Goggles, Flying, Amelia Earhart

Amelia Earhart wore these flight goggles as she competed in the 1929 Women's National Air Derby, one of the first air races for women. She did not wear them for very long, however: the goggles were taken from her airplane during a stop at San Bernardino, California shortly after the race began in Santa Monica. They were later found with the lenses missing. Accompanying the goggles were a program from the Women's Air Derby and a note addressed to Earhart verifying her as the goggles' original owner. In 1957 the goggles, race program, and note were all donated to the Smithsonian.