On This Day
More Happy Birthday
-
Happy Birthday, Nadine Gordimer, 1991 Winner of Nobel Prize in Literature
November 20, 2009 05:00 AM -
Happy Birthday, W.S. Gilbert, Operetta Librettist for "The Pirates of Penzance"
November 18, 2009 06:00 AM -
Happy Birthday, Martin Scorsese, Director of “Taxi Driver” and “Raging Bull”
November 17, 2009 06:00 AM
Associated Press
Happy Birthday, Amelia Earhart, Record Breaking Pilot Nicknamed “Lady Lindy”
July 24, 2009
Amelia Earhart set the gold standard for “enlightened feminism.” She was dubbed “Lady Lindy” because of her likeness to aviator Charles Lindbergh, and because her solo flight across the Atlantic was second only to his own. Although the mystery of her disappearance overshadows her life’s work, her artless charm, compassion and boundless daring endeared her to men and women across the globe.
Amelia Earhart’s Early Days
Amelia Earhart was born in Atchinson, Kan., on July 24, 1897, to Amy Otis Earhart and Edwin Stanton Earhart. Edwin, a railroad attorney, constantly moved the family across the Midwest. After high school Earhart enrolled at the Ogontz School, near Philadelphia, but decided to drop out to join the war effort in February of 1918; she began work as a nurse in Toronto. During this time, according to a Purdue University Library biography of Earhart, she grew interested in flying.
After World War I, Earhart attended Columbia University as a pre-med student but didn't finish, and, according to the Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum, moved to California at the request of her parents. It was here that she took her first ride in an airplane and scraped together money to take flying lessons. In 1922, according to the Amelia Earhart Birthplace museum, Earhart bought her first airplane: a used Kinner Airster. She became the first woman and only 17th pilot to get her National Aeronautics Association pilot's license in 1923.
After World War I, Earhart attended Columbia University as a pre-med student but didn't finish, and, according to the Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum, moved to California at the request of her parents. It was here that she took her first ride in an airplane and scraped together money to take flying lessons. In 1922, according to the Amelia Earhart Birthplace museum, Earhart bought her first airplane: a used Kinner Airster. She became the first woman and only 17th pilot to get her National Aeronautics Association pilot's license in 1923.
Earhart’s Notable Accomplishments
Amelia Earhart reached a level of public noteriety when, in June of 1928, she became the first woman to cross the Atlantic Ocean, albeit as a passenger to pilot Wilmer “Bill” Stultz and co-pilot/mechanic Louis E. “Slim” Gordon. She had been invited to join the flight by publisher George Palmer (G.P.) Putnam, and after the flight Putnam published a book written by Earhart about the event, “20 Hrs., 40 Min.” They married in 1931.
Earhart began breaking records with her flights, and in May of 1932 she flew solo across the Atlantic, proving her role in such a flight could be more than that of passenger. She was the first woman fly solo roundtrip across the U.S., was the first person to solo fly from the U.S. to Hawaii, as well as the first person to fly solo from Los Angeles to Mexico City.
In a 1996 New York Times Magazine article, Camille Paglia described Earhart’s irresistible charm. “Dashing in man-tailored shirts, jackets and slacks, Earhart became an icon of the rapidly evolving new woman who sought self-definition and fulfillment outside the home.” Earhart epitomized what Paglia called “enlightened feminism,” befriending everyone from “mechanics and leathernecks to mayors and Presidents.” Instead of criticizing the great men of her time, she commended their achievements, while daring to believe that women could achieve the same or better.
Earhart began breaking records with her flights, and in May of 1932 she flew solo across the Atlantic, proving her role in such a flight could be more than that of passenger. She was the first woman fly solo roundtrip across the U.S., was the first person to solo fly from the U.S. to Hawaii, as well as the first person to fly solo from Los Angeles to Mexico City.
In a 1996 New York Times Magazine article, Camille Paglia described Earhart’s irresistible charm. “Dashing in man-tailored shirts, jackets and slacks, Earhart became an icon of the rapidly evolving new woman who sought self-definition and fulfillment outside the home.” Earhart epitomized what Paglia called “enlightened feminism,” befriending everyone from “mechanics and leathernecks to mayors and Presidents.” Instead of criticizing the great men of her time, she commended their achievements, while daring to believe that women could achieve the same or better.
The Rest of the Story
In 1937, having set many records already, Earhart was looking to beat a distance flying record by flying around the world near the equator. According to American Heritage, during her first attempt at the flight she damaged the landing gear and had to have the plane, the Electra, sent to California for repairs. Her second attempt at the flight began on May 21, 1937.
At 10 a.m. on July 2, 1937, she left Papua New Guinea en route to the small Pacific island of Howland. The flight should have taken 17 to 19 hours, and her fuel reserve, according to engineers, should have lasted 24 to 27 hours. Seven hours after takeoff, radio engineers realized Earhart was not receiving their signals. After a few “garbled messages,” she reported at 6:45 a.m. (her plane had crossed the International Date Line) that the plane was “low on gas.” Two hours later, radio administrators on land lost the plane’s signal. American Heritage magazine reported, “For 16 days, 9 vessels, 4,000 crewmen, and 66 aircraft searched an area of the Pacific roughly the size of Texas without turning up a clue.”
The remains of Earhart’s plane were never recovered, and speculation about her disappearance has only increased over the years. According to Biography.com, some have speculated that Earhart was on a spy mission, or that she had committed suicide, however the most accepted explanation is that the plane simply ran out of fuel and Earhart and her navigator Noonan died in the ocean. One more recent theory is that the two landed on Gardner Island and she eventually died there, as a search of the island in 1989 recovered artifacts that some believe may have belonged to Earhart and Noonan.
At 10 a.m. on July 2, 1937, she left Papua New Guinea en route to the small Pacific island of Howland. The flight should have taken 17 to 19 hours, and her fuel reserve, according to engineers, should have lasted 24 to 27 hours. Seven hours after takeoff, radio engineers realized Earhart was not receiving their signals. After a few “garbled messages,” she reported at 6:45 a.m. (her plane had crossed the International Date Line) that the plane was “low on gas.” Two hours later, radio administrators on land lost the plane’s signal. American Heritage magazine reported, “For 16 days, 9 vessels, 4,000 crewmen, and 66 aircraft searched an area of the Pacific roughly the size of Texas without turning up a clue.”
The remains of Earhart’s plane were never recovered, and speculation about her disappearance has only increased over the years. According to Biography.com, some have speculated that Earhart was on a spy mission, or that she had committed suicide, however the most accepted explanation is that the plane simply ran out of fuel and Earhart and her navigator Noonan died in the ocean. One more recent theory is that the two landed on Gardner Island and she eventually died there, as a search of the island in 1989 recovered artifacts that some believe may have belonged to Earhart and Noonan.
© 2009 Dulcinea Media, Inc.
