Louise Thaden wrote High, Wide, and Frightened in the prime of her life, making this autobiography unique among books about the Golden Age of Aviation. Thaden, a contemporary of pioneering women pilots Amelia Earhart, Ruth Elder, Florence Klingensmith, and Ruth Nichols, was part of a small group of determined women who overcame discrimination and obstacles to become pilots in a time when air races and distance, altitude and endurance records were daily news in America. She became the first woman to win the Bendix Transcontinental Air Race, the premier air race of the day and, before her, a male-dominated one.
High, Wide, and Frightened is the story of Thaden’s life, of her achievements in aviation, and also of her childhood in Arkansas. She writes about her everyday personal life and her day-today experiences in aviation.
“Adventure, history, danger, intrigue, death. Tom Clancy? No, Louise Thaden, and it’s all true. The unassuming contemporary of Amelia Earhart describes the dangers of racing and setting records in the fragile and precarious aircraft of aviation’s youth. Flashy bravado is out. Quiet excellence is in. This is a must-read.”
—Gene Nora Jessen, author of The Powder Puff Derby of 1929: The First All-Women’s Transcontinental Air Race
“Although other women pilots of her era—like Amelia Earhart and Jacqueline Cochran—are better known, it was Louise who, in her own quiet way, was blazing a trail for others to follow. I can think of no finer example for young women today than Louise.”
—Claudia Oakes, former curator, Aeronautics Department, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution and author of United States Women in Aviation Before World War I and United States Women in Aviation 1930–1939
“The Golden Era of Aviation was a time of great adventure and personal sacrifice for flyers—particularly women flyers. Louise Thaden was, by far, the most skilled and accomplished aviatrix of that era. In her book, High, Wide, and Frightened, Louise gives us a firsthand account of the life that she and other women pilots pursued in their quest for the thrill and romance of flight.”
—Capt. Susan Dusenbury, Airborne Express
Born in 1905 and raised in Arkansas, Louise Thaden attended the University of Arkansas from 1921 to 1925 before moving to California, where she earned her pilot’s certificate in 1927. Within the year, she had broken the women’s world record for altitude and endurance. In 1929 she won the first Women’s Air Derby, a transcontinental race. Over the next several years, Thaden continued to set records and win awards until 1938 when she retired to spend more time with her family and write these memoirs.
Adopted at: University of Missouri
Course: HIST 2240 Flight in America: From the Wright Brothers to the Space Age
Course Description: This course focuses on the history of flying in the U.S. from its beginnings to the Apollo moon missions. In a little over a century, aviation and space flight have transformed our world in deep and enduring ways. We will focus on key innovations and the people behind them. This is an exciting story, full of fascinating men and women.
Professor: John Wigger
Term: Fall 2023
