Flying Fun with Bessie Coleman

Packet Pickup

She did loops, barrel rolls, and even walked on the plane’s wings! Learn about “Brave Bessie.”

This packet includes craft supplies to create a hoop glider and book recommendations so you can explore more about Bessie “Queen Bess” Coleman, the first African American and Native American woman to earn a pilot’s license in 1921.

Flight schools across the country turned Bess away because she was African American and a woman, but with some encouragement, she saved her money and traveled to France, where she could learn to fly. When she returned to America to give flight exhibitions, she also gave lectures and presentations to raise funds to create a flight school for African Americans in the United States. Bessie died (in 1926) before seeing her dream come true. A friend of Bessie’s, who was also a World War I pilot, founded the Coleman Aero Club to encourage aviation in the African American community. The Bessie Coleman Stamp was also created to honor her accomplishments.

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