Amelia Earhart to the Ulster-Irish Society, New York

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Document ID 200149
Date 14-09-1933
Document Type Family Papers
Archive Linenhall Library
Citation Amelia Earhart to the Ulster-Irish Society, New York;The Belfast Weekly News, Thursday 14th September 1933; CMSIED 200149
50442
            MISS EARHART'S FLIGHT

      Her Own Story Told to the Ulster
          -Irish Society, New York

            A MEMORIAL AIR BEACON

  The 1933 year book of the Ulster-Irish Society
of New York, just received, contains an account
of the society's annual banquet, at which Miss
Amelia Earhart was the guest of honour, shortly
after her Atlantic flight, which terminated near
Londonderry.
  At the conclusion of the proceedings it was
resolved that this gathering, representative of the
many thousand residents of New York and
vicinity who are of Ulster descent, heartily
endorses the steps taken by the Ulster-Irish Society
to secure the erection of a memorial airway
beacon in Ulster commemorating Miss Earhart's
unique and historic flight, and to serve as a
permanent token of the unshaken friendship of the
peoples [united?] by the Atlantic Ocean.
  The President, Mr. M. H. Loughridge, who
himself was born at Cullybackey in 1881, in
putting the resolution to the meeting said it was not
difficult to visualise how they or their successors
in the year 1950 would make week-end visits to
the " Fields o' Ballyclare " crossing the Atlantic
between sunrise and sunset, and reflect upon the
daring and courage of Miss Earhart, who blazed
the trail for this mode of transportation in the
year 1932.
  Miss Earhart, at the outset of her speech
described how she had recently received a box in
which she found a horseshoe covered with silver,
a sprig of flowers and a letter from two little girls
in Londonderry, which ran :- " When we came
down the road after you went to Londonderry,
we found this horseshoe and so we went down to
the silversmith and had it silvered for you.  Then
we inserted these little flowers with it and we
hope it will bring you luck. "
  Miss Earhart remarked that her flying had been
curiously tied up with the British Empire, she
having gained her first interest in flying at
Toronto, and landed once in Wales on the
" Friendship " flight and then more recently in
Ulster both of which had been very pleasant
landings.
  " When I went over on my own solo flight, "
continued Miss Earhart, " I shall never forget
the sight of land.  I had been flying for five
hours in dark storm clouds.  When daylight came
I found myself between two lines of clouds, one
very high and one low over the surface of the
sea.  I flew on until these lines of clouds joined.
I went under the lower line and flew along for
several hours, about two hundred feet from the
surface of the water.  The visibility was very
poor and the fog heavy.  My first sight of anything
human after about thirteen hours of flying
was a little fishing vessel which I sighted on the
horizon.
  " I did not have the thrill of seeing a little
speck of land growing larger and larger, but
suddenly out of the haze appeared a little rocky
island off the coast of Ireland. "
  After looking about for a landing place, Miss
Earhart described how she found a railroad and
followed it to Londonderry.

               "JUMPING COWS"

  " I'll never forget the sight of Londonderry.
The grass was just as green as the story book
says and the city was entirely grey.  It was
quite a sight to me who am used to the coloured
roofs of American cities.  There was nothing
here but the grey cities and green fields, which
were most beautiful.  There is one memory of
the flight which I shall carry always.  I flew
around the city but saw no airport.  The pastures,
however, seemed larger than the ones on the
shore, and I thought I could get down in one
successfully.
  "I was accused of killing a cow in landing
but this was not true, unless the animal died
from fright.  The cows did jump around, though.
As you know, the air mail flyers here can tell
when they are off their course by watching the
cattle.  If the cattle run, the pilot knows he is
off his course.  I knew the cows had not seen
many airplanes.
  " I pulled up at the door of a little farmhouse
and several persons came out to greet me.  I
threw back the hatch over my head and peeked
over the side, but nobody said anything.  I
thought it was up to me to say something, so I
said ' I'm from America, ' but I did not make
much of an impression.
  " I never had greater hospitality than was
shown me in Ireland, " concluded Miss Earhart.
 " I am going back some time, and I am going
to take Mr. Putnam (her husband) with me to
see if it is as beautiful as it looked to me on
landing.  And now I am going to tell you something
which may be of interest to you - my
mother's father's parents came from Londonderry.