Abilene Regional Airport reveals untold pilot story

Be the first to discover the captivating tale of Vera Dawn Walker, a local aviation trailblazer in the 1920s. Abilene Regional Airport is hosting a reception to unveil her personal artifacts and writings, offering the public an opportunity to enjoy them firsthand.

During the Roaring Twenties, Vera Dawn Walker left her home in Taylor County to be in the moving pictures of Hollywood. While working as a stand in for the Tom Mix picture Purple Sage, Mix invited her to accompany him on an aerial sightseeing tour. After much unsuccessful persuasion, she reluctantly relented on a dare. Walker expressed in a 1972 interview that “Before we ever touched the ground I knew I HAD to learn to fly!”  She went up with that flier every day thereafter, until the picture was finished.

Achieving the goal of flight proved challenging for this daring 31-year-old woman.  In 1928, she applied to numerous aviation schools, and was rejected by all but one: The Aerial Corporation of California.  By 1929, she learned of an exciting Women’s Air Derby promoted by The National Exchange Club, and was determined to participate. Vera Dawn was sponsored by Howard Hughes, and won the right to race in a plane from the Curtiss-Wright Flying Company, owned by Glenn Curtiss, of naval aviation fame, and the celebrated Wilbur and Orville Wright.

Vera Dawn, alongside her companion Amelia Earhart, played a pivotal role in propelling women forward in aviation during the 1920s. Renowned for her petite stature and courageous demeanor, she gained fame as the “Tiny Texan.”

Vera Dawn Walker, a whopping 4’11”, 95 lb. media darling, made up for her small stature with gumption and grit.  She was known as A Flying Flapper, Daring Dame, Tiny Texan, and World’s Smallest Pilot. Vera Dawn astounded spectators and reporters alike when she propped herself up with pillows in her cockpit to reach the rudder pedals… and off she flew in the nation’s first air race for women!

One of the Derby stops was in her hometown of Abilene, where she received a large reception of proud and curious members of our community.  Oblivious to danger, her father, Irb Boggess Walker had led a pack of enthusiastic family members out to meet her still-running plane. Walker frantically shut down the engine, but that process was not instantaneous. Fortunately, an alert bystander grabbed Mr. Walker just as he was about to walk into her still-spinning propeller! Walker nearly fainted at almost having killed her own father.

Twenty pilots participated in the 1929 National Women’s Air Race, the first ever race for women.  Navigation equipment consisted of a hand held compass and a road map. They took off from Santa Monica, CA on August 18, in their propeller-driven airplanes headed for Cleveland, OH with 9 planned stops, one of which was Abilene, TX.  The raced ended on August 26, with 15 finishing the grueling 2,759 mile course.  Challenges included suspected sabotage attempts, sexist criticism of their flying ability as women—and crashes, one of which took the life of Marvel Crosson.  Pilots flew solo, and were required to handle their own mechanical problems, so Vera Dawn learned to take apart and reassemble her plane’s engine.

In the spring of 1931, Vera Dawn Walker became a demonstration pilot for Panther McClatchie airplane motors. Following an adventurous flight from Denver to Guatemala, she contracted tuberculosis.  Her poor health grounded her from flying, but she refused admission to a sanitarium to recover. Instead, the adventurer pitched a tent near Tucson and panned for gold while she waited for the dry air to heal her lungs.

In 1940, she brought her ill father to Arizona to live with her until his death. By the time her health returned and the Great Depression eased its grip on the aviation industry, her desire to fly had waned.  Vera Dawn sold real estate and died in Maricopa County, Arizona in June 1978. She is buried in the Cope Cemetery near Lawn, Texas alongside both of her parents.  Until 2018, her grave was marked only by a metal marker provided by the local funeral home.  When the Ninety-Nines were made aware of the situation, they paid for a monument and a arranged a proper ceremony to honor her time on earth.

Breaking Barriers: Opening Exhibit Honoring Local Aviation Trailblazer Vera Dawn Walker
Abilene Regional Airport
2933 Airport Blvd. Ste. 200
Friday, March 15th
2:00 pm
Free admission and parking for 2 hours in the main parking lot. Must bring your parking ticket to be validated
Learn more here

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