This is the seventh in a series.

In October 1923, Ocean County was planning for one of the biggest events in its history.

During the past five years, the village of Lakehurst had been transformed from the site of a secret chemical weapons testing facility to the focal point of the nation’s fascination with lighter than aircraft, known as dirigibles. During that period the largest building in the world had been erected, and inside Hanger #1, the first all-American dirigible, the ZR-1, was assembled.