Winifred Mary (Harrisson) Fair (1906 - 1984)

Born 9 Jan 1906 in St Neots, Huntingdonshire, England

Ancestors

Wife of James Francis Crossley — married 8 Sep 1926 (to before 1940) in St Neots, Huntingdonshire, England

Wife of Peter Collins Fair — married 1943 (to 4 Nov 1961) in Paddington, London, England

Died 27 Mar 1984 at age 78 in Dagnall, Buckinghamshire, England, United Kingdom

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Philip Gale [send private message]

Winnie (Harrisson) Fair is associated with a WikiTree Challenge. Join: WikiTree Challenge Project Discuss: wikitree_challenge

Biography

Winnie (Harrisson) Fair is Notable.

Winnie (Harrisson) Fair was born in Huntingdonshire, England.

Winnie (Harrisson) Fair is one of twins.

Winifred was an aviation pioneer, the first woman to fly a single-seater Hawker Hurricane, a frontline RAF fighter plane. She was one of the First Eight, the initial group of women pilots to join the Air Transport Auxiliary at the start of World War II.

Winifred Mary Harrisson, informally known as Winnie, was the daughter of Ernest Henry Harrisson and Winifred Stevens. She was born on 9 January 1906 in St Neots, Huntingdonshire, England.^[1] She had a twin sister, Daphne Louisa Harrisson as well as an older brother, John Ernest McCrae Harrisson, a younger brother, George Granville Harrisson and a younger sister Muriel Constance Harrisson.^{[2][3][4][5][6]} The family home at that time was The Priory in St Neots. The detached 18th-century house is now a grade II listed building.^[7]

Her father Ernest was a general medical practitioner who was born in Holbeach, Lincolnshire. He became famous overnight as the doctor who delivered the first British quadruplets to all survive into adulthood despite being born seven weeks prematurely. That was in 1935 and in 2021 they were all still alive. Dr Harrisson looked after them in the critical first weeks of their lives in his own home employing specialist nurses from Great Ormond Street Hospital for Sick Children in London.^[8][9]

Winnie's mother was born in Stoke Damerel, Devon, the daughter of William Richard Stevens, a Captain in the Royal Navy, and Sarah Maria McCrae.^[10]

Winnie had a privileged upbringing and was educated privately. She went first to Burchett House, Dorking in Surrey and then to Elmshurst School on East End Road, Finchley together with her twin sister Daphne.^[11] The sisters appear on different pages of the 1921 census for Elmhurst so it is not immediately apparent that they were both there. The school was housed in a villa within 10 acres of grounds and was originally built as a home for a wealthy trader. The principal was Mrs Marion Russell.^[12] At the time Winnie and her sister Daphne attended the school, the owner of Elmshurst seems to have been one Samuel Pulman who ran 17 butchery businesses in and around Finchley. The house was demolished in 1939.^[13][14]

Winnie married twice. Her first husband was James Francis Crossley, known as Frank. They wed in 1926 in St. Neots Registration District, Huntingdonshire.^[15][16] After their marriage, Winnie and Frank set up home together at The Mallowry on Bedford Rd, Riseley in Bedfordshire.^[17] Bedfordshire Archives holds a series of photographs of Bedford Lawn Tennis Club teams in which both Winnie and Frank played during the 1930s. Frank appears in the men's team photos for 1935, 1937 and 1938.^[18][19][20] Winnie appears in the women's team photos for 1930, 1933 and in an undated photo from the same period.^[21][22][23]

Winnie and Frank had one child, John James Crossley, born in 1929.^[24] Sadly, John died suddenly and unexpectedly on 18 November 1950, aged just 21. He was buried four days later in Bovey Tracey. As a child, he had often accompanied his mother on flying trips.^[25][26] John's place of residence at the time of his death was the village of Harbertonford, about 20 miles south of Bovey Tracey.

