Amelia Earhart

Amelia Earhart was born in 1897, in Atchison, Kansas. Amelia spent much of her childhood living with her grandparents due to her parents’ unstable financial situation. Perhaps it was this lack of stability as a child that made Amelia determined to succeed on her own. She became extremely independent and wanted to be able to take care of herself rather than relying on anyone else.

During World War I, Amelia Earhart volunteered for the Red Cross. Tending to the wounded, she met many pilots. During this period of her life, she became extremely interested in aviation. Then, at an air show in 1920, she took a plane ride. It is at this point she became certain she wanted to become a pilot. By 1923, she was given a pilot’s license and was only the sixteenth woman to be issued such a license to fly.

Amelia Earhart would eventually become the first female pilot to fly across the Atlantic Ocean. After her famous flight, she was honored by a reception given for her where she would meet President Coolidge. After this experience, Amelia wanted more of flying. Unlike her first trip, she wanted to fly across the Atlantic Ocean solo. By 1932, she had reached her goal.

Amelia Earhart’s love of flying would eventually lead to her death. In 1937, a flight across the Pacific would be her last. Her plane went down somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. Millions of dollars were spent in rescue attempts, but no rescue was ever made. On January 5, 1939, Amelia Earhart was declared legally dead, although her body was never found.