When Amelia Earhart was born in 18 July 1897, the industry in which she was to forge her infamous career did not even exist. This letter, written by Earhart to her former flying instructor Neta Snook on 26 January 1929 was written when she was at the height of her fame, having completed her Trans-Atlantic flight and now writing as Aviation Editor for Cosmopolitan Magazine, a role that was created especially for her.

In the letter, written on Cosmopolitan stationary, Earhart replies to earlier correspondence by Snook, reminiscing about the days when they used to fly together in California. Although this had been the start of her success, Amelia had come a long way since then and memories of eating cold boiled potatoes seem a far cry from Amelia’s international magazine New York City office. Hers is a story popular in history, of rags to riches, struggling with many jobs to afford her flying lessons, even having to give it up at one point due to a lack of funds. This tough beginning made her acutely aware of the need to generate significant funds in order to continue her flying career. Her record breaking flights catapulted her into the world of celebrity with nicknames such as ‘Queen of the Air’ and ‘Lady Lindy’ and she made sure to encourage and capitalize on this, to finance her further adventures and record attempts.

As well as her work at Cosmopolitan and her continued record attempts, Amelia worked for the advancement of women in aviation. She was the president of The 99’s, an all-female aviation society, and she also worked as a women’s career councillor and aviation advisor at Perdue. The creation of the role of Aviation Editor for her shows a changing attitude towards what a women was capable of achieving and a hunger for female role models who could be glamorous in a khaki jumpsuit. She designed a jumpsuit for The 99’s that was advertised in Vogue magazine, and later designed a clothing line for “active women.” 

Sadly, Amelia’s most ambitious aviation record attempt would also be her last. In June 1937, she set off on a trip that, if successful, would have put her in the history books as the first person, male or female, to fly around the equator line. However, this was not to be and on 2 July she and her navigator Frederick Noonan disappeared somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. Neither Amelia, Frederick, nor the plane have ever been recovered, and what happened to them has been the subject of great speculation ever since.

The spirit of adventure has always been seen as a keystone to the American Dream and this helped Amelia Earhart capture the hearts and minds of the American public. The impact that she had on popular culture and fashion, alongside the work that she did to further the progress of women in the aviation industry was significant and she was held up as a shining example of the modern woman. To this day she is seen as one of the most accomplished women in American history.

The letter is part of a collection from Neta Snook that also includes her book, I Taught Amelia to Fly, blue prints of one of her planes, photographs of both Amelia and Neta and a selection of other documents relating to the early history of American aviation.

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