Two photo albums of rare Marine Corp aviation from1925-1927 were rescued from a dumpster in Eugene, Oregon and donated to the National Combat History Archive. The photographs were taken by a Marine Corp pilot and range from his experiences in China, Haiti and Nicaragua to a wide range of experimental aircraft. "This is an incredible find", said Gary Mortensen, President of the National Combat History Archive". "We have pictures of the USS Langley and Saratoga, America's first two aircraft carriers, shots of such noted personalities such as President Hoover, General Pershing and a young Captain Billy Mitchell as well as such an exotic array of aircraft that even our experts are stumped".

Mortensen estimates the collection at over 900 photographs and says the pictures are in remarkable condition given their age and recent experience in the dumpster.  "We see this every day" Mortensen added, "These important historical documents are being casually discarded". 

In 2007 the National Combat History Archive launched the "Veterans Legacy Preservation Project" with the goal of preserving, aggregating and digitizing these rare historical images with the intent to share the images online and at no cost with students, veterans and researchers.