Kevin Schindler

Historian & Writer
Kevin Schindler is the historian at Lowell Observatory, where he has worked for 28 years as an active member of the Flagstaff history and science communities. Schindler has given more than 1,000 presentations and written more than 600 magazine and newspaper articles on subjects ranging from local history and astronomy to baseball and the Lincoln Memorial, and contributes a bi-weekly astronomy column, “View from Mars Hill”, for the Arizona Daily Sun newspaper. Schindler has written nine books, including Historic Tales of Flagstaff (written with Mike Kitt). Fun fact: Kevin has both a fossil crab and asteroid named after him.

Contact: kevinsschindler@gmail.com

Kevin Schindler's Presentations

Arizona/Southwest History

Charles Lindbergh’s Arizona Legacy

As the world celebrates the centennial of Charles Lindbergh's historic solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927, it is an ideal time to explore the famed aviator's remarkable connections to Arizona. While Lindbergh is best remembered for flying the Spirit of St. Louis from New York to Paris, his influence extended far beyond that celebrated achievement and left a lasting mark on the Grand Canyon State. This program examines Lindbergh's Arizona story, starting with his memories of visiting Meteor Crater as a young man and including his September 23, 1927, visit to Tucson, just months after his transatlantic triumph. Landing the Spirit of St. Louis at the city's new municipal airfield, he was greeted by nearly 20,000 enthusiastic spectators, honored with a parade, and presented with a life-size cactus replica of his aircraft known as the Spirit of Tucson. The presentation also explores Lindbergh's role in advancing commercial aviation in Arizona, including helping map air routes and establish early airfields in communities such as Winslow and Kingman. In 1929, he and his wife, Anne Morrow Lindbergh, pioneered aerial photography of prehistoric Native American ruins and cliff dwellings across northern Arizona and the Four Corners region, contributing to archaeological research.

Arizona/Southwest History

(Mother) Road to the Stars: Rt 66 and its Space Heritage

Route 66 is one of the most storied roadways in North America, known for its roadside diners, historic hotels and kitschy attractions. But it also boasts an extraordinary space heritage; along its course lies the birthplaces of space pioneers, centers of space exploration and discovery, training grounds for Moon-bound astronauts, the best-preserved asteroid impact site in the world, site of a famous UFO sighting, and museums celebrating these cosmic connections. In honor of the upcoming centennial of Route 66, Lowell Observatory Historian Kevin Schindler will lead a virtual trip along the Mother Road and explore this space heritage.