Walking on Air (37 page)

67
. Copy of her Christmas letter, 29 December 1974, Omlie Collection.

68
. Letter, Phoebe Omlie to Pancho Barnes, 1 January 1975 and 22 January 1975, William E. Barnes Collection.

69
. Della May Hartley-Frazier, interview with author, 12 December 2007.

70
. Letter, Jeanira Ratcliffe to Phoebe Omlie and Della May Frazier, 3 June 1975, Omlie Collection.

71
. Phoebe's niece, Deloris Navrkal, recalled a “shouting match” between Phoebe and her brother at the funeral of Andrew Fairgrave, their father, in March 1956, which apparently was the last time the brother and sister ever spoke to each other. Author telephone interview with Navrkal, 5 November 2007. Power of Attorney drafted 18 June 1975; Last Will and Testament signed and notarized 25 June 1975, copies of both in Omlie Collection.

72
. Agreement, 23 June 1975, Omlie Collection.

73
. Memo, Dr. Woerner, “to whom it may concern,” Omlie Collection.

74
. Application to Pine Needle Court 31 May 1975 reflects her income, Omlie Collection; Hartley-Frazier interview with author, 12 December 2007.

75
. Letter, Louise Thaden to Glenn Buffington, 6 July 1975, private collection shared by Pat Thaden Webb.

76
. Indiana Death Certificate, 17 July 1975.

77
. The Memphis chapter of the Ninety-Nines assumed the cost for the minister and for her grave marker, according to Fern Mann, then treasurer of the chapter. Phoebe's bankbook, bills, and invoices for the funeral arrangements in Omlie Collection.

78
. Hartley-Frazier interview.

79
. Author of this piece is identified by Scharlau as Margaret Moore Post. Scharlau,
Phoebe
, 114; obituary in
Indianapolis News
, 23 July 1975.

1
.
Memphis Press-Scimitar
, 30 September 1975.

2
. Following an interview with the author in 2004, James Kacarides shared copies of all correspondence concerning the airport and tower naming activities, herein referred to as Kacarides Collection, in author's possession.

3
. Baker allegedly convinced the city of Millington to donate the property for the airport. See letters to the editor,
Memphis Press-Scimitar
, 3 April 1970, 10 April 1970.

4
. Letter, James Kacarides to Airport Authority, 13 April 1970;
Memphis Press-Scimitar
, 5 May 1981.

5
. Letter, W. M. Fletcher for the Airport Authority to James Kacarides, 16 February 1981, Kacarides Collection. This small room, containing clippings and trophies, has since been edited down to a poorly lit window hidden behind the stairs.

6
.
Memphis Press-Scimitar
, 28 October 1980. Rumors of alcoholism wafted around Phoebe from time to time. Her erstwhile biographer, Gene Scharlau, tried her best to track them down through interviews with Phoebe's friends and colleagues. Friend
Elaine McClure believed Phoebe had started drinking “Coca-cola highballs” to ease the pain from her various ankle injuries. McClure discounted the rumors of alcoholism, saying that Phoebe “didn't have enough money to drink on,” since she could only afford one meal a day. Scharlau contacted Dr. Jean Woerner, who signed Phoebe's death certificate, about the issue. Woerner replied that Phoebe had died of lung cancer, and “acute alcoholism had nothing whatsoever to do with her demise.” Scharlau interview with Elaine McClure, 1982, IWASM; Copy of death certificate with attached letter from Dr. Woerner in Ninety-Nines Museum.

7
. Letter, James Kacarides to the editor,
Memphis Press-Scimitar
, 1 November 1980.

8
. Ibid., 9 December 1980.

9
. Letter, Carolyn Sullivan to the editor,
Memphis Press-Scimitar
, 16 December 1980.

10
.
Commercial Appeal
, 19 December 1980.

11
. Letter, Jack K. Barker of the FAA to Thomas L. Campbell, secretary Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority, 10 February 1981, Kacarides Collection.

12
. Letter, James Kacarides to W. M. Fletcher, 20 February 1981, Kacarides Collection.

13
.
Memphis Press-Scimitar
, 5 May 1981; copies of letters in Kacarides Collection.

14
. John M. Fowler, General Counsel for the U.S. Department of Transportation to Rep. James J. Howard, Chairman Committee on Public Works and Transportation, U.S. House of Representatives, 8 March 1982, Kacarides Collection.

15
.
Memphis Press-Scimitar
, 8 June 1982.

16
. S.896 introduction with accompanying remarks in
Congressional Record
, 7 April 1981, S3542–3543;
Memphis Press-Scimitar
, 8 April 1981, 8 June 1982.

17
. U.S. senator Howard Baker, “Washington News Update,” July 1982, Kacarides Collection.

18
. Letter, James Kacarides to Rep. Harold Ford, 9 May 1981, Kacarides Collection.

19
. Letter, W. M. Fletcher to James Kacarides, 9 August 1982, Kacarides Collection.

20
.
Memphis Press-Scimitar
, 31 August 1982.

21
. Letter, James Kacarides to W. M. Fletcher, 10 November 1982, Kacarides Collection.

22
. FAA southern region administrator Doug Murphy Sr.; FAA leadership developer Bob McMullen, and FAA southern region communications and public affairs manager Kathleen Bergen, conference call with author, 1 July 2010.

23
. Thanks to the efforts of George T. Wilson and Pat Thaden Webb, who nominated her; the sponsorship of Wilson Air in Memphis; and Bob Minter, founder and chairman of the Tennessee Aviation Hall of Fame, Sevierville, Tennessee.

24
. Letter, James T. Kacarides to the editor,
Memphis Press-Scimitar
, 1 November 1980.

1
. Following the wishes expressed in Phoebe's will, found among her papers, the sorted materials were returned to Memphis. The papers, scrapbooks, and photographs are archived in the Memphis Room of the Memphis Public Library. The three-dimensional objects now belong to the Memphis Pink Palace Museum. Items I acquired in my research have also been placed in these two repositories. Phoebe's scattered possessions, to the extent to which we could collect them, are now home in Memphis.

Benson Ford Research Center, Dearborn

Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library, Hyde Park

Memphis and Shelby County Airport Authority

Memphis Public Library and Information Center

Minneapolis Public Library

Minnesota Historical Society

National Archives

Ninety-Nines Museum of Women Pilots, Oklahoma City

Pink Palace Museum, Memphis

Quad Cities Airport Archives, Davenport

Southern Museum of Flight, Birmingham

Tennessee State Library and Archives, Nashville

Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland

William E. Barnes Collection

James T. Kacarides Collection

Louise Thaden Collection

Glenn Messer and Elaine McClure, interviews by Gene Scharlau, 1982,

International Women's Air and Space Museum

Interviews by author:

Emma Jean Whittington Hall
Della May Hartley-Frazier
Deloris Navrkal
Dorothy Swain Lewis
Pat Thaden Webb

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