Robert Bracken Arts & Culture Wall Of Fame

Robert was born in Midland, Ontario, on June 15, 1950 and resided in Niagara Falls for over fifty
years. Robert attended Stamford High School and Brock University. He worked for James Studio
for many years and his hobby was model airplanes.
Robert has always had an avid interest in Canadian aviation and in 1985 he decided to write a
book in recognition of 2nd World War Spitfire fighter pilots and ground crew, which had never
before been documented.
Robert became a member of the Canadian Air Force Association and an associate member of
Canadian Fighter Pilots Association. These groups had lists of membership with names and
addresses, which he interviewed for his books. Realizing time was of an essence to gather this
information he went about documenting all he could for future reference.
Over the next ten years Robert located, contacted, and personally interviewed many of these
veterans. He recorded personal stories and collected photos never before seen even by
historians. Several of the pilots were from Niagara Falls, and in doing this project he was able to
reunite several pilots with the planes which they flew.
Several years into the research he realized that one book would never be enough and that a
series of 3 would be his goal. In 1995 Spitfire Volume 1 was published and in 1999 Volume 2. He
finished his third manuscript shortly before his death on September 29, 2008 which remains at
the publisher.
Robert's interest in Spitfire's led to a significant contribution to the City of Niagara Falls and to
Canadian aviation history.