Peaches Wallace
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Peaches Wallace
Sarah “Peaches” Wallace (August 31, 1909 - June 22. 1930) was a pioneering, nationally known, American aviatrix who was the second woman in the United States to obtain a glider license and held a record for time aloft in 1930. Peaches also wrote newspaper and magazine articles and made public appearances to discuss aviation and her experiences.
Early Life
Peaches was born in Oklahoma, August 31, 1909, to Reid Wallace (1864–1939) and Sallie A Burge (1866–1948). Peaches’ grandparents were Thomas Shannon Wallace (1834–1914) and Mary Jane Ralston (1839–1899)[1], and William Decatur Burge (1834–1879) and Henrietta Louise Burress (1840–1923)[2]. Peaches lived in Oklahoma during her early childhood, but the family relocated to San Diego in the early 1920s. Peaches was a tall, athletic girl who was called “Peaches” after her father’s favorite racehorse.[3]
In 1918, while still living in Oklahoma, eight-year-old Peaches was looking for four-leaf clovers beside a road, when an airplane (a WWI style biplane) made an emergency landing near her. The pilot, a slim young man named Billy Parker asked Peaches, “Would you like to dare the heavens with me, my lady?” Peaches consented (with no thought to her mother’s views on the subject) and Billy strapped Peaches into the observer’s seat. After tuning up his engine, Billy took off and circled the city. He then returned Peaches to her clover patch.[4]
Flight School
In 1929, the editor of the San Diego Sun newspaper announced a contest to encourage women’s participation in aviation – the winner of the “Miss Air Capital of the West” contest would receive a free full course of instruction at the T. Claude Ryan Flying School at a (1929) value of about $1,300.[5] The contest consisted of a series of tests to determine the greatest advance over a period of time in the study and practice of aviation.[6] Peaches entered the contest along with many other young women, and was one of ten finalist, (which included another very capable young woman, Ruth Alexander[7]), but when the judges made their final decision, Peaches placed first[8] with a score of 85.48.[9] Gertrude Bucher who had been in first place prior to the last test, came in second with 80.76.[9] Peaches reported her flight school activities regularly in the San Diego Sun.[10] The Sun paper called her their “own ‘newsgirl’”.[11] The flying instructions began, Tuesday, September 3, 1929 at Ryan Airport[9] (Dutch Flats) where Charles Lindbergh started his journey in the Spirit of St. Louis in 1927.[12] Peaches also wrote magazine articles[13] and made public lectures[8] about her training and aviation experiences.
Peaches was considered to be one of the most apt students to have ever taken the training course and within a few weeks after her first solo flight was rewarded a pilot’s license.[8]
Gliders
After the Treaty of Versailles banned powered aircraft in Germany, there was a great interest there in unpowered sailplanes. This interest soon spread to the United States.[14] Influenced by Hawley Bowlus[15] and, later, Charles and Anne Lindbergh, San Diego saw much interest in gliders.[16] After Peaches completed her course and became a licensed pilot,[17] she and several other female fliers then became interested in this new sport of glider flying.[18]
Peaches received glider training from Forrest Hieatt, under supervision by the famed Hawley Bowlus, at the nearby Bowlus Gliding School at Lindbergh Field,[19] and on Sunday, January 26, 1930, after only three hours of training, Peaches achieved a 36-second solo flight to qualify for a glider pilot license.[17] This was a third-class license, but she soon added second- and first-class licenses.[20] Interestingly, Peaches made this achievement before her teacher, Forrest Hieatt. Peaches’ received US license number 42, while Hieatt received number 47 shortly thereafter.[19]
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It was reported at the time that Peaches was the first American female to be granted a glider license.[17] However, another lady pilot, Maxine Dunlap, had obtained a third-class license in April 1929, so she was actually the first woman in the US to do so.[21]
Peaches set a women’s record for time in the air in a glider of 25 minutes. This record held for over a year, being broken in August 1931.[22]
Inspired by Anne Morrow Lindbergh, the first American woman to receive a first-class glider license (several days after Wallace's first solo flight), Peaches formed the inaugural women’s glider club in the West, the Anne Lindbergh Flyers Club of San Diego.[3] The club elected Anne the honorary president.[3]
Crash
