Harriet Quimby, an American aviator, made history on April 16, 1912, by becoming the first woman to fly across the English Channel, a significant milestone in early aviation. Born on May 11, 1875, in Michigan, Quimby transitioned from a career in journalism to aviation after being inspired by a plane race in 1910.
Harriet Quimby (born May 1, 1875?—possibly in Coldwater, Michigan; died July 1, 1912, during a flight over Dorchester Bay, part of Boston Bay, Massachusetts) was a pioneering American aviator and the first woman to fly solo across the English Channel.
Details about Quimby’s birth date and birthplace remain uncertain—she occasionally claimed she was born in 1884 in Arroyo Grande, California. However, by 1902, she and her family were living in California, where she began her writing career with the Dramatic Review in San Francisco. She went on to write for the San Francisco Call, the Chronicle, and various magazines. In 1903, she moved to New York City to work as a drama critic for Leslie’s Weekly.
Quimby’s interest in aviation was sparked around 1910, particularly after attending an air show at Belmont Park that October. Inspired, she decided to learn to fly and enrolled in the Moisant School of Aviation at Hempstead, Long Island, in the spring of 1911. On August 1 of that year, she made history as the first American woman to earn a pilot’s license (license number 37) from the Aero Club of America, affiliated with the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale. She became only the second licensed female pilot in the world, following France’s Baroness de la Roche.
For a time, Quimby flew with the Moisant International Aviators, a demonstration team from the school. Despite her busy aviation schedule, she continued writing and contributing to various periodicals.