Willhite, Nellie Zabel

First deaf person, of either sex and any nationality, to earn a pilot's license (but not the first deaf airplane pilot--that was Calbraith Perry Rodgers, q.v.). Born at Box Elder, SD, as Elinor Zabel, but almost never used her real first name, adopting "Nellie" at an early age instead. Deafened by measles at age 2 or 4. Her mother died when she was 8; her father's job as an itinerant ox-train driver meant she lived with foster parents from age 10 to adulthood. She attended the South Dakota School for the Deaf, attended Yankton College for a time and also briefly attended the New England Conservatory of Music in 1916. Married a hearing psychiatrist that same year but divorced him a few years later. Became interested in flying while working as a typist; made her first solo flight and earned her license in 1928. Gave barnstorming shows in her own airplane (named "Pard") for 4 years, then worked as a commercial pilot and ground school instructor until 1944. Died at age 98 in Sioux Falls, SD. "Pard" is preserved and displayed in the Southern Museum of Flight at Birmingham, AL.