had raised at the Pitchfork Ranch in Park County, Wyo., feeding them cow's milk to make them tame and used to humans. He had bundled the fawns up in gunny sacks to take them on their trip.

He hired local aviator Bill Monday to fly the pronghorn in his Ryan Monoplane. News of the trip was picked up by the wire services and articles appeared in publications including Time Magazine.

According to the Wyoming Almanac, the trip also set a speed record for sending animals that far-60 hours from the Pitchfork Ranch to Berlin.