Thomas Morse S4-B Scout - The History Center in Tompkins County Exhibit Hall

The Thomas-Morse Scout on display in The History Center was donated to the Ithaca Aviation Heritage Foundation (IAHF) in 2010 by Dr. William Thibault. It was restored by volunteers over ten years under the direction of the IAHF, and flew an celebratory 100-year flight over Ithaca on September 28th 2018. The plane was moved into the Tompkins Center for History and Culture during the spring of 2019 and is on permanent loan from IAHF to The History Center in Tompkins County.

A single seat biplane, the Scout served as an advanced trainer for students graduating from dual control trainers. Students nicknamed it the "Tommy." The Scout on display is serial number 4358, production number 183. Designed as an advanced pursuit trainer the S4 Scout was used extensively by the Army Air Corps as a trainer for those pilots going "over there" to fly in World War I. Nearly 600 were manufactured in Ithaca during the War years.