This week in Brattleboro History we’re going to focus on one of Brattleboro’s many independent women…you may have heard of past trailblazers like Clarina Nichols, Mary Wilkins, Dr. Grace Burnett, Marion McCune Rice and Mary Cabot. Each, in her own way, demonstrated a strength and ability to carve a successful female path in a male-dominated culture.
Another female pioneer was Evelyn Harris. She was born in 1897. Her father was the treasurer of the Brattleboro Savings Bank. Her Brother, Fred Harris, was a year and a half older and went on to become a Brattleboro legend. He graduated from Dartmouth College, became President of the Brattleboro Outing Club, organized the construction of the ski jump named after him, founded the Retreat Meadows AirField, became a pilot and was a famous New England sportsman.
Evelyn Harris, Fred’s little sister, was just as driven and motivated as Fred but she did not have the same opportunities. While Fred attended Dartmouth College and became an investment banker and real estate developer; Evelyn went to Miss Porter’s School for Young Women. From there she attended the progressive Finch School in New York City. While both programs emphasized women’s rights; neither provided paths to independent, professional careers.
One hundred years ago a “successful woman” was one who married well and raised a family. Evelyn Harris did not fit that formula. She was an outdoor adventurer more in the mold of Amelia Earhart than a woman looking for an eligible husband.
During World War I, while men went to war, Evelyn volunteered at the Fort Dix military base in New Jersey. In 1919 an airplane was hired by the Valley Fair to offer rides to adventurous fairgoers. Evelyn was the first female to fly in a plane over Brattleboro. In 1920 she went on a six week horseback riding exploration of the Canadian Rockies and British Columbia. In 1921 she traveled through northern Europe for three months and flew in a plane from Paris to London over the English Channel.
In 1921 Evelyn and Fred competed in male and female Lake Placid Cross Country Skiing competitions; both came in first place. Later that year, in December, Fred took steps to create a ski jump in Brattleboro. There was a tree-covered hill that loomed over an old, abandoned golf course on Cedar Street. He felt the hill could be converted into a natural ski jumping hill that might attract jumpers from around New England. Ledge was blasted, trees were cleared and a landing area was smoothed out.
According to the Brattleboro Reformer, on January 31, 1922 Fred and Evelyn Harris took the first trial jumps off the ski hill. The jumping course was about 750 feet long with a drop of about 300 feet. A few days later the best male ski jumpers in the region competed in the Vermont State Amateur Ski Jumping Championship. Evelyn would take children on ski outings during the remainder of the winter.
As an aside, in the 1940’s Dorothy “Dot” Graves of Greenfield, Massachusetts would become the first woman to officially participate in the Brattleboro ski jumping competition. Women jumpers wouldn’t compete in the Olympics until 2014.
Back to Evelyn. Later in 1922 she drove an automobile to Boston to take interior decorating classes. She was a founding member of the Brattleboro Outing Club and participated in all of its activities. When Evelyn was 25 years old, the Outing Club decided to formally establish an Aviation Field on the northern end of the Retreat Meadows. This area had been used unofficially by pilots for a few years and Fred and Evelyn Harris were the major organizers of the project. Airplanes were relatively new inventions. They were not reliable and many people remained afraid of them as they often broke down and became uncontrollable.
On August 18 the Brattleboro Aviation Field at the Retreat Meadows was dedicated and 3000 people came to see flying stunts done by seven different planes. Evelyn Harris opened the festivities by raising the American flag at the beginning of the day’s speeches. The Governor of Vt., James Hartness, attended and many people became airplane passengers for the first time.
As the day was winding down, one last plane ride was begun…Evelyn Harris climbed into a biplane with two other passengers and the pilot began his take off at the northern end of the Meadows. Tragically, the plane did not gain enough height and one wing clipped an elm tree. The plane veered to the right, crossed the West River, hit an electric power line and crashed to the earth. The two passengers were killed instantly; the pilot was thrown from the plane and received minor injuries. Evelyn was trapped in the burning plane and the pilot went back to pull her out of the wreckage, but she was badly injured. She was rushed to the hospital, but died early the next morning.
Evelyn Harris’s life was cut short. Sadly, she died at the age of 25. When researching her life we began to wonder what she would have done next. Would she have become a pilot herself? Her interests included traversing mountains, chasing adventures, flying through the sky, and pursuing outdoor challenges. She was a public, independent soul at a time when that was not the norm.