1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:06,280 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of iHeartRadio. 2 00:00:08,600 --> 00:00:12,200 Speaker 1: Hello and Welcome to This Day in History Class, a 3 00:00:12,320 --> 00:00:15,680 Speaker 1: show that soars through history one day at a time. 4 00:00:16,480 --> 00:00:19,680 Speaker 1: I'm Gay Bluesier, and in this episode, we're looking at 5 00:00:19,680 --> 00:00:23,800 Speaker 1: the life and times of Tiny Broadwick, aka the First 6 00:00:23,880 --> 00:00:38,519 Speaker 1: Lady of Parachuting. The day was June twenty first, nineteen thirteen, Georgia. 7 00:00:38,800 --> 00:00:43,360 Speaker 1: Tiny Broadwick became the first woman to skydive from an airplane. 8 00:00:44,240 --> 00:00:47,800 Speaker 1: She didn't exactly jump out of it, though. Instead she 9 00:00:47,920 --> 00:00:51,440 Speaker 1: sat on a trapeze like swing suspended behind the wing 10 00:00:51,479 --> 00:00:55,080 Speaker 1: of the plane, just outside the cockpit. Then, when the 11 00:00:55,080 --> 00:00:58,840 Speaker 1: plane reached two thousand feet, Tiny pulled a lever which 12 00:00:58,920 --> 00:01:02,520 Speaker 1: caused the seat to drop out from under her. Thankfully, 13 00:01:02,760 --> 00:01:06,320 Speaker 1: her homemade parachute functioned perfectly on the way down, and 14 00:01:06,360 --> 00:01:08,679 Speaker 1: she was able to float safely to the ground in 15 00:01:08,760 --> 00:01:12,800 Speaker 1: Griffith Park in Los Angeles. The jump that day was 16 00:01:12,959 --> 00:01:16,080 Speaker 1: just for fun and wasn't part of any larger exhibition, 17 00:01:16,560 --> 00:01:19,319 Speaker 1: but in the years ahead, Tiny would perform the feat 18 00:01:19,440 --> 00:01:23,160 Speaker 1: countless times in front of awe struck crowds, proving the 19 00:01:23,200 --> 00:01:28,440 Speaker 1: effectiveness of parachutes and floating her way into aviation history. 20 00:01:28,760 --> 00:01:32,600 Speaker 1: The woman who would become Tiny Broadwick was born Georgia 21 00:01:32,680 --> 00:01:37,160 Speaker 1: Ann Thompson on April eighth, eighteen ninety three. She grew 22 00:01:37,240 --> 00:01:40,080 Speaker 1: up with her parents and her six older sisters on 23 00:01:40,160 --> 00:01:44,440 Speaker 1: a farm in Granville County, North Carolina. The family called 24 00:01:44,480 --> 00:01:48,160 Speaker 1: her Tiny because she had weighed only three pounds at birth, 25 00:01:48,640 --> 00:01:50,960 Speaker 1: and since she grew up to be a five foot tall, 26 00:01:51,120 --> 00:01:55,480 Speaker 1: eighty pound adult, the nickname stuck with her for life. 27 00:01:55,520 --> 00:01:59,080 Speaker 1: The Thompson family struggled as farmers, so when Tiny was 28 00:01:59,120 --> 00:02:02,400 Speaker 1: about six years old, they moved to Henderson, where her 29 00:02:02,440 --> 00:02:05,559 Speaker 1: father had taken a job at a cotton mill. Life 30 00:02:05,600 --> 00:02:09,440 Speaker 1: remained difficult for the whole family, but it turned especially 31 00:02:09,520 --> 00:02:13,200 Speaker 1: bleak for Tiny. In nineteen oh five, she got married 32 00:02:13,360 --> 00:02:16,800 Speaker 1: at age twelve, and one year later she gave birth 33 00:02:16,840 --> 00:02:20,799 Speaker 1: to a daughter. Her husband abandoned them both soon after, 34 00:02:21,200 --> 00:02:23,680 Speaker 1: and due to the added expense of raising a baby, 35 00:02:24,000 --> 00:02:26,480 Speaker 1: Tiny had to drop out of school and start earning 36 00:02:26,520 --> 00:02:29,840 Speaker 1: a living. The only job she could find was working 37 00:02:29,880 --> 00:02:33,560 Speaker 1: in the mill alongside her father. The hours were terrible, 38 00:02:33,760 --> 00:02:36,560 Speaker 1: as was the pay, and when Tiny clocked out at 39 00:02:36,560 --> 00:02:39,679 Speaker 1: the end of her twelve or fourteen hour shifts, she 