In the 1939 England Register, Winnie was described as a wife so she must have still been married to Frank at that time although he was not listed as a member of the household. A note against Winnie's entry stated that she was a transport auxiliary in the women's section. This entry almost certainly meant the newly formed Air Transport Auxiliary (see below) and must have been added after its formation on 1 December 1939. Winnie was living in Old Woodbury near the village of Gaminlay in south Cambridgeshire (now in Bedfordshire) with her twin sister Daphne (who was then still single) and a housekeeper.^[27] It is possible that Winnie had already separated from her first husband by this time. Electoral registers show that they had certainly lived together at this address between 1936 and 1938 at least.^[28][29] Winnie also lived there in 1934 when she was awarded her aviators certificate (see Flying Career History below). The Crossleys may have taken on the tenancy at Michaelmas 1932, when the old tenant left. The nineteenth-century house which is built in Gothick style is now a grade II listed building.^[30]

Frank, a graduate of Malvern College (a public school), had become a Gunner in the Royal Artillery and was promoted to Second Lieutenant on 24 June 1939.^[31] This may explain his absence from Old Woodbury in 1939. Winnie and Frank must have divorced sometime after 29 September 1939, when the 1939 register was taken, and the second quarter of 1942 when Frank married his second wife, Marie Dring in Westminster, London.^[32]

Just over a year later Winnie married again. Her second husband was Peter Collins Fair, a Canadian-born pilot of some distinction. Their marriage was registered in the final quarter of 1943 in the Paddington district of central London.^[33] Peter graduated from the Royal Military College in Kingston, Ontario in 1927. He began his professional flying career with the Royal Air Force and remained with them until he retired at his own request on 8 April 1937 at the rank of Flight Lieutenant.^[34] The following year, Peter joined the British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC). In 1947, he was honoured by the BOAC by being made a Senior Captain First Class. At that time he had flown more than a million miles and would go on to complete more than 2.5 million miles in 1955.

Before their marriage, Peter commented that his bride-to-be was a better pilot than himself.^[35] It seems the couple initially met in 1934 and arrived together by air to attend the annual dinner of the Norfolk and Norwich Aero Club in April 1935.^[36] After their marriage, Peter and Winnie lived initially in Bovey Tracey, Devon. As they married during the war, they spent their first two years carrying out their respective duties in different parts of the UK, and in Peter's case, the world.

After the war ended, they moved to Montreal, Canada where Peter, who still flew trans-Atlantic crossings for the BOAC, was based. There is no evidence that Winnie ever piloted a plane again after moving to Canada. In 1956 Peter was appointed General Manager of the BOAC subsidiary, Bahamas Airways Limited based in Nassau. Winnie moved to the Bahamas with Peter and they lived there until shortly before Peter died of cancer in 1961. Two days before his death he developed pneumonia, passing away at the Chester County Hospital in Pennsylvania, USA on 4 November.^[37] He was buried with his mother and younger brother, Howard Cleugh Fair, in Union Hill Cemetery, Kennett Square, Chester County, Pennsylvania, USA.^[38]

Following Peter's death, Winnie returned to the UK, taking up residence in Hertfordshire, not far from Berkhamsted. She died on 27 March 1984.^[39] At the time she was living in North Dagnall, Buckinghamshire, a few miles north of Berkhamsted.^[40]

Flying Career

Learning to fly Winnie decided to learn to fly after visiting an aerobatics display. She began flying lessons at the Norfolk and Norwich Aero Club in November 1933.^[41] After just seven and a half hours of instruction she flew solo and gained her Royal Aero Club Aviator's Certificate on 16 February 1934 flying a De Havilland 65 hp Moth Cirrhus II.^[42] After qualifying, Winifred's first passenger was her twin sister, Daphne.^[43] Soon afterwards on 20 August that year she bought a 5-year-old DH 60G Gyspy Moth, registered G-AAET. It was kept at Old Warden Airfield near Biggleswade.^[44] Winnie didn't keep the aircraft long. She sold it in April 1935. Once qualified as a pilot who could carry passengers, Winnie often took family members, especially her son John, with her. Apparently, her husband Frank did not enjoy flying.

Aerobatics Pilot In 1936 Winnie was employed as a stunt pilot by C W A Scott's Flying Display Limited to give aerobatic displays during that summer's tour of the UK and the Irish Free State.^[45] At each show, she displayed twice a day in the company's new de Havilland DH 82A Tiger Moth, registered G-ADWG. A distinctive red and white chequerboard scheme was painted on the plane's fuselage. A journalist who watched her commented "Her daring display.... left one rather breathless as she looped, rolled and spun to the accompaniment of gasps from the spectators."^[46] In order to be paid for her stunt work, Winnie required a 'B' Licence, the professional pilot's licence. It is likely that she was the first professional female aerobatic pilot in the UK.^[47][48] C W A Scott's Flying Display was short-lived. Bad weather during the summer of 1936 meant low gate receipts. The company went into voluntary liquidation in November of that year.

