Raymond Orteig (1870 – 6 June 1939) was a French American hotel owner in New York City in the early 20th century. He is best known for setting up the $25,000 Orteig Prize in 1919 for the first non-stop
transatlantic flight
A transatlantic flight is the flight of an aircraft across the Atlantic Ocean from Europe, Africa, South Asia, or the Middle East to North America, Central America, or South America, or ''vice versa''. Such flights have been made by fixed-wing air ...
between New York City and Paris, which was claimed by
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...
eight years later in 1927.
Early life and business activities
Orteig was born in 1870 in the village of
Louvie-Juzon
Louvie-Juzon (; oc, Lobier de Baish) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France.
See also
* Ossau Valley
*Communes of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department
The following is a list of the ...
in the region of
Pyrénées-Atlantiques
Pyrénées-Atlantiques (; Gascon Occitan: ''Pirenèus Atlantics''; eu, Pirinio Atlantiarrak or ) is a department in the southwest corner of France and of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Named after the Pyrenees mountain range and the Atlant ...
in southwest France. After spending part of his childhood looking after his father's sheep in the
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to ...
, Orteig emigrated at age 12, arriving in New York City on 13 October 1882 with 13
franc
The franc is any of various units of currency. One franc is typically divided into 100 centimes. The name is said to derive from the Latin inscription ''francorum rex'' (King of the Franks) used on early French coins and until the 18th centu ...
s in his pocket to join an uncle living in New York City.
He started working as a bar porter at Wengler's Restaurant on William Street on
Lower Manhattan
Lower Manhattan (also known as Downtown Manhattan or Downtown New York) is the southernmost part of Manhattan, the central borough for business, culture, and government in New York City, which is the most populated city in the United States with ...
.
Gaining experience, he moved on to a position as waiter and then as a ''
maître d'
''Maître'' (spelled ''Maitre'' according to post-1990 spelling rules) is a commonly used honorific for lawyers, judicial officers and notaries in France, Belgium, Switzerland and French-speaking parts of Canada. It is often written in its abbr ...
'' at the Martin Hotel on University Place on 9th Street, owned by Jean-Baptiste Martin. By the time Martin decided to move uptown in 1902, Orteig was in a position to buy the hotel, which he renamed
Hotel Lafayette
Hotel Lafayette, also known as the Lafayette Hotel, is a historic hotel building located at Buffalo in Erie County, New York.
History and features
It is a seven-story steel frame and concrete building designed in the French Renaissance style. I ...
. Together with a business partner, Orteig was also able to lease the rundown Brevoort Hotel on the northeast corner of Fifth Avenue and 8th Street in
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village ( , , ) is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street to the north, Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the south, and the Hudson River to the west. Greenwich Village ...
, and later refurbish it.
The Lafayette soon became a favourite gathering spot for airmen in the 1910s during and after
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
, and Orteig became acquainted with many of them, including French officers who were on temporary duty in the United States as advisors helping build the nascent
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Si ...
. After the end of the World War I, whenever he could, he and his family would spend the summer in Louvie-Juzon. This lifelong interest in the region of his birth lead to him expanding his business by the purchasing the Henri IV Hotel in the town of Pau.
By his mid fifties Ortieg was in semi-retirement with daily operations at his establishments managed by his three sons and his business partner, Elie Pierre Daution. In 1925 Orteig and Daution funded a $200,000 refurbishment of the Brevoort Hotel.
His support of many charities and causes made him a leading figure in New York City's French community. This led to him being made a Chevalier of the
Legion of Honour
The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleo ...
.
Orteig Prize
In 1919 he attended a dinner in New York City organised by the
Aero Club of America
The Aero Club of America was a social club formed in 1905 by Charles Jasper Glidden and Augustus Post, among others, to promote aviation in America. It was the parent organization of numerous state chapters, the first being the Aero Club of New ...
honouring the American
flying ace
A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...
Eddie Rickenbacker
Edward Vernon Rickenbacker or Eddie Rickenbacker (October 8, 1890 – July 23, 1973) was an American fighter pilot in World War I and a Medal of Honor recipient.Allied country to fly in one flight in either direction between New York City and Paris. The offer was made in a letter to Alan R. Hawley, then president of the Aero Club of America, on 22 May 1919. At the time, relations were strained between America and France because of the post-war negotiations at the Paris Peace Conference, so Orteig hoped that the prize would help improve relations between his adopted and native countries, as well encourage air travel and advertise his business. His offer was accepted by the Aero Club of America, who went on to set up a formal structure to administer it. The prize was initially set to be valid for five years.
After its original term had expired, Orteig reissued the Prize on 1 June 1925, by depositing $25,000 in negotiable securities at the Bryant Bank with the awarding put under the control of a seven-member board of trustees.
In May 1927, Orteig and his wife were on holiday in Pau, France, when he received a message from his son Raymond Jr that
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...
had departed New York City. Orteig immediately travelled to Paris, arriving just before Lindbergh's Spirit of St. Louis touched down at Le Bourget. He was able to meet Lindbergh at the American Embassy on 22 May 1927, eight years to the day since he had first offered the prize.
Upon his departure from Paris to Belgium, Lindbergh dropped a message of thanks to Parisians from his plane as he flew over the
Place de la Concorde
The Place de la Concorde () is one of the major public squares in Paris, France. Measuring in area, it is the largest square in the French capital. It is located in the city's eighth arrondissement, at the eastern end of the Champs-Élysées. ...
. The message was attached to a French flag. Upon being retrieved, the flag was presented to Orteig who displayed it on the wall of the Lafayette in New York, until his family later removed it in protest at Lindbergh's involvement in the America First movement in the 1940s.
Upon Lindbergh's return to America, Orteig officially presented the Prize to him on 16 June 1927 at a ceremony held in the reception hall of the Breevort Hotel in New York City. Over the preceding decade, the Orteig Prize is said to have become an inspiring incentive and marked a major shift in aviation progress during the late 1920s and early 1930s.
Orteig died on 6 June 1939 at the French Hospital in New York City after a long illness, with 500 people attending his funeral.
He was married to French American Marie Ruisquès, by whom he had three sons, Evariste, Raymond Jr and Jean. The two oldest children married daughters of his longtime business partner Elie Daution.Bak. Page 28.