40 00:02:39,720 --> 00:02:42,160 Speaker 1: would immediately have to go home and care for her 41 00:02:42,200 --> 00:02:46,200 Speaker 1: infant child. It was a grueling schedule for anyone, but 42 00:02:46,360 --> 00:02:51,240 Speaker 1: especially for a thirteen year old single mother. It's no surprise, then, 43 00:02:51,360 --> 00:02:55,040 Speaker 1: that when Tiny heard her coworkers talking about the upcoming 44 00:02:55,120 --> 00:02:58,120 Speaker 1: State Fair and Raleigh, she jumped at the chance to 45 00:02:58,200 --> 00:03:01,520 Speaker 1: tag along and have some fun for a change. When 46 00:03:01,560 --> 00:03:04,440 Speaker 1: the Farah arrived in nineteen oh seven, one of the 47 00:03:04,440 --> 00:03:08,280 Speaker 1: acts Tiny saw was called the Broadwicks and their famous 48 00:03:08,360 --> 00:03:12,480 Speaker 1: French Aeronauts. It was part of the Jones Carnival and 49 00:03:12,560 --> 00:03:15,960 Speaker 1: consisted of performers ascending in a hot air balloon and 50 00:03:15,960 --> 00:03:20,240 Speaker 1: then parachuting back down to earth. Tiny was amazed by 51 00:03:20,320 --> 00:03:23,040 Speaker 1: the spectacle and knew right away that a show like 52 00:03:23,120 --> 00:03:27,639 Speaker 1: that was quote all I ever wanted to do. Hoping 53 00:03:27,720 --> 00:03:31,119 Speaker 1: to escape the drudgery of her daily life, Tiny approached 54 00:03:31,120 --> 00:03:34,520 Speaker 1: the owner of the troop, Charles Broadwick, and convinced him 55 00:03:34,520 --> 00:03:37,600 Speaker 1: to give her a place in the show. Tiny's mother, 56 00:03:37,880 --> 00:03:41,000 Speaker 1: Emma Ross Thompson, agreed to care for the girl's daughter 57 00:03:41,040 --> 00:03:43,800 Speaker 1: while she was away, so long as Tiny sent home 58 00:03:43,840 --> 00:03:46,640 Speaker 1: a portion of her salary to help pay for her needs. 59 00:03:47,120 --> 00:03:50,440 Speaker 1: And so with all the arrangements made, Tiny set out 60 00:03:50,480 --> 00:03:53,280 Speaker 1: on a new path in life, touring the country as 61 00:03:53,320 --> 00:03:57,760 Speaker 1: a carnival aero naut Over the next year, Charles Broadwick 62 00:03:57,800 --> 00:04:01,200 Speaker 1: trained her in the fine art of parachute. He also 63 00:04:01,280 --> 00:04:03,560 Speaker 1: came up with a hook for her act based on 64 00:04:03,640 --> 00:04:07,480 Speaker 1: the girl's diminutive size. He dressed Tiny in a silk 65 00:04:07,600 --> 00:04:11,040 Speaker 1: dress with ruffled bloomers, a bonnet and ribbons in her hair, 66 00:04:11,280 --> 00:04:15,320 Speaker 1: and began billing her as the Doll Girl. Years later, 67 00:04:15,520 --> 00:04:18,640 Speaker 1: Tiny would confess to hating both her stage name and 68 00:04:18,720 --> 00:04:21,799 Speaker 1: her costume, but at the time it still beat working 69 00:04:21,839 --> 00:04:25,480 Speaker 1: in a cotton mill. In nineteen o eight, after months 70 00:04:25,520 --> 00:04:29,120 Speaker 1: of preparation, Tiny was finally ready for her big debut. 71 00:04:29,920 --> 00:04:33,480 Speaker 1: That summer at the North Carolina State Fair, the fifteen 72 00:04:33,560 --> 00:04:35,719 Speaker 1: year old jumped from a hot air balloon for the 73 00:04:35,760 --> 00:04:39,720 Speaker 1: first time, and thankfully, the experience was every bit as 74 00:04:39,800 --> 00:04:44,119 Speaker 1: thrilling and liberating as she had hoped. Recalling the moment later, 75 00:04:44,320 --> 00:04:47,360 Speaker 1: she said, quote, I tell you, honey, it was the 76 00:04:47,400 --> 00:04:53,000 Speaker 1: most wonderful sensation in the world. Tiny's enthusiasm came through 77 00:04:53,040 --> 00:04:55,800 Speaker 1: in her performances, and she quickly became the star of 78 00:04:55,839 --> 00:04:58,960 Speaker 1: the show. Once it was clear that she and Broadwick 79 00:04:59,000 --> 00:05:02,200 Speaker 1: would be working together