Usage conditions may apply for digital images, video, and sound recordings linked within SOVA collections. While digital content may be restricted, SOVA collection descriptions and catalog records are available CC0 for re-use. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.
National Air and Space Museum Archives
Betty Skelton Photograph and Letter [Allen]
Summary
![Betty Skelton Photograph and Letter [Allen]](/img/loading-large.gif)
- Collection ID:
- NASM.2024.0017
- Dates:
-
19462004
- Languages:
-
English.
- Physical Description:
-
.1 Cubic feet1 folder
- Repository:
Letter and photograph related to Betty Skelton.
Scope and Contents
Scope and Contents
This collection consists of one typed letter to Betty Skelton from Chuck Allen and one 8 by 10 inch brown toned photograph. In the letter, Allen recounts the last time he saw Skelton. At that time in 1946, a group of people had a day excursion from her father's flying school to Longboat Key just off Sarasota, Florida; on the return trip, Allen flew with Skelton in the back performing aerial rolls not knowing she didn't buckle her seat belt until mid-flight. The photograph is an oblique, low-altitude aerial view of a small group of people in swimwear near seven monoplanes and one biplane all on the ground along coast line between sand and long grass. It is likely that the photograph depicts the story in the letter.
Arrangement
Arrangement
Arranged by item.
Biographical / Historical
Biographical / Historical
Betty Skelton (1926--2011) was an American aerobatic pilot and auto racer who gained prominence in the 1950s and 1960s. Born in Pensacola, Florida, Skelton developed a passion for aviation at an early age and purchased her first aircraft in 1946, a Great Lakes (1929) Model 2T-1A. She went on to become a three-time Female Aerobatic Champion and set 17 aviation and race car records earning the nickname the "First Lady of Firsts."
Administration
Author
Amara Pugens
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Charles "Chuck" Allen, Gift, 2024, NASM.2024.0017
Processing Information
Arranged, described, and encoded by Amara Pugens, 2024.
Processing Information
Personal Identifiable Information (PII) has been redacted.
Digital Content
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
Betty Skelton Photograph and Letter [Allen], NASM.2024.0017, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.
Keywords
| Keyword Terms | Keyword Types | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Aeronautics | Topical | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Women air pilots | Topical | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Photographs | Genre Form | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Correspondence | Genre Form | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Skelton, Betty (19260628-20110831) | Personal Name | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
National Air and Space Museum Archives
14390 Air & Space Museum Parkway
Chantilly, VA 20151
Business Number: Phone: 703-572-4045
NASMRefDesk@si.edu
