MILWAUKIE, Ore. – For decades, a B-17G sitting atop what was once a gas station has been one of Milwaukie's most talked about, and perhaps most visited, icons.

But these days the famous airplane, dubbed the "Lacey Lady," is deteriorating fast – and the owners realize that, if they want to preserve this unique piece of local history, something has to be done.

Over the years the elements have taken a heavy toll on the World War II airplane that has long drawn attention along Southeast McLoughlin Boulevard.  The B-17's metal is now corroded, parts are either damaged or missing and the nose is visibly absent, having been removed so it could be restored. 

"The only reason why we've left the plane up there at this point in time is because it's so expensive for us to come up with suitable, secure storage," said Jayson Scott, who is the grandson of the late Art Lacey, the businessman who brought the B-17 to Milwaukie back in 1947. "We haven't wanted to bring it down and have it where people would be able to just go and pick over what remaining parts we still have."

Then there are the birds – dozens of them have taken roost on the old relic and have made both the inside and outside of the airplane their home.

"All of our attempts to go out there and remove them from the plane have not been particularly successful," said Jayson. "They're very persistent."

'It can't stay out there'

The Lacey Lady has definitely seen better days. However, the family that owns what has become their legacy hopes to someday bring it back to its original glory and maybe even send it up in the air once again.

It's a daunting task, to say the least, especially for a family who also runs the popular Bomber Restaurant behind the B-17 and who curates the next-door museum dedicated to preserving war-time memorabilia.

But they believe in what they are doing and are committed to the project.

"It can't stay out there," said Terry Scott, Jayson's wife and co-owner. "It's not going to last much longer. It has got to be restored."

And so the non-profit Wings of Freedom Project was born – an effort to return the Lacey Lady to her original condition and preserve both a part of World War II history and the community's longstanding icon. It's a project that will take time, though, and a lot of hard work and patience.

"We have been working very hard with all of our planning," said Jayson. "We have a board of directors in place. We're doing all of our strategic planning for how we want to conduct this."

The nose section of the plane has already been removed and worked on. It now sits in the Bomber Museum where folks can see it up close.

"We focused on this portion of the plane initially because it was the most compound, complex part of the plane to start with," said Jayson. "Everything either begins or ends there."

The next big priority for the family is to find a suitable place to house the plane so they can bring it down, get it out of the elements and start the rest of the restoration process.

"We have a lot of people who have expressed an interest that they would like to volunteer their services towards the plane but nobody wants to work on it up in the air," said Jayson. "It's only 12 feet in the air but when you're up there in the plane, it's like you might as well be 1,200 feet in the air. It's just not a safe work environment. It's difficult to climb around." 

The entire restoration will likely take years to complete. Jayson and Terry said even if they had all the money in the world and everything they needed to get the project done, it would probably still take them at least a decade. 

The difficulty lies in part with how the B-17s were made during the WWII era.

"Not everything was as precisely machined and engineered as how we do things today," Jayson explained.

For example, one guy might have drilled holes for a door on a B-17 in one spot and another guy working on another B-17 might have drilled the same holes in different spots. That makes it tough when you're trying to match up parts.

"And also in the field when they would assemble them, if they could find a quicker way – even if it was called out for in the plans to route this wire or this hydraulic tube one way – if it was faster or easier for them to do it another way then they just did it," said Jayson.

Another problem is just being able to find the parts. It's not like you can just go down to the neighborhood parts store and grab what you need off a shelf. Jayson said he spends a lot of time searching for parts, some of which can run into the tens of thousands of dollars.

This project is also a huge learning process for the family and they readily admit that it's all very new to them.

"There are so many things you don't think about," said Jayson. "Just pulling a plane down and moving it - how you're going to do that and the steps involved and the equipment you need and how much money it's going to take and how much time and who's going to be doing what."

If You'd Like To Help

Money for the restoration project is being raised through a program called "Rosie's Rivets" where you can sponsor Lacey Lady rivets for $1 each. A minimum donation of $25 gets you a personalized rivet certificate made on stationary designed from a photo of the B-17's skin. Because Wings of Freedom is a non-profit organization, all donations are tax deductible.

• Rosie's Rivets Order Form (pdf)
• Send with check or money order to: The Wings of Freedom Project, 13515 S.E. McLoughlin Boulevard, Milwaukie, OR 97222

'I knew if I could come and be under the wings of the plane, I'd be safe'

"Growing up around the plane – it was just always here, you know," said Jayson. "It was a unique novelty and I never was that particularly close to it, although I loved airplanes and wanted to be a pilot and became one. But as time went on, (I learned) there's a lot more behind the plane than just the actual physical structure. It's really more about the people and their experiences and trying to do something to help preserve those memories and those life experiences."

