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Authors:

Lorrie Ables, Courtney Hall, Alexis Stitt and Shandale Thompson

Research Assistance:

Karina de Britto, Lauren Gilman, Anna McDonald, Teresa Morales and Kristin Waskow

       Peer Reviewers:    

Courtney Hall and Shandale Thompson

Series Editor: Dr. Valerie Hill-Jackson, Clinical Professor

Texas A&M University

INST222: Foundations of Education in a Multicultural Society

Copyright, 2015

This book is a part of a three-part series on the 

Diverse Heroes and Sheroes of Texas; 

please read all three.

Meet Elizabeth "Bessie" Coleman. She was the first 

licensed African American female aviator to fly a plane 

in the United States. Bessie was born into a poor family 

on January 26, 1892 in Atlanta, Texas. Slavery of 

African Americans in the U.S. had recently ended and 

opportunities for African Americans were limited. 

Therefore, Bessie spent her childhood in the fields of 

Waxahachie, Texas picking cotton.

Bessie enjoyed getting up each morning knowing she was heading off to another 

day at school. Bessie's favorite person at school was her teacher because she was a 

pilot. Since her time at school, Bessie dreamed of becoming a pilot just like her 

teacher!

Sadly, Bessie and her family had to move to 

Chicago, but that did not keep her from 

remembering her teacher who would forever 

hold a place in her heart. 

*The red arrows to the right represent the distance 

between Bessie's new home in Illinois and her birth state of 

Texas.

Bessie continued to work towards earning an education. While in school, she would 

hear many stories of women who were pilots from France.   These stories gave her an 

even greater desire to pursue her dream. After graduating from school, Bessie began 

her search for an aviation school, so that she could work towards earning a pilot's 

license.

However, Bessie ran into a problem. Because she was African American, she was not allowed to attend 

aviation school. Times were tough because segregation separated the African Americans from other 

Americans. Bessie did not let this bring her down. She was proud of her ethnicity and herself as a person. 

Bessie's dream became more of a reality when she flew nearly 4000 miles from Chicago to 

France. She was one step closer to receiving her pilot's license! After seven long months, 

Bessie earned her license from an aviation school in France. She became the first African 

American woman to earn a pilot's license!

Soon after receiving her pilot's license in France, Bessie went back to Chicago, Illinois in the United 

States. Upon her return, Bessie's face could be seen on the cover of so many newspapers. Her 

international pilot's license was a significant   accomplishment. Bessie was the first licensed Black 

female aviator in America.

I always 

believed in 

her!

Great job 

Bessie!

Now that Bessie had her pilot's license, she wanted to work hard on her flying skills and learn new 

tricks in the air so she could perform airshows for people. The crowds loved her and referred to her 

as "Queen Bess"! Bessie did not want anyone to be treated unfairly so she performed her airshows 

only if the crowds were not segregated, but filled with a mix of all different types of people. 

Bessie wanted to create a school for African American pilots in the United States. She 

traveled to Los Angeles, California where she continued to find ways of earning money 

for her dream of an aviation school by doing airshows, giving speeches, and showing 

films of her flights. 

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