Bessica Medlar Raiche
| Bessica Faith Raiche | |
|---|---|
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| Born | April 1875 near Beloit, Wisconsin |
| Died | April 11, 1932 Balboa Island, Newport Beach, California |
| Occupation | Dentist, businesswoman, and physician |
| Spouse(s) | François "Frank" C. Raiche |
| Children | Catherine E. Raiche |
| Parent(s) | Elizabeth and James B. Medlar |
Bessica Faith Raiche née Medlar, known as Bessie Raiche, (April 1875 – 11 April 1932) was a dentist, businesswoman, and physician, who was the first woman in the United States accredited with flying solo in an airplane. Her accomplishment, although dimmed by the existence of another flight by a US female earlier in the month, is impressive because she had received no flight instruction or experience prior to her flight.
Raiche was born in April 1875 in Beloit, Wisconsin. Her mother, Elizabeth, was from New Hampshire, and her father, James B. Medlar, was from New York. She had a sister: Alice M. Medlar (1879-?). In 1880 the family was living in Rockford, Illinois, and she was using the name "Bessie F. Medler". Raiche was a proto-feminist, she drove an automobile and wore bloomers. She was also a musician, painter, and linguist, and participated in swimming and shooting. In 1900 she was working as a dentist and living in New Hampton, New Hampshire, renting a room under the name Faith Medlar. She married François "Frank" C. Raiche (1874-?) of New Hampshire and they moved to Mineola, New York. Frank's parents were both from France.
She and her husband built a Wright type biplane in their living room and then assembled it in their yard. The Raiches constructed their flyer from bamboo and silk instead of a heavier canvas covering used by the Wright brothers. On September 16, 1910, in her homemade flyer at Hempstead Plains, New York, Bessica Raiche made the first solo airplane flight by a woman in the United States to be accredited by the Aeronautical Society of America. Blanche Stuart Scott had flown solo earlier the same month but her flight was less well documented and arguably not an intentional flight. Raiche said:
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