On March 27, 1930, Peaches was making a routine glider flight in a Bowlus-built glider. After about nine minutes aloft, she was attempting to land when her glider struck a bar on a telephone pole on Point Loma and crashed. Peaches claimed to be uninjured, though her back struck a sidewalk curbing when the sailplane fell into a street. Although she suffered some discomfort with her back, the following week she appeared at each scheduled performance at the RKO-Orpheum theater and gave talks on aviation and gliding. A couple of weeks later, on April 18, Peaches was admitted to Mercy Hospital.[23] She was diagnosed with appendicitis.[24] Her family stated that her condition “was not due entirely to the crash in the glider, but may have been superinduced by the fall.” She seemed to be on the road to recovery when infection set in, which led to further serious operations.[23]
Death
After five major operations and blood transfusions, physicians were unable to save her life, and Peaches died June 22, 1930.[8] She was laid to rest June 24 in Glen Abbey Memorial Park. The simple funeral services were attended around 300[25], including a large number of prominent San Diegans.[26]
After her death, on July 27, 1930, California’s first glider port was opened in San Diego, and dedicated to Peaches.[27] Ruth Alexander flew over the field and dropped wreaths of roses in memory of Peaches. San Diego Mayor, Harry C. Clark, spoke, paying high tribute to Peaches Wallace.[27] Unfortunately, Peaches Wallace Field has today been lost to development in San Diego.[28]
Less than two months after this dedication, on September 18, Peaches’ contest mate and fellow aviatrix, Ruth Alexander, was killed in a motorized airplane crash on Point Loma.[29]
References
- ^ "Reid Wallace Find-a-Grave Memorial".
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Sallie Anthony Wallace".
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b c "Anne Morrow Lindbergh: First Lady of the Air,” by Kathleen C. Winters. St. Martin's Press. 2006. p. 30. ISBN 1403969329.
- ^ "Peaches is Aviatrix at Eight Years". The Daily Oklahoman. April 10, 1918.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Anne Morrow Lindbergh: First Lady of the Air,” by Kathleen C. Winters. St. Martin's Press. 2006. p. 30. ISBN 1403969329.
- ^ "Peaches Wallace Wins Prize for Aviation Work". Escondido Weekly Times Advocate. September 13, 1929.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Loses Contest, but Girl to Learn Flying Anyway". San Diego Sun. September 7, 1929.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b c d "Peaches Wallace Called by Death". Escondido Times Advocate. June 23, 1930.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b c "Miss Wallace Wins Contest". San Diego Sun. August 31, 1929.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Tests and Fog Give Peaches New Worries". San Diego Sun. No. date unknown. 1929.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Peaches Is Flying Newsie". San Diego Sun. No. date unknown. 1929.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Dutch Flats Airport / Ryan Airport / Mahoney Airport / Speer Airport, San Diego, CA".
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Activities of the Anne, by Peaches Wallace". Aviation Mechanics. No. July–August. 1930.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "From Treaty of Versailles to Soaring the Friendly Skies- Peaches Wallace".
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "WILLIAM HAWLEY BOWLUS".
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "History of the Associated Glider Clubs of Southern California".
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b c "Peaches Wallace, First Woman Pilot of Gliders". Escondido Times Advocate. January 27, 1930.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "American Women Become Enthusiastic Glider Pilots". Stockton Independent. February 9, 1930.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b "The First Five by Gary Fogel, WSPA Hanger Soaring" (PDF). November 2002. p. 6.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Peaches Wallace Find-a-Grave Memorial".
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Miss Dunlop Soars 990 Feet In Test". The San Francisco Examiner. April 29, 1929.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Local Man Wins Mark in Glider". The Los Angeles Times. August 14, 1931.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b "Peaches Wallace Is Seriously Ill". Escondido Times-Advocate. May 5, 1930.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Peaches Wallace Again Undergoes Operation". Escondido Times-Advocate. May 16, 1930.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "300 Pay Tribute to Miss Wallace". Escondido Times Advocate. June 25, 1930.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Girl Aviatrix Laid to Rest". Los Angeles Times. June 25, 1930.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b "State's First Glider Field Opened Here". San Diego Union. July 28, 1930.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "The Torrey Pines Gliderport, San Diego Co., California". p. 6 Section 3.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Aviatrix on Coast-Coast Hop Killed". he Pomona Progress Bulletin. September 18, 1930.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)