website watertownhistory.org
ebook History of Watertown, Wisconsin
Daniel Brandenstein
1983
07 19 It's been a long wait for Walter and Peg Brandenstein, but
it's nearly over as final planning is underway for next month's Space Shuttle
mission that will send their son around the earth every ninety minutes. Commander Daniel Brandenstein, a member of
the United States Navy, will be the pilot for the next flight of the Space
Shuttle Challenger, scheduled to be blasted into orbit in the early morning
hours a little less than one month from now.
WDT
08 04 No one has ever landed a space shuttle at night, but Cmdr. Dan Brandenstein will have to do it on his first flight. He says it shouldn’t be too difficult. Brandenstein, the Watertown native who will pilot the Aug. 30 shuttle flight that will take off and land at night, said in a recent pre-flight press conference: “The big thing is the night lighting system. We went through a great deal of work, and a lot of people helped us develop this night lighting system. Other than that (it will be dark), it’s a typical shuttle approach.” WDT
08 13 Watertown has a second claim to fame in the Space Shuttle program. First, of course, is Dan Brandenstein, a native of this city, who will be commander of the next mission, scheduled for about 2 a.m. on Aug. 30. But the second is a piece of equipment manufactured in Watertown which is aboard all shuttle flights. The item is a boot liner which is used by all astronauts. The liner goes inside the space boot which is part of the space suit used on all missions. The firm which manufactures the liners is Reiss Industries, 319 Hart Street, a relative newcomer to the Watertown industrial scene, but fast becoming a leader in the field of specialized products made from urethane. WDT
08 30 CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Watertown native Daniel Brandenstein piloted Space
Shuttle Challenger into orbit early today in a spectacular night-time
launch. The six-day mission of
Brandenstein and four other astronauts was delayed by 17 minutes by a heavy
thunderstorm. Lightning crackled around
the shuttle just prior to the scheduled 1:15 a.m. Watertown time launch. National Aeronautics and Space Administration
officials said earlier that lightning, but not rain, could prevent Challenger
from beginning its mission. The storm
quickly moved down the coast, and Brandenstein started the ship on its course
at 1:32 a.m. Watertown time.
09 02 CAPE CANAVERAL,
Fla. - Challenger's astronauts guided their ship 54 miles nearer to Earth today
to test how samples of future space materials can stand up under constant
bombardment by participles of atomic oxygen.
More than 300 different samples, from paints to telescope lens coatings,
were being exposed to the eroding effects of the hurtling particles. Commander Richard Truly and pilot Dan
Brandenstein fired Challenger's maneuvering engines to drop the orbit from an
altitude of 193 miles to 139 miles, steering the shuttle into the upper regions
of Earth's ozone layer where there is a sea of atomic oxygen molecules.
09 13 “I thought the flight would be a great one,
and it really was. I wasn't disappointed,” Commander Dan Brandenstein said of
his mission as pilot on the shuttle mission which returned to Earth on Labor
Day. The Watertown native talked with
the Daily Times via a telephone
conversation from the Johnson Space Center in Houston on Tuesday afternoon. That was the first day the media was allowed
to talk with the astronauts who were on this last shuttle mission. Brandenstein said he and his fellow crew
members were kept quite busy during the six-day flight, but said when he did
have time to look at the view afforded on the flight “it was fantastic.” WDT
11 01 Dan Brandenstein hopes he will be given the opportunity to
command future space shuttle missions and possibly work aboard a permanent
space station. Brandenstein revealed his
aspirations during a press conference this morning at Riverside Junior High
School. He then presented a program to
students in the Riverside gymnasium in which he talked about his space flight,
showed a film taken on board Challenger during the flight and answered
questions from the audience. WDT
11 04 A dinner attended by city and school
officials, veterans groups and special guests was a fitting conclusion to the
two-day visit to Watertown by Commander Dan Brandenstein. The dinner was held in the cafeteria of
Riverside Junior High School and was hosted by the Watertown City Council and
Watertown Board of Education. Over 200
invited guests attended the dinner. Brandenstein
was the focus of attention as he presented gifts of items flown in space to the
city and school district, and also received special honors from various groups,
the city and the school district. WDT
11 22 Astronaut Dan Brandenstein Selected Commander
Astronaut Dan Brandenstein, who in a visit to
Watertown just two weeks ago expressed a hope that he could command a shuttle
mission in the future, got his wish on Thursday. Officials at the Lyndon B. Johnson Space
Center, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, announced that he had
been selected commander of a shuttle mission tentatively scheduled for October
of 1984. Brandenstein, who was the pilot of a shuttle flight
which began on Aug. 30 and concluded on Sept. 5, was in Watertown on Nov. 1 and
2 to tell of his experiences on that flight. WDT
1984
02 17 WASHINGTON
- President Reagan says he will recommend promotions for four space shuttle
astronauts, including Navy Commander Daniel Brandenstein who will be nominated
for promotion to captain. The promotion
would elevate Brandenstein, 40, to a rank equivalent to that of a colonel in
the United States Army and Air Force. He
is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Brandenstein, 1415 Center St., Watertown, a
1961 graduate of Watertown Senior High School and a 1965 graduate of UW-River
Falls. He piloted the space shuttle
Challenger during its Aug. 30 to Sept. 5 mission and is scheduled to command a
shuttle mission tentatively scheduled for October of 1984. Brandenstein currently resides in Houston,
Texas. WDT
05 14 Watertown
native Captain Daniel Brandenstein will be honored Saturday, May 19, as he
receives the 27th annual Billy Mitchell Award in Milwaukee. The honor, sponsored by the Billy Mitchell
chapter of the Air Force Association of America, “is awarded to an outstanding person
connected with aerospace achievement in the future of space and its
development.” The recipient must also
have ties with Wisconsin. Brandenstein,
41, recently received his promotion to captain as a result of his piloting of
the space shuttle Challenger during its flight last Aug. 30 to Sept. 5. WDT
1985
05 07 Comedian
Mel Brooks once said it's a lot more fun to be king. Being the person in charge
can have its advantages, but some jobs are characterized by such awesome
responsibilities that tend to take some of the fun out of being the man at the
top. Watertown native Daniel
Brandenstein will be that man when he commands NASA Discovery Space Shuttle
Mission 51-G, scheduled for a daylight liftoff on June 12. Brandenstein will land the shuttle at the
Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Fla.
