Elinor SmithAviatrix
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Smith was born in New York City in 1911 and had her first plane ride when she was six. Her father, Tom Smith a vaudevillian who was part of the actor’s colony, encouraged her. She set many aviation records: youngest woman to fly solo at the age of 15 and the youngest person to earn a pilot's license in the United States. At the age of 17, Smith flew under four East River bridges in New York City - Queensboro, the Williamsburg, the Manhattan, and the Brooklyn. She is the only person ever to accomplish that feat. She set a new women's endurance record of 42 hours in 1929 and was the first women aviator to accomplish aerial refueling. She was a test pilot for Fairchild Aviation Corporation. In 1933 she married Patrick Sullivan, a New York state legislator and attorney in and remained in Freeport to raise their four children. She was a founding member of the Long Island Early Fliers and promoted the creation of the Cradle of Aviation Museum. She now lives in California.
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Elinor Smith lived at 64 Whaley Street. Her parents’ home was located at 33 Nassau Avenue.
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Source:
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Smith, Elinor. Aviatrix. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1981
