Frances Wilson Grayson
| Frances Wilson Grayson | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born | c. 1892 Cherokee Village, Arkansas |
| Died | c. December 23, 1927 (age 35) probably off Nova Scotia |
| Occupation | Aviator |
| Spouse(s) | John Brady Grayson |
| Parent(s) | A. J. Wilson |
Frances Wilson Grayson (c. 1892 – c. December 23, 1927) was an American woman who died flying to Newfoundland just prior to her attempt to cross the Atlantic Ocean. She was a niece of President Woodrow Wilson.
Grayson was born as Frances Wilson in Cherokee Village, Arkansas, to A. J. Wilson. Her family moved from Arkansas to Indiana, where she graduated from Muncie High School in Muncie. She next attended the Chicago Musical College in Chicago, Illinois. Her plan was to accompany her brother, who planned to be a professional singer. When her brother died she stopped studying music. She then attended Swarthmore College in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, for recitation and dramatic arts.
At Swarthmore College, she met John Brady Grayson, and they married on September 15, 1914. They divorced with no children after nine years.
Frances Grayson then moved to New York City, where she was a writer for a newspaper. She then became a real estate agent.
While in New York, Grayson became interested in aviation and in the idea of making a flight across the Atlantic Ocean. She bought a new Sikorsky S-36 amphibian plane, which she named Dawn, and received financing for the flight from Mrs. Aage Ancker. She recruited Royal Norwegian Navy Lieutenant Oskar Omdal to serve as the aircraft's pilot, Brice Goldsborough as its navigator, and Frank Koehler as its radio engineer. They made plans to begin the transatlantic flight from the Dominion of Newfoundland. Omdal was to fly the plane across the Atlantic, although Grayson may have planned to perform some of the flying herself.
...
Wikipedia