Bessie Coleman?
I took my dad to the Wright Brother's Museum in Kiity Hawk, North Carolina. I wouldn't have gone on my own. I'm not that interested. But Dad is, and I will be forever grateful to him for giving me the reason to go. Don't miss it if you are ever in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. I was totally surprised by my reaction to the display of firsts and greats in aviation. The first parashooter. The first woman parashooter, the first this and that. I had such an emotional reaction. My eyes welled...

Bessie Coleman
Bessie Coleman, the daughter of a poor, southern, African American family, became one of the most famous women and African Americans in aviation history. "Brave Bessie" or "Queen Bess," as she became known, faced the double difficulties of racial and gender discrimination in early 20th-century America but overcame such challenges to become the first African American woman to earn a pilot's license.

Bessie Coleman - First African American Woman To Earn International Pilot's License
Honored with Postage Stamp
The U.S. Postal Service honored aviator Bessie Coleman on a 1995 commemorative stamp.     SOME FEEDBACK PLEASE If you like this lens about Bessie Coleman, please rate this lens by clicking on the appropriate star up to the left under the headline. I really appreciate it! Got a great story to tell about Bessie Coleman and want to share it with our readers? If you do, please send it to us via the Guest Book below and we'll post it on this page.