He's not talking just about those who fought in World War II and maybe even flew a B-17 or rode in one. He's also talking about those in the local community who have their own memories of the Lacey Lady.

"And at that time we had fluorescent lights that were underneath the wings of the plane and it was just strictly for the gas station to light up the area – nothing to do with the plane," he said. "It was installed later. So anyhow, the little boy says 'Uncle so and so, what were those lights for?' And he says 'Oh, that was really, really important. That was a really top-secret thing that our government had back during World War II.' 'Oh really, well what did they use them for?' (the kid asked)."

"And he said 'well, what happened is the Americans did a lot of nighttime bombing,' which was totally inaccurate because everything was all daylight, 'and they would come in really, really low over the area that they were going to be bombing and they would flip the lights on at the very last minute and illuminate the target and drop all their bombs and then fly out of there," Jayson said with a little chuckle.

"And the little kid was oohing and ahhing and everything (and thinking) how brilliant his uncle was and all of that," he said. "And he didn't know the whole time that I was up there in the plane and could hear the entire conversation. I just cracked up and thought that was kind of funny. And there are so many tales that we hear that are along those lines."

There are sad stories too, including the one that nearly brought tears to Jayson's eyes as he told it.

"We had one woman who had been terribly abused by her spouse and my grandparents went down there to (see if they could help her)," he said. "She was sitting down there and she had just kind of a duffel bag and was sitting down there crying under the islands of the plane. And my grandfather went down and said 'Are you ok?' And she said 'No, I'm not.' She was waiting to be picked up by somebody that was coming to save her, basically. And so they (my grandparents) kind of bundled her up and got her some coffee and whatnot. And she sat there and said 'I knew if I could come and be under the wings of the plane, I'd be safe.' "

It's stories like that, the family says, that keeps them devoted to the project. They want to keep those memories alive, honor those who have served our country and be reminded of that unique period in U.S. history.

"There's a plaque in the restaurant that Art had made that says that this stands in honor of the men and women who valiantly served our country," said Terry. "And that doesn't just mean military people. When we were in that predicament, our whole United States came together as one. Even if we weren't for one, we acted like we were. And we had victory gardens in our flower beds and we helped each other and we had that 'all for one, one for all' attitude. And that plane reminds us of that."

'Everything in here belonged to a person'

Terry serves as the curator of the Bomber Museum, which is much more than just a spot to store items from the World War II era. It's a place where stories are told and memories are kept alive.

"Everything in here belonged to a person," Jayson said. "And like over here (pointing to a case), there's a map. In the bomber jackets, in the silk lining, they had a map that had one of Germany and one of Italy on the other side. So if they were shot down they could tear out the lining of the jacket and they could use it as a map. Well, the thing is, if you look at this one here, you'll look and see that there is burn marks in it. Well, the guy was shot down but the plane was on fire. And he survived and was able to take what was remaining of this map out of the jacket and it helped him escape from Germany."

Even something as innocuous as a white rock has special meaning.

"That white rock right there, that's a part of the White Cliffs of Dover and the man standing right behind it, Ed Armstrong, his plane was shot up terribly," said Jayson. "And they were going down and so they told everybody on board to throw – they were flying over the English Channel – to throw everything out, anything but yourself. And so they were throwing everything out of the plane because the plane was failing and they weren't sure they were going to make it. And he said 'I knew if I could see the White Cliffs of Dover, that we would be able to make it.' "

"And literally they broke – and it was terrible weather out, foggy and whatnot – and they broke out and they saw the White Cliffs of Dover, made it to the other side and crashed. I mean, it was basically a controlled crash landing," he said. "And so the first thing that he did was he literally climbed over the White Cliffs of Dover and broke off that piece of rock. He carried it with him all the rest of his life and then gave it to us."

"And it meant a lot to him," said Terry. "His wife had Alzheimer's so he was caring for her and he could see the end of his road coming. And so he wanted to have it in good hands. It meant a lot for him to give it to us."

Terry said Ed has since passed away.

'He was pretty crazy'

Art Lacey's daughter, Punky Scott, knows the story of her father's wild B-17 adventure well and recently sat down with KATU News to tell the famous tale. She said it all started at a party where her father, a local businessman, bragged that he was going to put a B-17 on top of his gas station.

"He was at his own birthday party in 1947 and he, I think, probably had a few adult beverages," Punky said with a laugh.

A friend promptly told Art he was absolutely out of his mind and could never pull it off. Art bet the man $5 he could do it and immediately ran with the idea.

"And so he turns to his friend Bob and says 'You got any money on you Bob?' And Bob says 'Yeah, how much do you need?' (And my dad says) 'I need $15,000.' And the guy had it on him," Punky said. "I don't know how that translates into today's money, but it's got to be a lot."

