BARNSTORMERS & WING WALKERS

Featuring a variety of aerial performers, the traveling airshow dazzled audiences with daring stunts and aerobatic maneuvers.

Barnstorming pilots were known for their daring and entertaining performances, which often included aerobatics, low-level flying, and mock dogfights. Barnstormers traveled from town to town, putting on shows and offering rides to thrill-seeking spectators.

One of the most daring acts at airshows involved wing walkers—performers who would climb out of the cockpit and onto the wings of aircraft during flight. They would perform acrobatic maneuvers, such as standing, sitting, or hanging from the wings, often with no safety harnesses.

LINCOLN BEACHEY

Lincoln Beachey, born in San Francisco in 1887, is widely regarded as America’s first stunt pilot. A pioneering aviator and stunt pilot known for his innovative aerobatic maneuvers and daring feats, he performed at numerous airshows across the United States.

Beachey was the first person to fly upside-down; he discovered how to recover from a tailspin which had been deadly for pilots.

On May 14, 1915, Beachey who was the official stunt flyer at the The Panama–Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco, died after crashing into the bay.

HARRIET QUIMBY

Harriet Quimby, born in Coldwater, Michigan, in 1875, was a pioneering aviatrix and the first woman in the United States to earn a pilot's license. She gained fame for her daring aerial performances as well as her elegant style. Quimby participated in airshows and exhibitions, inspiring women to pursue aviation.

She was the first woman to fly the English Channel on April 15, 1912, but her feat went largely unnoticed as the Titanic sank the same day.

Sadly, her life was cut short when she was thrown from her plane on July 1, 1912, at the Harvard-Boston Air Meet.

ART SMITH

Art Smith, born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, in 1890, was a skilled aviator and barnstormer who performed at airshows throughout the Midwest. He was known for his fearless flying and innovative aerial maneuvers.

Smith thrilled audiences with his barnstorming feats - dives, death spirals, sky writing, loop-de-loops, and night flights using phosphorus fireworks.

Art Smith died while flying for the U.S. Air Mail Service in 1926

BESSIE COLEMAN

Bessie Coleman, born in Texas in 1892, was the first African American woman to earn a pilot's license. She traveled to France in 1920 to obtain her license due to racial and gender barriers in the United States.

Coleman performed riveting demonstrations of aerobatics including loops, figure eights, and near-ground dips. Popularly known for her daring maneuvers, including loops, figure eights, and near-ground dips, Coleman was called ‘’Queen Bess” and ‘’Brave Bessie”.

Throughout her career, she would only perform at air exhibitions if the crowd was desegregated and permitted to enter through the same gates.

On April 30, 1926, Coleman and her mechanic were killed during a practice flight.

KATHERINE STINSON

Katherine Stinson, born in Alabama in 1891, was a pioneering aviator known for her extraordinary flying skills and daring aerial performances. She was the fourth woman in the United States to earn a pilot's license in 1912, and was the youngest licensed female aviator in the country at the time. Having trained for her license at 18, she earned the nickname “The Flying Schoolgirl.”

Stinson was the first woman to fly at night, first female skywriter, the first woman to fly over London, and first female pilot authorized to carry mail in the United States.

In 1913, Stinson and her mother incorporated the Stinson Aircraft Company, which Katherine later took over as president.

ORMER LOCKLEAR

Ormer “Lock” Locklear, born in Texas in 1891, was a renowned barnstormer and wing walker. Trained at the Army Air Service flight school, he specialized in wingwalking and jumping from one plane to another.

During his “Dance of Death” stunt, Locklear and another pilot would fly their planes next to each other and then switch places in air.

Locklear began working as a stunt pilot for movie productions and had a lucrative career until he crashed and died during a nighttime stunt.

ELINOR SMITH

Elinor Smith, born in New York in 1911, was was a record-setting aviator known as the "Flying Flapper of Freeport”.

Smith began flying at the age of 10, first soloed at 15, and earned her pilots license at 16. She gained fame for her solo endurance and altitude records.

Smith became a prominent figure in the aviation world, helping to shape aviation policy as an official advisor to the New York State Aviation Committee.

LILLIAN BOYER

Lillian Boyer, born in Nebraska in 1901, was one of the most celebrated female wing walkers of her time.

Lillian gained widespread recognition for her daring aerial feats performed at 352 shows in the United States and Canada, most of them consisting of wing-walking; 143 automobile-to-plane changes; and 37 parachute jumps -13 of which were done into Lake Erie.

In 1929, due to federal regulations on low flying and unsafe planes, she and many other barnstormers were forced into retirement.