A month earlier Winnie joined Air Publicity Limited as their only female contract pilot. The company was based at Heston Airfield in west London and owned a fleet of eight Avro 504Ns for towing advertising banners and gliders. Winnie's first banner towing assignment was over Luton in Bedfordshire, close to her home. Pilots could be away on tour for a week or two. Winnie may have been the first female pilot to tow banners and/or gliders. She carried on flying with banners until the start of World War II. In a newspaper interview, she commented that she had never crashed and preferred flying to driving.^[49]

Experience in World War II Winnie became one of the first women to be recruited as a ferry pilot in the newly created Air Transport Auxiliary.^[50][51] The ATA was formed into an operational unit in September 1939 upon the Declaration of War by Great Britain, for the purposes of delivering His Majesty's aircraft to the Royal Air Force, and the Royal Navy, and for Air Transport tasks auxiliary to the War Effort. It was the brainchild of Gerard d'Erlanger, a Director of British Airways Ltd, who had first proposed a support organisation of civil pilots in a letter to the Director General of Civil Aviation, Sir Francis Shelmerdine.^[52]

The role of the ATA excluded combat; it was specifically to transfer new, damaged or repaired military aircraft between assembly plants, maintenance/repair units, scrapyards and active service airfields. Often, ATA pilots ferried service personnel on urgent duty or medical supplies from one location to another. The unofficial motto of the ATA was Anything to Anywhere which meant the work was often dangerous, especially flying unusable planes to repair units when the damage or fault might worsen during transfer.^[53][54] ATA pilots flew up to 149 different aircraft so pilots were often asked to fly planes on which they had little or no training. Lack of radio contact with the ground and accurate weather forecasts posed huge risks. Winnie was especially cautious about flying in bad weather. In December 1944 her then commanding officer, Norman Whitehurst, wrote She is apprehensive of poor weather to an extraordinary degree for such an experienced and good pilot.^[55] However, as astronaut Frank Borman commented in 2008 A superior pilot uses his superior judgment to avoid situations which require the use of his superior skill.^[56] In other words, Winnie was apprehensive of adverse weather conditions because she was such an experienced pilot.

To qualify for the ATA, pilots had to hold an 'A' private flying licence and have accumulated at least 250 hours flying time. It was Harold Balfour, then the Parliamentary Undersecretary for Air, who proposed that women should be allowed to join the ATA. This was the first time women were permitted to fly military aircraft and initially met with considerable opposition. It fell to Pauline Gower, a female pilot of renown whose father was MP Sir Robert Gower, to use her high-level connections to overcome this opposition. On 14 December 1939, Gower was officially given the task of establishing the women's section of the ATA.^[57]

On 16th December 1939, a group of 12 women pilots who met the ATA entry criteria were brought together at RAF Whitchurch near Bristol where they were flight-tested in a Gypsy Moth. Only eight including Winifred Harrisson were selected and appointed as Second Officers on 1 January 1940. They were initially placed into Number 5 Ferry Pilots Pool based at Hatfield in Hertfordshire^[58][59][60] The other seven founder female members were Margaret Cunnison, Margaret Runciman, Mona Friedlander, Joan Hughes, Gabrielle Burr, Rosemary Rees and Marion Ogilvie-Forbes. All came from wealthy middle or upper-class families and hence had been given an early opportunity to learn to fly. Margaret Cunnison and Marion Ogilvie-Forbes were Scots, the other six were English. Later on, members of the women's section of the ATA were drawn from all over the world. By 1942 a training base had been set up at Thame-Haddenham to increase the supply of ATA pilots.^[61] Female ATA pilots became known as Atagirls. One in eight of all ATA pilots (168 of 1322) were women, fifteen of whom lost their lives in service including Amy Johnson and Margaret Runciman.^[62]

From the start of the war, women ATA pilots were paid 20% less than their male counterparts. However, by 1943 they were given the same rank and paid the same amount as male members of the ATA. This was the first time in history that the British Government had approved equal status and pay to women in an organisation under its control. Hence the ATA became one of the first Equal Opportunities Employers in the UK.^[63]