If it sounds surprising that someone back in 1947 would have that much cash on them, Punky said you have to realize what Portland was like back then.

"The whole area was wide open. There was gambling, there was prostitution, there was illegal booze – everything," she said. So Art got the money from his friend Bob and wasted no time on getting the ball rolling on his big plan.

"So he got acquainted with this guy who was the head of the base (in Oklahoma) and my dad was a real outgoing, personable sort of guy, easy to talk with," said Punky. "So he bought a B-17 and then the guy says 'now you go into town and you come out tomorrow, you and your co-pilot, and I'll have the plane ready for you.'

Art had two problems with his plan. For one, he didn't have a co-pilot and more importantly, he didn't even know how to fly a B-17.

But he was determined to pull the whole thing off. He borrowed a mannequin from a seamstress, dressed it up and and made it his 'co-pilot.' Then he hopped in the plane and made some practice runs on the runway with the manual in hand.

"He knew how to fly a single-engine aircraft and was a good pilot," said Punky, "But he didn't know how to do the big ones."

Art might have been able to fake his way through it if the plane's landing gear didn't malfunction. He was trying to land back on the runway when he ran into trouble.

"So he flew it around and finally he just had to bring it in. So he crash landed it and skidded in," said Punky. "He was flying it low and slow and skidded in and crashed it into another parked B-17."

Art wasn't hurt in the mishap but he did have to walk up to headquarters and admit that he really didn't know how to fly a B-17. Punky said the guy he talked to took pity on him.

"He turned to his secretary and said 'Have you written up the bill of sale yet on that B-17?' And she said 'No.' and he said 'Worst case of wind damage I've ever seen.' And so he sold him a second B-17," she said.

And that second B-17 actually turned out to be a better deal for Art.

"The first one that crashed had seen serious time during the war," said Punky. "It wasn't the best."

The one that Art ended up buying was in much better shape with under 50 hours of fly time. But he had already spent over $13,000 on the B-17 that he had crashed and he didn't have much money left. Fortunately for Art, the guy took pity on him once again and sold him a second B-17 for just $1,500.

"So he called my mom and had her send down two of his friends," said Punky. "And one was the guy who had taught him to fly in the first place and the other one had been a crew chief on a B-17. And he told her to send them down with a case of whiskey."

The whiskey, Punky explained, was to be used to bribe the local fire department. Art didn't have any money left for gas and he wanted to use their fire truck pumps to siphon fuel out of the two crashed B-17s. Oklahoma was a dry state at the time and whiskey was a good enticement.

"And so that's what they did and they fueled up and took off the next morning," said Punky. "They flew to Palm Springs, California and then bought gas. But he didn't have the money for gas there either so he wrote a bad check for it and covered it when he got home."

By this point you might be wondering what Art's wife thought of all this. But Punky said her mom was pretty cool with it all.

"I think she was used to it by that time," she said. "He was pretty crazy. Their whole married life, he was just one of those people that would do anything."

"Anyway, they got lost on the way home - lost in a snowstorm," she went on, adding that her dad almost hit a mountain during the flight and even flew low to the ground so they could see street signs and get their bearings. Through it all, they did manage to finally land in Troutdale.

"So they got it to Troutdale, dismantled it, put it on trucks and then he went to get permits to bring it here. And they wouldn't give him any permits because it was still too high, too long and everything was wrong," said Punky.

But by that time, Art Lacey was so far in debt there was really no turning back.

"So he hired a motorcycle escort for funerals," said Punky. "And the guys are in black leather and they put him out in front in the middle of the night and had two teenagers ride along with him. And he told them 'now if the police show up you burn rubber in another direction and they'll follow you.' And he told the trucking drivers 'you just keep going. I'll pay any tickets, just keep on going and don't let them stop you.' "

Punky said her dad didn't run into any issues with the cops, but she does remember hearing about a tipsy driver who probably got the scare of his life.

"McLoughlin Boulevard was a two-lane highway at the time and there was some guy that had been drinking.  And he sees this airplane coming at him in the middle of the night and he thinks he's on a runway. And so he cranks his wheel and goes off into the ditch and the plane goes on by," Punky said, laughing.

The B-17 made it to Milwaukie but it's hard to keep something that big a secret and it didn't take long for local officials to come after Art for not having permits. Punky said a local newspaper article helped him out.

"The Oregon Journal wrote up an article saying something to the effect of 'local government tries to keep bomber from final resting place.' This was right after World War II, so patriotism was running pretty high. So they ended up fining him $10 for doing what he shouldn't have done. And it's been in the area ever since."