for some time. The showman reached 80 00:05:02,200 --> 00:05:05,279 Speaker 1: out to her parents and asked to legally adopt her. 81 00:05:06,000 --> 00:05:09,720 Speaker 1: Tiny's father, George Thompson, agreed to the arrangement, as it 82 00:05:09,760 --> 00:05:13,760 Speaker 1: was considered improper for a young, unmarried girl to travel 83 00:05:13,800 --> 00:05:17,520 Speaker 1: the country with an older man. Once the paperwork was signed, 84 00:05:17,839 --> 00:05:22,520 Speaker 1: Georgia Thompson officially became Tiny Broadwick, a name she would 85 00:05:22,560 --> 00:05:25,520 Speaker 1: carry for the rest of her life. For the next 86 00:05:25,600 --> 00:05:29,200 Speaker 1: four years, Tiny traveled all over the United States with 87 00:05:29,240 --> 00:05:33,280 Speaker 1: her famous Balloon Act. She performed countless daring jumps from 88 00:05:33,320 --> 00:05:37,440 Speaker 1: hot air balloons, sometimes bearing flares or torches for added 89 00:05:37,480 --> 00:05:41,880 Speaker 1: dramatic effect. The stunts didn't always go as planned, however, 90 00:05:42,200 --> 00:05:45,000 Speaker 1: such as the time she accidentally landed on a moving 91 00:05:45,080 --> 00:05:47,839 Speaker 1: train or when she got tangled up in a windmill. 92 00:05:48,560 --> 00:05:52,039 Speaker 1: She also had plenty of unhappy landings, some of which 93 00:05:52,080 --> 00:05:56,440 Speaker 1: included broken bones and dislocated shoulders. But through all her 94 00:05:56,600 --> 00:06:02,680 Speaker 1: many bumps and bruises, Tiny never lost her pet for parachuting. Sadly, 95 00:06:02,880 --> 00:06:05,920 Speaker 1: the same can't be said for the American public. By 96 00:06:06,000 --> 00:06:10,320 Speaker 1: nineteen twelve, airplanes had captured the country's imagination, and the 97 00:06:10,360 --> 00:06:15,120 Speaker 1: novelty of watching people jump from balloons was wearing thin. Luckily, 98 00:06:15,400 --> 00:06:18,960 Speaker 1: A new opportunity presented itself to Tiny that same year. 99 00:06:19,520 --> 00:06:22,640 Speaker 1: During one of her shows in La famous stunt pilot 100 00:06:22,680 --> 00:06:26,840 Speaker 1: and airplane manufacturer Glenn Martin asked Tiny if she'd like 101 00:06:26,920 --> 00:06:29,720 Speaker 1: to jump out of one of his planes. She accepted 102 00:06:29,720 --> 00:06:32,560 Speaker 1: his offer on the spot, and the following summer, on 103 00:06:32,640 --> 00:06:35,880 Speaker 1: June twenty first, nineteen thirteen, the pair took to the 104 00:06:35,920 --> 00:06:40,080 Speaker 1: skies and a Martin t biplane to perform the stunt. 105 00:06:40,360 --> 00:06:43,279 Speaker 1: Tiny sat in a swing like harness which hung off 106 00:06:43,279 --> 00:06:46,279 Speaker 1: the side of the plane, just behind the wing. Her 107 00:06:46,320 --> 00:06:50,239 Speaker 1: silk parachute, which was designed by Charles Broadwick, was perched 108 00:06:50,240 --> 00:06:53,039 Speaker 1: on a shelf above her and attached to her jacket 109 00:06:53,120 --> 00:06:56,599 Speaker 1: with harness straps. It was also fastened to the body 110 00:06:56,640 --> 00:06:59,560 Speaker 1: of the plane by a string, so that when Tiny jumped, 111 00:06:59,640 --> 00:07:03,160 Speaker 1: the string would tear away and the parachute would open automatically. 112 00:07:04,120 --> 00:07:07,360 Speaker 1: Once the plane reached two thousand feet over Los Angeles, 113 00:07:07,480 --> 00:07:10,160 Speaker 1: Tiny flipped a lever that released the straps she was 114 00:07:10,200 --> 00:07:14,880 Speaker 1: sitting on, sending herself hurdling toward the ground. A moment later, 115 00:07:15,040 --> 00:07:17,800 Speaker 1: her parachute filled with air, and a few minutes after 116 00:07:17,840 --> 00:07:21,240 Speaker 1: that she landed safely in Griffith Park. As the first 117 00:07:21,280 --> 00:07:25,560 Speaker 1: woman in history to