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NATCHEZ – James Biglane was the first pilot to fly in what is now the Natchez Balloon Festival, and on Friday evening he was recognized posthumously with a trio of honors.

Biglane, who died in July, helped found the Great Mississippi River Balloon race in 1986, and as a recognition of his legacy and lifetime leadership in the event, he was named the recipient of the “Spirit of David Steckler Award” during Friday night’s balloon glow event on the Natchez bluff.  The award honors faithful balloon race volunteers for their tireless efforts that make the race possible.

The award was presented to his family, and organizers recognized the “vision ignited and legacy that lives on” through the annual balloon race event.

In addition to the Steckler Award, organizers announced the renaming of the annual Friday night balloon glow after Biglane, and Mayor Dan Gibson presented the family with a key to the city in Biglane’s honor.

The first pilot

Biglane co-founded the event in 1986 with Cappy Stahlman and Ron Riches, both of whom also have passed away. In a Natchez Democrat article in 2013 recognizing Biglane as Citizen of the Year, friends Sammy Porter and Mimi Miller recalled that first balloon festival which has its roots in Biglane’s own enthusiasm for flying.

Porter had served as a member of the chase crew — the team that follows a balloonist from the ground —since Biglane first started flying.

“When (James) came home with his balloon license, he had a brand new balloon he had no idea how to fly, and I was chasing him all over the country trying to catch him,” Porter said.

But eventually he did learn how to fly the balloon, and what is now a given annual event started out as a casual idea in conversation one day. Stahlman and Biglane had been to a race in Arkansas, in a small town, and upon returning to Natchez found themselves wondering why they “couldn’t do something like that down here.”

Biglane approached HNF about working to get a race going, Miller said, but he was ultimately the one who made it work. With less than two months lead time, the first balloon race was organized.

“(HNF) could have spearheaded the race all we wanted, but it wouldn’t have gotten anywhere,” she said. “James offered for the bank to sponsor it. It was James’s personal love of ballooning and his desire to do something for Natchez that made the balloon race what it is, and the bank continues to be a major sponsor of it.”

And Biglane wasn’t just the force that helped the event lift off; he was the first pilot to ever fly in the Great Mississippi River Balloon Race.

“We had the first balloon race behind the Natchez Mall. It was so windy that I am sure if the Federal Aviation Administration had been there we would not have seen a balloon go up,” Miller said at the time. “Most people in Natchez had never seen a hot-air balloon up close, and James could not stand to disappoint the crowd. He took off, and the basket just went sideways.”

Only one other pilot flew that first weekend, but many returned in the following years and now nearly four decades later the third Saturday in October draws thousands of visitors to a weekend-long celebration of hot air ballooning in Natchez.

In addition to the Steckler award, balloon race organizers announced on Friday that the annual balloon glow portion of the weekend will be named in Biglane’s honor.

A visionary, patriarch and friend

Also on Friday, Natchez Mayor Dan Gibson presented the Biglane family a key to the City of Natchez.

“It is often quoted that ‘we stand on the shoulders of giants.’ There could be no greater example of this statement for Natchez than James Biglane,” Gibson said. “Mr. Biglane was a pillar to this community, one that will never be replaced. His accomplishments in business, historic preservation, and philanthropy will truly live on for generations to come.”

Describing Biglane as “a gentleman banker, visionary, patriarch and friend,” Gibson said the founding of balloon festival and of United Mississippi Bank are only part of his legacy.

“Through this event and through actions both personally and through his business, Mr. Biglane became a champion for both historic preservation and tourism,” Gibson said. “Through the efforts of James and Nancy, many properties are now preserved, including ‘Under the Hill’ on Silver Street, visited by thousands of tourists each year …

“Mr. Biglane’s legacy lives on in his loving wife Nancy, his son Denton, and his large family and many friends. It lives on also in our city. Take a walk by the former bakery that now houses UMB’s downtown Natchez branch. Dine or shop in the historic buildings Under the Hill and enjoy the views of our mighty river. Look across the river and imagine the hot air balloons that have dotted the autumn sky over the years making their flights toward the festival grounds at Rosalie. Consider the businesses and homes made possible by his many years of service. James Michael Biglane is the finest example of Natchez Strong – an inspiration we all should aspire to live up to.”