The mission will be the 25th NASA shuttle launch. WDT
06 17 NASA
Shuttle Discovery rocketed into orbit today with five American astronauts, a
French test pilot and a Saudi Arabian prince for a mission that will include a
“Star Wars” laser test and a hunt for a “black hole” in space. The Mission 51-G crew is being commanded by
Watertown native Daniel C. Brandenstein making his second shuttle flight. Brandenstein, 42, is the son of Walter and
Peg Brandenstein, 1415 Center Street, Watertown. Walter and Peg drove to Cape Canaveral and
attended the liftoff this morning from a site approximately 3 1/2 miles from
the launch pad. WDT
1986
04 12 Traveling
throughout Wisconsin and discussing space shuttle flights certainly cannot be
as exhilarating as actually orbiting the earth, but Capt. Daniel C. Brandenstein seems to excel at whatever task is at
hand. Brandenstein,
a Watertown native, is visiting his hometown today, addressing various schools
and civic groups. He no doubt encounters the same types of questions at every
stop he makes on his public speaking tour, which will conclude in River Falls
on Friday. Public support for the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s shuttle program has not declined
since the explosion of the Challenger on Jan. 28, Brandenstein
said. That mishap resulted in the
deaths of all seven crew members. “Everybody’s been very supportive. They
realize that the accident was obviously a very tragic event, and we’re trying
to not let it happen again.” WDT
10 28 U.S.
Navy Capt. Daniel C. Brandenstein’s speech in Oshkosh
on Nov. 8 will be part the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s
effort to maintain public support for the shuttle and program. Brandenstein, a Watertown native, will discuss the future
of the space shuttle when he is the guest speaker at a noon luncheon at the
Radisson Hotel in Oshkosh on Nov. 8. He will address the Wisconsin Aviation
Trades Association’s 43rd annual convention and trade show. Brandenstein
will only be in Oshkosh for a 90-minute visit, which will be his first to
Wisconsin since he toured the state in April. “It’s always good to get home.
Unfortunately, I don’t get a chance very often,” Brandenstein
told the Daily Times Tuesday. WDT
2009 40th
anniversary of lunar landing recalled
Cross References:
2010 Agnes
‘Peg' Brandenstein
Agnes “Peg” M. Brandenstein, 96, of
Watertown, passed away Tuesday morning, July 13, 2010, at Marquardt Memorial
Manor in Watertown.
Funeral services will be held on Friday at 11
a.m. at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Watertown with the Rev. David Groth
officiating. Burial will take place in
Lutheran Cemetery, Watertown.
Relatives and friends may call to pay their respects at the church on Friday from 9 a.m. until the time of the service.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed
to the church.
The Hafemeister Funeral Home is serving the
family.
The former Agnes Margaret Holzworth was born in
Watertown on Jan. 19, 1914, daughter of Alvin and Bertha (Zastrow)
Holzworth. On May 10, 1941, she married
Walter C. Brandenstein at St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Watertown. Walter preceded her in death on Dec. 22,
2005.
Peg attended St. John's Lutheran Grade School
and was a 1932 graduate of Watertown High School. She had been employed as a medical assistant
for Dr. Robert Baldwin in Watertown.
Peg was a charter member of Good Shepherd
Lutheran Church and was involved in various church committees. She enjoyed helping people, baking and
cooking.
Survivors include her two sons, Daniel (Jane)
Brandenstein of Houston, Texas, and Robert (Kathleen) Brandenstein of St.
Louis, Mo.
Also preceding her in death were her parents and a sister, Edna Vehlow. Peg was the last member of her immediate family.
