Matilde Moisant
Moisant in 1912 wearing a "good luck" swastika medallion
Born(1878-09-13)September 13, 1878
Earl Park, Indiana, U.S.
DiedFebruary 5, 1964(1964-02-05) (aged 85)
Glendale, California, U.S.
OccupationAviator
Moisant (left) and Harriet Quimby, the first two women in the United States to obtain pilot's licenses (photo circa 1911–12)

Matilde Josephine Moisant (September 13, 1878 – February 5, 1964) was an American pioneer aviator, the second woman in the United States to obtain a pilot's license.[1][2]

Early life

Moisant was born on September 13, 1878, in Earl Park, Indiana,[3][4] to Médore Moisant and Joséphine Fortier.[5] Both places exist in records, but her license from the Aero Club of America shows Earl Park. Both parents were French Canadians.[3] Her siblings include George, John, Annie M.,[4] Alfred Moisant,[6] Louise J.[7] and Eunice Moisant.[citation needed] John and Alfred were also aviators.[8] In 1880, the family was living in Manteno, Illinois, and her father was working as a farmer.[4][9]

Career

Moisant learned to fly at Alfred's Moisant Aviation School on Long Island, New York.[8] On 13 August 1911,[10][11] a few weeks after her friend Harriet Quimby received her pilot's certificate, Matilde Moisant became the second woman pilot certified by the Aero Club of America. She pursued a career in exhibition flying, known as barn storming.[8] In September 1911, she flew in the air show at Nassau Boulevard airfield in Garden City, New York and, while competing against Hélène Dutrieu, Moisant broke the women's altitude world record and won the Rodman-Wanamaker trophy by flying to 1,200 feet (370 m).[8]

Retirement

Moisant stopped flying on April 14, 1912, in Wichita Falls, Texas when her plane crashed[8] (the same day that the Titanic struck an iceberg).[12] A few months later on 1 July 1912, her friend Harriet Quimby was killed when she was thrown from her plane.[13] Although Moisant recovered from her injuries, she gave up flying. During World War I she volunteered at the front in France.[14] She spent several years dividing her time between the U.S. and the family plantation in El Salvador, before returning to the Los Angeles area.[15]

Death

Matilde Moisant died in 1964 in Glendale, California,[16] aged 85, and was interred in the Portal of Folded Wings Shrine to Aviation in Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery, North Hollywood, Los Angeles, California.[1][17]

Timeline

References

Citations

  1. ^ a b c "Matilde Moisant, Early Fflyer, Dies". New York Times. February 7, 1964. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
  2. ^ "Miss Moisant Wins License. Second Woman In This Country To Prove Her Ability To Fly". New York Times. August 14, 1911. Retrieved May 31, 2008. Garden City, Long Island. August 13, 1911. With the wind eddies flattened to almost a dead calm, Miss Matilda Moisant, sister of the late John B. Moisant, who was killed at New Orleans last January, distinguished herself this morning as the second woman in this country to win a pilot's license under the rules of the Aero Club of America.
  3. ^ a b c Lebow 2002, p. 164.
  4. ^ a b c d Rich 1998, p. 4.
  5. ^ Rich 1998, p. 1.
  6. ^ Rich 1998, p. 5.
  7. ^ Rich 1998, p. 6.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Matilde Moisant". Women in Aviation and Space History. Washington, DC: Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. Retrieved February 6, 2016. ((cite book)): |newspaper= ignored (help)
  9. ^ a b "1880 federal population census: Kankakee and Kendall Counties, Illinois". FamilySearch. Washington, D. C.: National Archives and Records Administration. June 21, 1880. p. 40. NARA Series T9, Roll 219. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  10. ^ "MISS MOISANT WINS LICENSE.; Second Woman in This Country to Prove Her Ability to Fly". The New York Times. Retrieved August 13, 2022.
  11. ^ Erisman, Fred (2009). From birdwomen to skygirls: American girls' aviation stories. Fort Worth, TX: TCU Press. p. 45. ISBN 9780875654805. OCLC 762031612.
  12. ^ Aldridge 2009, p. 9.
  13. ^ Courtwright 2005, p. 31.
  14. ^ Photo caption, The Rubber Age and Tire News (September 25, 1917): 20.
  15. ^ Lebow 2002, p. 177.
  16. ^ "TimesMachine: Friday February 7, 1964 - NYTimes.com". timesmachine.nytimes.com. Retrieved August 13, 2022.
  17. ^ a b "13 Pioneer Aviators". The Portal of the Folded Wings. North Hollywood, California: Pierce Brothers Valhalla Cemetery. 2011. Archived from the original on October 29, 2016. Retrieved December 2, 2016.

Bibliography

Further reading

External links

Portal of the Folded Wings Shrine to Aviation
Authority control databases
Categories