The fact that Terry von Thaden remembers Louise Thaden intimately and the rest of the world does not is the result of the same decision. Thaden chose to step from the limelight into raising a family.
Born in 1905 in Bentonville, Louise McPhetridge Thaden rose to fame as an aviator whose popularity rivaled Amelia Earhart's and whose skill often surpassed hers. A ride in a plane with a barnstormer instilled in Thaden a desire to fly, and she moved to Wichita, Kan., then to Oakland, Calif., to work for Travel Air. Pilot's lessons were included in her salary, and she earned her pilot's license in 1928 -- signed by Orville Wright.
FAQ
Louise Thaden Charity Celebration
WHEN — 6-10 p.m. Saturday
WHERE — 21c Museum Hotel in Bentonville
COST — $110 per person
INFO — Louise Thaden Charity Celebration on Facebook or at eventbrite.com
She was the first and only pilot to hold the women's altitude, solo endurance and speed records simultaneously. Perhaps most famously, Thaden competed and won against fellow aviators Amelia Earhart, Pancho Barnes, Blanche Noyes and others in the first all-women's transcontinental race, the National Women's Air Derby, held Aug. 19-26, 1929, and in September 1936, she became the first woman to win the Bendix Transcontinental Air Race. She was also awarded the highest honor given to a female pilot, the Harmon Trophy, in 1937.
Terry von Thaden was able to be intimately acquainted with her grandmother because in 1938, Thaden retired from competition to spend more time with her son Bill -- Terry's father -- and daughter Pat.
"I have said so many times and it's so true that she was just my grandmother for many years before I fully realized what it is she had achieved," says von Thaden, who adopted the German version of her grandfather's name. "Growing up, she was just grandma. She was funny and very interested in what you were doing -- especially your education and your sports. But the funny thing is, I kind of thought everybody's grandmother raced airplanes. Why wouldn't everybody's grandmother know Amelia Earhart and Jimmy Doolittle? It wasn't until I was in my teens that I realized people don't have this kind of history."
Von Thaden was 16 when her grandmother died, and even though her father was also a pilot, "the rebellion bug" kept her from immediately following in the family footsteps.
"It came back to me when I was in my later 20s," she says. "I always flew, but I just didn't pursue it as a career. They say, 'Oh, it's in the blood,' and I think there is something that makes you love it and want to pursue it. So yes, [growing up with her] did have an influence on me."
Von Thaden has been an aviation human factors professor and is founder and chief executive of Illumia Corp., where she performs human factors investigations and safety cultural assessments for industries including aviation. With a doctorate, she is also a researcher at the University of Illinois. And as Louise Thaden's granddaughter, she works to bring name recognition to her ancestor.
"I don't think she's ever really gotten her due," von Thaden says.
Von Thaden recently crossed paths with Patrick Barrett, who flies for Wal-Mart Aviation. As a history buff, Barrett discovered Thaden when he moved to Bentonville and was appalled to find she had been "undermentioned and undercredited. And she grew up in Bentonville, so if anyone should be celebrating her, it should be us."
Barrett and wife Stephanie, with the help of the Tailwind Aviation Foundation, an Arkansas-based nonprofit, will host a Roaring '20s-themed Louise Thaden Charity Celebration Saturday at 21c Museum Hotel. Money raised will go toward educating local students in Thaden's legacy. Von Thaden will speak.
"She loved Bentonville," she says of her grandmother. "We would visit for family reunions here and there, when I was growing up. I remember an ease and a happiness and so much laughter when all those people were together telling stories."
NAN What's Up on 08/26/2016