At first, female pilots were restricted to De Havilland Tiger Moths but were quickly allowed to fly more complex aircraft. On 19 July 1941 at Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Winnie became the first woman to fly a Hawker Hurricane, a single-seater frontline RAF fighter plane.^[64] A colleague in the ATA wrote Captain Henderson brought a Hurricane over from White Waltham for the five most senior F/Os to fly, and we all went out to watch. Winnie, the first to take the controls, as always did a perfect take-off and landing. I watched enviously, wishing that I were a first officer.^[65] After coming to a perfect three-point landing, a smiling Winnie reportedly remarked to her colleagues waiting to demonstrate their own prowess in the Hurricane "It's lovely darlings. A beautiful little aeroplane."^[66] Despite Winnie's casual comment, this was a landmark achievement. Whether male or female, ATA pilots had to know just enough about each new aircraft they flew to be able to fly it safely. This information was collated into Ferry Pilots' Notes, a flip-pad containing essential do's and dont's. When Winnie flew the Hurricane for the first time, failure was not an option.

Despite being an exceptionally good pilot according to Pauline Gower in May 1941, Winnie was not a natural leader. She was appointed Flight Captain in on 15 February 1942, as second in command to Marion Ogilvie-Forbes in Ferry Pilot Pool 5 where she remained until 1943. She spent the final years of the war in Ferry Pools 9, 6 and 4. By the end of World War II, Winnie had flown almost every aircraft type used by the RAF and the Royal Navy, including the Supermarine Spitfire, de Havilland Mosquito and North American Mustang. She became one of only eleven women qualified to fly large four-engine heavy bombers such as the Avro Lancaster, Handley Page Halifax, Short Stirling and Consolidated Liberator. Roughly half the hours Winnie flew were spent taxiing ATA pilots around the country in Avro Ansons, Fairchild F-24 Argus's and DH Dragon Rapides. This was an important job, only given to the most experienced and reliable pilots. If a taxi pilot had a fatal crash with several pilots on board that would have been a disaster. Winnie was one of three female pilots who served in the ATA Women's Section from its inception to the end of the war. By then she had flown over 4,000 hours. The RAF Museum (https://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/) is the current custodian of Winnie's ATA records. However, scans are available to download from a different location.^[67]

Pauline Gower remained commander of the ATA throughout World War II. She died tragically young at the age of 36 two years after her marriage to Wing Commander William Cusack "Bill" Fahie, and shortly after giving birth to twin sons, who survived.^[68] The importance of the ATA to the British war effort cannot be overstressed. According to Gerard d'Erlanger Every machine you see in the sky has been, or will be, flown at some period of its life, by a pilot of the ATA. The film Spitfire Sisters tells the remarkable story of the women who flew for the ATA during World War II.^[69] An excellent overview of the women of the ATA is a blog available via the British Newspaper Archive website.^[70]

Winnie's character According to her contemporaries, Winnie was vivacious and outgoing with an engaging personality and a somewhat rebellious streak. One journalist described her as a charming brunette, whose frank and amazingly blue eyes twinkled.^[71]Winnie loved parties and social events. In her leisure time, she was almost always seen smoking a cigarette. In The Sketch of 3 June 1942 there is a wonderful caricature of her drawn by one of her fellow ferry pilots, Edna Violet Clayton, known as Sammy. It is apparently spot on, showing Winnie casually seated on a bar stool with what looks like a glass of beer in one hand and a cigarette in the other.^[72] The 2-page spread includes 17 caricatures in all, including one of their Commanding Officer, Pauline Gower. Towards the end of the war, Winnie's subsequent Commanding Officers judged her character positively with comments such as "She is at all times an amiable person of great charm and is extremely kind-hearted" and "Very popular with all pilots of her flight and shows great keenness in all the work of the Pool." After joining the ATA, Winnie, who had by that time split from her first husband, Frank, rented Abdale House in North Mymms, about 3 miles from RAF Hatfield. It was rather a large house, originally a 16th-century Tudor Manor House, and she accommodated several other female ferry pilots there.^[73] It is now a grade II listed building.^[74]

