East to the Dawn (23 page)

In the meantime Edwin was coming to the conclusion that the time had come to terminate his marriage. His interests hadn't included Amy for a long time. His friends were now the members of the Church who had supported and encouraged him; his spiritual life was intertwined with
them. But in spite of the fact that he had grown so far apart from her, in spite of his obvious indifference to her needs, in spite of the fact that he paid so little attention to her, Amy still clung to him. She still loved him and wouldn't let him go. She would have gone on clinging to him forever, always hoping that he would change and that the marriage would get better. Finally he came to realize that if he were to separate his life from hers, he would have to make it happen. And he did; he forced the issue. Amy, Amelia, and Muriel moved out to 5314 Sunset Boulevard, then an area of small shops and modest houses on the east side of Hollywood.

In spite of the family troubles, Amelia was carefully and methodically putting money aside for a new plane—and not just any plane, but another Kinner.

Bert Kinner was now developing his own engines, had just put into production his own design, a 60-horsepower three-cylinder radial air-cooled motor weighing, at 150 pounds, just one pound more than the Lawrance. He finished the first engine in the spring of 1922; by September the motor was in production and the following year it was standard on the Airster.

The prototype engine, only 50 horsepower, was bought by David R. Davis, a wealthy entrepreneur who was an early backer of the engineer and industrialist Donald Douglas. (The Douglas Company was first called the Davis-Douglas Company; the first Cloudster turned out was called the Davis-Douglas Cloudster.) David Davis had intended to install the Kinner motor in the one-passenger monoplane he was designing, which he planned to fly between Los Angeles and his Imperial Valley ranch, but his plans changed, the plane was not built, and he had no immediate use for the finished engine.

Amelia, her finances considerably reduced, saw an opportunity and set about getting her Kinner. The method she resorted to was novel, not so much for the times but for her. Presumably at a reduced price, she bought Davis's engine and somehow, undoubtedly with Bert Kinner's help, “collected” an Airster to put it in. The engine, Amelia found, had a few flaws.

Three generations. In front, left to right: Amelia's sister Muriel and Amelia. In rear: Amelia's uncle, Carl Otis; her grandmother, Amelia Harres Otis; Carl's wife, Anna; Amelia's parents, Amy Otis Earhart and Edwin Earhart.

Courtesy of Muriel Earhart Morrissey.

Amelia as a young girl.

Courtesy of Corbis-Bettmann.

On Prince, the 12-year-old Indian pony that Amelia rode during the summers in Worthington, Minnesota.

Courtesy of Kenneth Clapp.

Amy and Edwin's wedding photo. They were married at Trinity Church on October 16, 1895. After the ceremony, they went directly to the train station and were on the noon train to Kansas City.

Courtesy of the Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe College, and Muriel Earhart Morrissey.

Amelia “Millie” Otis with Amelia “Millie” Earhart. Amelia spent most of her childhood with her grandmother.

Courtesy of Corbis-Bettmann.

Graduation photo of Amelia that appeared in
The Aitchpe,
The Hyde Park School yearbook, 1915. She looks very prim and proper, not like her usual self, and the caption reads, “Meek loveliness is round thee spread.”

Courtesy of Hyde Park High School.

Amelia with her cousins, Katch Challiss (far left) and John Challiss (far right). Amelia is beckoning the photographer (her cousin Lucy) to come closer.

 

Courtesy of Patricia Antich.

Katch's map of her favorite version of Bogie, the game Amelia dreamed up, always played in her grandparents' barn in Atchison. Amelia, Katch, Lucy,
and
Muriel would sit in the old carriage in the barn and embark on dangerous and exotic voyages.

Courtesy of Patricia Atttich.

After graduating from Hyde Park High School, Amelia went to Ogontz, a finishing school outside of Philadelphia. The headmistress had a number of unusual ideas, among them that the girls should dress in their graduation gowns for Halloween. Here is Amelia in hers, October 1917.

Courtesy of Corbis-Bettmann.