Monday, April 1, 2013

A = Amelia Earhart


Mystery still surrounds the famous flier but what was truly amazing was her life.

Amelia Earhart was the daughter of a lawyer who worked for the railroad and the granddaughter of a federal judge. She and her sister were schooled at home by their mother and a governess until she entered the seventh grade.

Throughout her childhood, the Earhart family experienced separation with subsequent reunions as a result of her father’s employment status. Amelia developed independence not common in women of her status. She collected news clippings of successful women who triumphed in male-dominated fields.

After Charles Lindbergh’s flight in 1927, Amelia Earhart was asked to participate as the first woman to fly across the Atlantic. Of course, she accepted the proposal for the 1928 flight. Upon her arrival in Southampton, she was greeted by the Mayor Mrs. Foster Welch. It seemed that Amelia was surrounded by strong women.

Having previously met, George Putnam of G.P. Putnam’s Sons, Amelia wrote and promoted several books when she returned. It was not surprising when Putnam divorced his wife in 1928 to marry Earhart in 1929.

With her increasing notoriety, Earhart became the spokeswoman for clothing and luggage lines sold at Macy’s. She was invited to meetings with US Presidents and used her fame to promote aviation, especially women’s flight endurance racing.

Interested in reading more about Amelia Earhart? Go to http://www.ameliaearhart.com/

8 comments:

Jay Noel said...

One of my all-time heroes! Wish we knew what happened to her, and hopefully her mystery will be solved. From all that I read, I'm pretty sure her plane went down.

(One of the A-Z minions checking in)

Unknown said...

What an amazing woman. I'd love it if someone found out what happened to her. I'm looking forward to your post tomorrow.
Elliot
We Are Adventure

Tony Laplume said...

Well, that's a lot more than I ever knew about her!

Dawn Embers said...

Great post for day 1 of the challenge. She is indeed an amazing woman. Excellent choice.

HeatherL said...

I've always been fond of the mystery surrounding Amelia but I didn't know much of her background.

Great start to the challenge! Can't wait to see more.

Bevimus said...

A month of strong, successful women? I'm in!

And what a great way to start- I remember learning about her in 2nd grade and being tasked with creating a diorama of her. It was one of my favorite projects (as evidenced by that fact that I remember it now).

What a great reminder of a pioneer we love!

Thank you!

Kate OMara said...

The theme has turned into historical women & men... I hope you like the rest of the month!

I loved making dioramas! :)

Unknown said...

She is such a fascinating woman! She is a great choice for your theme. Thanks!

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