WHAT MADE ME WANT TO FIND OUT ABOUT NANCY LEEBOLD?

Originally, this all came about from one question - “Who are the Australian winners of the 99s (International Women Pilots) Amelia Earhart Memorial Scholarship (AEMS)?”

When I did ask,  I kept getting answers and suggestions of names, but nothing concrete of names with years and what they applied for.  The answer wafted from definitely 3 to maybe 4 or 5 Australian winners.

In 2007, an Australian won a 99s AEMS for the first time in 16 years. So the question was raised and as I could not get a definitive answer, so the research began. In 2008 I went to the 99s Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Anchorage, Alaska and attended the 99s Amelia Earhart Awards Dinner. At that dinner was a visual presentation of all the winners with their photo and year and what they had applied for. Before I left I approached the laptop operator and asked if I could take notes. I looked for names that were familiar. These were the names I had written down from previous conversations with members. This presentation did not state what country they came from, so it was not until our current Australian 99s Governor, Jennifer Graham, suggested that there was a fifth member that I researched via the 99s website and discovered that the country of origin of each winner was listed and ‘hey presto’ I had the fifth name. So now my information was complete; I had the names, the years and what they applied for. Of all 5, only 4 were still alive, so I felt that I should get motivated and interview them and research Nancy Ellis-Leebold, whom I discovered had passed away in 1982 in Sydney.

(Nancy was the first Australian and first overseas winner of this Scholarship in 1954. She used it to gain her Aircraft Engineering Licence).

I then approached each recipient and either interviewed them or sent a questionnaire. Everyone was happy to assist and provided some very interesting stories of what they had done with their lives and aviation since they won their Scholarships (which I then put into an article). To ensure accuracy, I sent each pilot a copy of what I had written and waited until they confirmed that they were happy with the article. They also provided photographs.

When I researched Nancy Ellis-Leebold, I was astounded by my lack of knowledge about this great lady. I found a 1965 quote from Nancy Bird-Walton, who called her the “most highly qualified and active flying woman in Australia”, and found some quite conflicting information, so the research had to be authenticated before I could write anything about her. It was a fascinating journey, as I do enjoy research, but difficult as there is very little written about Nancy and I never met her. 

I feel that I completely missed out on meeting an amazing lady and professional pilot who appears not to have written a book about her life, making it a challenge to find out more about her.

I think a Biography of Nancy Ellis-Leebold is long overdue.

If you have any stories about Nancy, you can email Cathy at nancyellisleebold@gmail.com.

I am still seeking her four logbooks.

Who was Nancy Ellis-Leebold? (and why write a book about her)

This is what Nancy looked like in 1954.


Photograph sourced from:
'National Library of Australia' http://nla.gov.au/nla.pic-vn5015462

SOME OF HER FIRSTS:
1950 - First female Australian pilot licensed to fly heavy aircraft (more than 12,500lb);
1952 - First female Chief Flying Instructor at Dubbo Aero Club;
1954 - First Australian (and First Overseas member) to win the 99s (International Women Pilots) Amelia Earhart Memorial Scholarship; also awarded by the 99s the Silver Anniversary Award (as it was in their 25th Anniversary of this Scholarship);

(year uncertain but most likely 1959) - First female Australian pilot to fly a jet aircraft (T33A in USA);
1967/8 - First female President of Australian Institute of Navigators.
These are but a few - more to come with confirmation of research.


 WHY WRITE A BIOGRAPHY ABOUT HER?

In 2007 I discovered a quote by the famous Australian aviator, Nancy Bird-Walton. 

In 1965, Nancy Bird, when writing about the History of the Australian Women Pilots' Association, wrote "Nancy Ellis Leebold, the President at this time (1955), was the most highly qualified and active flying woman in Australia". Nancy Leebold was the President of the Australian Women Pilots' Association for the period 1955/6.

Quote by NBW (as cited in AWPA Blue Book, p3, 1984) -

Australian Women Pilots’ Association, 1984, Australian Women Pilots’ Association Blue Book, AWPA, Adelaide
I have decided to write a biography about this pilot but my research clearly shows that there are differences of opinion as to what she did and when. One book published stated that she was awarded an OBE. By viewing the London Gazettes I have discovered this to be incorrect, but she was awarded an MBE. Similar, but not quite the same.

So I want to get the record straight for her and the key will be to finding her logbooks.

I have been very lucky to track down some of the Ellis family line. One group are still very much in Adelaide (where Nancy was born) and proudly display her MBE, Coronation Medal and her last logbook (from 1959 to 1971) - go to https://wadders007.wordpress.com/tag/nancy-leebold/  But the first four logbooks have so far eluded me.

I feel it vital that I find them.


It is for this reason that I have started the blog - perhaps someone out there knows where they are. Any or all information that you can supply to help with writing this book will be greatly appreciated.

I will also be writing about how my research is going in this blog, as I have had some fantastic help and input from various people and some things I have just tripped over.

You can contact me, Cathy, at nancyellisleebold@gmail.com