National Air and Space Museum Archives

Amelia Earhart Around-the-World Flight Correspondence File [W.T. Miller]

Summary
Collection ID:
NASM.2011.0006
Creators:
Miller, W. T.
Dates:
bulk 1936 - 1940, 1970
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
0.05 Cubic feet
1 folder
Repository:
Amelia Earhart (1897-1937) in 1928 was the first woman to fly (as a passenger) across the Atlantic, and in 1932 the first woman (and second person, after Charles Lindbergh) to fly solo and nonstop across that ocean. She flew many record flights, published several books and accomplished much for women in aviation. This collection consists of a file of correspondence, telegrams, official Coast Guard dispatches from the USS
Itasca
, newspaper and reports relating to the planning of Amelia Earhart's 1937 flight and the naval search for her after her disappearance.
Scope and Contents
Scope and Contents
This collection consists of a file of correspondence, telegrams, official Coast Guard dispatches from the USS
Itasca
, newspaper and reports relating to the planning of Amelia Earhart's 1937 flight and the naval search for her after her disappearance. The file contains correspondence signed by George Putnam and some of the correspondence relates to the radio frequencies that were to be used/were used by Earhart during her trip. This file evidently belonged to W. T. Miller, who was Airways Superintendent at the Bureau of Air Commerce, United States Department of Commerce. Miller was very involved in asserting sovereignty over Pacific Islands, such as Howland, during the late 1930s.
Arrangement
Arrangement
Collection is in original order.
Biographical / Historical
Biographical / Historical
Amelia Earhart (1897-1937) in 1928 was the first woman to fly (as a passenger) across the Atlantic, and in 1932 the first woman (and second person, after Charles Lindbergh) to fly solo and nonstop across that ocean. She flew many record flights, published several books and accomplished much for women in aviation before attempting on June 1, 1937, an around-the-world flight from Miami, Florida in a twin-engine Lockheed Electra. She and navigator Frederick J. Noonan were flying from Lae, New Guinea to Howland Island when they disappeared over the Pacific Ocean on July 2, 1937. A exhaustive sea and air search, ordered by President Franklin Roosevelt, was unsuccessful in locating Earhart and Noonan.
Administration
Author
Patricia Williams
Immediate Source of Acquisition
John Davison, Gift, 2010, NASM.2011.0006
Processing Information
Arranged and described by Patricia Williams, 2011. Encoded by Jessamyn Lloyd, 2022.
Using the Collection
Conditions Governing Use
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests
Conditions Governing Access
No restrictions on access.
Preferred Citation
Amelia Earhart Around-the-World Flight Correspondence File [W.T. Miller], NASM.2011.0006, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.
Keywords
Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Women in aeronautics Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Flights around the world Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Endurance flights Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Correspondence Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Telegrams Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Newspapers Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Reports Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Earhart, Amelia, 1897-1937 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Noonan, Frederick Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Repository Contact
National Air and Space Museum Archives
14390 Air & Space Museum Parkway
Chantilly, VA 20151
NASMRefDesk@si.edu