Tracing the flying past with Amelia Earhart

Who isn’t fascinated by the story about Amelia Earhart?  She was the first woman to make a solo flight across the Atlantic, May 20-21, 1932. She also set the women’s altitude record, the women’s speed record. Amelia was the first woman to make a solo round trip of the United States. The story we all know is that on July 2, 1937, she and navigator, Fred Noonan, during her around the world flight disappeared over the Pacific Ocean.

Seeing friends travel and uncover Earhart history had me longing to visit Atchison, Kansas. I have wanted to see the Amelia Earhart history there ever since. This February, my husband Keith and I stopped on our way to Salina to the Red Power Winter Show. We loved what we found! This Kansas town has a lot of history. I learned it was first settled by the Kansa Indians over 300 years ago.

The Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum

Mika Schrader, the Assistant Director, of the Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum greeted us. She provided us with a self-guided tour sheet. The famous aviatrix was born in 1897 in this 1861 home. The house belonged to grandparents Judge Alfred and Amelia Oasis. Amelia lived in the home for a couple years with her younger sister Muriel while her parents were building a home in Des Moines. They continued visiting throughout the years. Her parents were Amy and Edward Earhart.

The grandparent’s died in 1912. Since then, the house was occupied by four other families. We learned in 1984 the home was purchased by Dr. Eugene Bribach. He generously donated it to The Ninety-Nines, Inc. “Established in 1929 by 99 women pilots, the members of The Ninety-Nines, Inc.®, International Organization of Women Pilots®, are represented in all areas of aviation today. And, to quote Amelia, fly “for the fun of it!””

In the house you get a chance to learn about her life They cover from her girlhood years to her marriage to George Putnam, to her last flight. Muriel Earhart Morrissey helped return the home to their childhood days. She lived to be 98, passing in 1998.

Details!

We learn she taught herself to read at the age of four. Adventurous, the family encouraged education and innovation. There are wonderful items collecting to Amelia’s history like the Parachute lamp denoting her test of a new commercial safety parachute. This was her first jump, and she was the first woman to test for this device for parachute jumpers.

One room, the judge’s parlor is dedicated to George Palmer Putnam, her husband. After publishing a very successful book about Charles Lindbergh, Putnam was contacted by a woman who wanted to sponsor the first flight by a woman over the Atlantic. Choosing Amelia Earhart, he soon learned they shared many hobbies like hiking, tennis etc. After her flight he offered Earhart help with her book. Shortly after his divorce in 1929 the two shared their relationship with the public, but they didn’t marry until 1931. At the house they shared he proposed six times before she finally accepted. While they had no children, Amelia was close to her stepsons David, in particular. He later became a writer and explore, and George, a businessman.

It is easy to see that adventurous spirit through the items on display. There is a model of the Lockheed Vega 5B she flew on her solo Atlantic flight. In the home you will also see a model of the Lockheed Electra 10-E that Amelia and Fred Noonan flew on their last mission.

Amelia Earhart Hangar Museum

The perfect round out for the Amelia story is a stop at the Amelia Earhart Hangar Museum. Just recently opened in 2023, the museum has a beautiful bronze statue of Amelia Earhart outside the museum. 

The centerpiece of the museum is “Muriel” the world’s last remaining Lockheed Electra 1–E aircraft.  This is a restored Electra identical to the one that Earhart flew on her final flight. Besides the plane, there are several interactive displays that make this a fun stop. Perhaps Keith and I had the most fun using the avatar. It allows you to be dressed in one of the many jobs Earhart had like pilot, mechanic, and nurse.  She took over 28 jobs to subsidize her flying lessons.

Best of all for a few extra dollars is the virtual reality flight like the one that Amelia flew on her famous 1932 transatlantic flight. Fun, but a bit scary flying through storms you can’t see. Keith is a former pilot and loved it.

Last but not least is the Amelia Earhart Earthwork where Amelia’s aviatrix profile spans 42,000 square feet in a hillside next to a cemetery.  Created by Stan Herd, you can see this from an overlook.

So, I finally got my Amelia fix, and was fascinated by the courage and fortitude it took to accomplish all her records and flights. She was truly a forward-thinking woman that opened doors for the rest of us. There are lots of Amelia stops, but this one covers her story.