Harriet Quimby

Born in Michigan, Harriet Quimby led a life that, while tragically short, was anything but ordinary. Before taking to the skies, she was a prolific journalist and drama critic in San Francisco and New York, proving that her talents extended well beyond simply sitting still and looking pretty, a common occupation for women of her era.

Quimby's true claim to fame arrived in 1911 when she became the first American woman to earn a pilot's license. Not content with that, she then became the first woman to fly solo across the English Channel in 1912, a feat she accomplished in a purple satin flying suit she designed herself. Because if you're going to make history, you might as well look fabulous doing it.

Despite her groundbreaking achievements, Quimby's Jewish score remains firmly in the "not a Jew" category. Her family background was Protestant, and there’s not a whisper of a menorah or a matzah ball anywhere in her well-documented, if brief, existence. Sometimes, a pioneer is just a pioneer, and not a Member of the Tribe.