One reference I 've come across to ballooning was in the "Iconography
of Manhattan Island" by Stokes, which in the "timeline" of day-to-day
history of NYC (interesting early "telegraph" between City Hall
buildings tried, for example) was in the early 19th century (181?
180?) in which it was recorded people were taking ballon rides inside
a large hall (See I. N. P. Stokes, "The Iconography of Manhattan
Island" (6 vol., 1915–28, repr. 1967).

The later "observation balloon sites" used successfully by the US Army
Signal Corps followed, though there is or was a "tradition" of tower
building by the American forces in the Revolutionary War hinted at by
historian Barbara Tuchman (In "The First Salute" 1988, where General
Washington watched the combined French and American forces cross the
Hudson River to march on to defeat General Cornwallis, leaving Admiral
Cornwallis' region in New York State) and some more local historical
sources hinted at (at the Valentine House within the current borders
of St. Joseph's Smeinary in Yonker, NY once slated for "forced" public
housing  building for Federal mandated low income housing
requirements, one could see to the Long Island Sound and over to the
Hudson River, (it's former mayor will run for Senator against NY State
Senator Hillary Clinton). Manhattan Island had a number of "fire
towers" also, vigilant for the scourge of wooden construction,
mandated out of existence by law, slate roofs replacing wooden ones
there. I suppose "tower" sites couild be considered "aerial resources"
too.