parachute from an airplane. She didn't 118 00:07:25,560 --> 00:07:29,240 Speaker 1: stop there either. From then on, Tiny and her fellow 119 00:07:29,320 --> 00:07:33,680 Speaker 1: aeronauts continued their high flying act, just with airplanes instead 120 00:07:33,680 --> 00:07:37,119 Speaker 1: of hot air balloons. A few months after her first jump, 121 00:07:37,320 --> 00:07:40,559 Speaker 1: Tiny made history again when she became the first woman 122 00:07:40,600 --> 00:07:43,760 Speaker 1: to parachute out of a seaplane into a body of water, 123 00:07:44,280 --> 00:07:48,800 Speaker 1: Lake Michigan. She became such an accomplished parachutist that in 124 00:07:48,880 --> 00:07:52,760 Speaker 1: nineteen fourteen, the US Army asked her to demonstrate the 125 00:07:52,800 --> 00:07:56,120 Speaker 1: skill for its pilots. It was still the early days 126 00:07:56,160 --> 00:07:59,160 Speaker 1: of the First World War, but many airmen had already 127 00:07:59,200 --> 00:08:02,000 Speaker 1: died in Europe because they had no way of escaping 128 00:08:02,040 --> 00:08:06,000 Speaker 1: from a damaged plane. The military hoped Tiny could give 129 00:08:06,040 --> 00:08:09,080 Speaker 1: them some pointers on the proper technique and arranged for 130 00:08:09,120 --> 00:08:11,960 Speaker 1: her to make four jumps at the North Island Naval 131 00:08:12,000 --> 00:08:16,480 Speaker 1: Air Station in San Diego. Everything went smoothly for the 132 00:08:16,520 --> 00:08:19,640 Speaker 1: first three jumps, but the fourth one not so much. 133 00:08:20,320 --> 00:08:23,280 Speaker 1: After climbing out into the trap seat, the line of 134 00:08:23,280 --> 00:08:27,800 Speaker 1: her parachute got tangled in the plane's tail assembly. Normally, 135 00:08:27,880 --> 00:08:30,040 Speaker 1: she would have just climbed back into the plane and 136 00:08:30,200 --> 00:08:33,840 Speaker 1: canceled the demonstration, but the strong winds that day made 137 00:08:33,840 --> 00:08:37,520 Speaker 1: it impossible to do so safely. Most people would be 138 00:08:37,559 --> 00:08:40,520 Speaker 1: flipping out by that point, but Tiny kept her cool 139 00:08:40,559 --> 00:08:43,400 Speaker 1: and came up with a solution. She realized that if 140 00:08:43,440 --> 00:08:46,600 Speaker 1: she cut the string shorter and started falling toward the ground, 141 00:08:46,920 --> 00:08:49,680 Speaker 1: she could then pull the line by hand to open 142 00:08:49,720 --> 00:08:53,720 Speaker 1: the parachute. Not only did Tiny pull off that risky maneuver, 143 00:08:54,000 --> 00:08:58,480 Speaker 1: she revolutionized parachute design in the process. The tear away 144 00:08:58,640 --> 00:09:01,520 Speaker 1: string she used to open her chute later became a 145 00:09:01,559 --> 00:09:06,240 Speaker 1: standard design feature on parachutes known as the ripcord. The 146 00:09:06,440 --> 00:09:09,480 Speaker 1: Army had asked Tiny to demonstrate a procedure that was 147 00:09:09,559 --> 00:09:13,200 Speaker 1: difficult to perform parachuting from a plane with a line 148 00:09:13,280 --> 00:09:16,760 Speaker 1: attached to the fuselage, but thanks to her quick thinking, 149 00:09:17,000 --> 00:09:20,720 Speaker 1: she did them one better, streamlining the escape process and 150 00:09:20,800 --> 00:09:23,239 Speaker 1: proving that a pilot could bail out of an airplane 151 00:09:23,440 --> 00:09:28,160 Speaker 1: and still return to the ground safely. Tiny Broadwick continued 152 00:09:28,280 --> 00:09:31,880 Speaker 1: jumping from airplanes for another eight years, but in nineteen 153 00:09:31,960 --> 00:09:35,640 Speaker 1: twenty two she hung up her parachute for good. Although 154 00:09:35,679 --> 00:09:38,800 Speaker 1: she was only twenty nine years old. The landings from 155 00:09:38,800 --> 00:09:42,120 Speaker 1: her more than eleven hundred aridal jumps had taken a 156 00:09:42,200 --> 00:09:45,600 Speaker 1: heavy toll on her ankles. She knew that stepping away 157 00:09:45,640 --> 00:09:48,280 Speaker 1: from the sport she loved was the right decision, but 158 00:09:48,400 --> 00:09:50,640 Speaker 1: it wasn't an easy one, as there was much she 159 00:09:50,679 --> 00:09:53,920 Speaker 1: would miss about her time in the clouds. I breathed 160 00:09:54,000 --> 00:09:56,680 Speaker 1: so much better up there, she said at the time 161 00:09:56,760 --> 00:09:59,920 Speaker 1: of her retirement, and it's so peaceful being that new 162 00:10:00,280 --> 00:10:05,000 Speaker 1: to God back on the ground. Tiny's contributions to aeronautics 163 00:10:05,040 --> 00:10:09,360 Speaker 1: weren't forgotten. She received many honors and awards during her lifetime, 164 00:10:09,520 --> 00:10:13,839 Speaker 1: including the US Government Pioneer Aviation Award and the John 165 00:10:13,880 --> 00:10:17,360 Speaker 1: Glenn Medal. She is also one of just twelve women 166 00:10:17,480 --> 00:10:21,040 Speaker 1: to be recognized as an Early Bird of Aviation, a 167 00:10:21,080 --> 00:10:26,280 Speaker 1: designation for pilots who flew solo before December seventeenth, nineteen sixteen. 168 00:10:27,200 --> 00:10:31,319 Speaker 1: In nineteen sixty four, nearly four decades after her retirement, 169 00:10:31,720 --> 00:10:35,400 Speaker 1: Tiny donated one of her silk parachutes, made by Charles Broadwick, 170 00:10:35,559 --> 00:10:39,240 Speaker 1: to the Smithsonian's National Air Museum, now known as the 171 00:10:39,320 --> 00:10:43,520 Speaker 1: National Air and Space Museum. It was on that occasion, 172 00:10:43,679 --> 00:10:46,120 Speaker 1: during a dinner held in her honor, that the then 173 00:10:46,240 --> 00:10:50,440 Speaker 1: director of the museum, Philip Hopkins, outlined the impact Tiny 174 00:10:50,480 --> 00:10:55,000 Speaker 1: had made on American aviation, he said. Quote measured in 175 00:10:55,080 --> 00:10:59,880 Speaker 1: feet in inches, her nickname Tiny is obviously appropriate. Measured 176 00:10:59,920 --> 00:11:03,360 Speaker 1: by her courage and by her accomplishments, she stands tall 177 00:11:03,440 --> 00:11:07,240 Speaker 1: among her many colleagues, the pioneers of flight, and her 178 00:11:07,280 --> 00:11:11,000 Speaker 1: contributions to flight history have helped to make America stand 179 00:11:11,040 --> 00:11:15,080 Speaker 1: tall as the nation which gave wings to the world. 180 00:11:15,480 --> 00:11:18,480 Speaker 1: Tiny Broadwick spent the last years of her life in 181 00:11:18,520 --> 00:11:22,280 Speaker 1: California and passed away there in nineteen seventy eight at 182 00:11:22,280 --> 00:11:25,720 Speaker 1: the age of eighty five. Her body was buried in 183 00:11:25,760 --> 00:11:29,000 Speaker 1: her home state of North Carolina. But with any luck, 184 00:11:29,280 --> 00:11:35,600 Speaker 1: her spirit is soaring much higher, nearer to God. I'm 185 00:11:35,600 --> 00:11:39,080 Speaker 1: Gabe Lucier and hopefully you now know a little more 186 00:11:39,120 --> 00:11:43,160 Speaker 1: about history today than you did yesterday. You can learn 187 00:11:43,280 --> 00:11:46,839 Speaker 1: even more about history by following us on Twitter, Facebook, 188 00:11:46,880 --> 00:11:51,520 Speaker 1: and Instagram at TDI HC Show, and if you have 189 00:11:51,559 --> 00:11:54,080 Speaker 1: any feedback you'd like to share, you can always send 190 00:11:54,120 --> 00:11:57,640 Speaker 1: it my way by writing to this day at iHeartMedia 191 00:11:57,720 --> 00:12:01,040 Speaker 1: dot com. Thanks to Chandler May's and Ben Hackett for 192 00:12:01,040 --> 00:12:04,040 Speaker 1: producing the show, and thank you for listening. I'll see 193 00:12:04,040 --> 00:12:07,760 Speaker 1: you back here again tomorrow for another day in history 194 00:12:07,800 --> 00:12:08,199 Speaker 1: class