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mail pilot at Chicago, then on May 23d she started on a non-stop flight from Chicago to New York carrying mail. On the flight she encountered strong head winds and ran out of gas, which forced her town her Binghamton, New York after 10 hours in the air. In landing she nosed over, damaging a wing and broke the propeller, but she was not injured. The distance flown was 783 miles. After repairs were made she flew to Sheepshead Bay, Long Island, New York where she and Ruth Law flew and raced each other on May 30th.

In mid-summer, 1918 Katherine returned to Canada for another series of exhibition engagements, first at Calgary for the week of July 9th, then flew to Edmonton, 175 miles in 2 hours, 5 minutes, which then was a Canadian distance and duration record. There she raced Leon Duray, the automobile race driver, then flew on to Saskatoon, Red Deer and Camrose, leaving Canada August 3d. While there she also carried the first government air mail in Canada on July 9th.

[[left margin]] College Park to Bustleton, Pa., and return. [[/left margin]]

On September 26th she made an air mail flight from Washington, D.C. to Belmont Park, New York as part of the new Air Mail Service, then returned to Washington the next day. Additional flights were made through October and November.

Reportedly, during World War I Katherine also did solo flying for the American Red Cross in England and France, and wanted to fly at the front but again was refused. She was granted permission to drive Red Cross ambulances, and while in this service she contracted influenza which later turned more serious and forced her complete retirement from aviation in 1920. She later became Mrs. Michael Otero of Santa Fe, New Mexico.

In May, 1928 Katherine was honored guest at the Woman's World Fair in Chicago. She had not flown for ten years, seven of which she had spent fighting a winning battle against tuberculosis. She later took up architecture and became a very successful house designer. An Early Bird, she is still living in Santa Fe.

Flying Pioneer, Early Bird Katherine Stinson was indeed one of the truly greats of the early flying era in America. Although she was a slight, frail girl, during her flying days she was an expert pilot and always insisted she could do anything the men could do with an aeroplane, and she searched for opportunities to

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