Winnie was extremely good at sport, playing tennis for Bedfordshire in her youth (see above) and recreational golf for most of her adult life. However, once in an aeroplane, she became a cool-headed professional who took her job very seriously. All those women who served in the women's section of the ATA during World War II were undoubtedly heroic. Winnie was one of only three women pilots to remain in the ATA from its inception on 1 Jan 1940 to the last day of World War II. As one of the First Eight, she was drawn from a very small minority of British women who had been given the opportunity to learn to fly by comfortably off families. Nevertheless, they were put through a rigorous selection procedure. These eight women were effectively setting the standard by which female ferry pilots would be judged. They had to be brave, fit and incredibly resilient to withstand the onerous demands of being a ferry pilot. They were operating in a man's world and there were no extenuating circumstances for being female. As a woman, Winnie could have chosen a much less dangerous role during the war. The role she chose must have been simultaneously challenging and immensely satisfying. Some days would have been tedious, some thrilling and a few heart-stopping. Ferry pilots had no radio and no means of communicating with support services. If something went wrong, there was no help. Few of us would cope but the women of the ATA did, every day throughout World War II. Sadly, Winnie's log books from her days in the ATA have not survived. If she could tell her own story, it would almost certainly be narrated with warmth, wit and just a touch of nonchalance.

Winnie collected silver and gold Victorian matchboxes, probably Vestas, which remain highly sought-after to this day.

Myths about Winnie Newspaper articles from 1935 stated that Winnie flew down to London every day to ferry special milk back to Cambridgeshire to feed the St Neots quads, whose birth and aftercare were overseen by her GP father. This is not true.

A famous photo in The Tatler (3 April, 1935) shows Winnie and her twin sister Daphne at Heston airport with the caption “Among those who are often to be seen at our leading airport are Mrs Winifred Crossley and her twin sister, Miss Daphne Harrison. They are both experts in the art of aerobatics, their machine being a Gypsy Moth.” There is no evidence that Daphne ever learned to fly. Her clothing in the photo suggests she had been a passenger.

Sources

1. ↑ England & Wales General Register Office Online index : accessed 24 July 2023, database entry for HARRISSON, WINIFRED MARY (mother's maiden name STEVENS) GRO Reference: 1906 M Quarter in SAINT NEOTS Volume 03B Page 263
2. ↑ "England and Wales Census, 1911," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X7VS-MHL : 23 July 2019), Winifred Mary Harrisson in household of Ernest Henry Harrisson, St Neots, Huntingdonshire, England, United Kingdom; from "1911 England and Wales census," database and images, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : n.d.); citing PRO RG 14, The National Archives of the UK, Kew, Surrey.
3. ↑ England & Wales General Register Office, GRO Online Index - Birth (https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content : accessed 3 August 2023), database entry for HARRISSON, John Ernest McCrae: GRO Reference: 1904 S Quarter in ST NEOTS Volume 03B Page 280 (mother's maiden name STEVENS).
4. ↑ England & Wales General Register Office, GRO Online Index - Birth (https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content : accessed 3 August 2023), database entry for HARRISSON, Daphne Louisa: GRO Reference: 1906 M Quarter in SAINT NEOTS Volume 03B Page 263 (mother's maiden name STEVENS).
5. ↑ England & Wales General Register Office, GRO Online Index - Birth (https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content : accessed 3 August 2023), database entry for HARRISSON, George Granville: GRO Reference: 1909 D Quarter in ST NEOTS Volume 03B Page 243 (mother's maiden name STEVENS).
6. ↑ England & Wales General Register Office, GRO Online Index - Birth (https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content : accessed 3 August 2023), database entry for HARRISSON, Muriel Constance: GRO Reference: 1912 D Quarter in ST. NEOTS Volume 03B Page 448 (mother's maiden name STEVENS).
7. ↑ Historic England Listed Buildings. The Priory, St Neots, Cambridgeshire. Available at: https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1129908 (accessed 7 August 2023).
8. ↑ Death of Dr E H Harrisson. Doctor to St. Neots "Quads". Bedfordshire Times and Independent, 19 December 1941, page 3. Available at: https://search.findmypast.co.uk/bna/viewarticle?id=BL/0000750/19411219/087&stringtohighlight=winifred%20edith%20stevens%20%22st%20neots%22 (accessed 3 Aug 2023)
9. ↑ Harrisson E H. The Eynesbury Quadruplets: First Nine Months of Life. British Medical Journal, 1936; 2:917 doi:10.1136/bmj.2.3957.917.
10. ↑ England & Wales General Register Office, GRO Online Index - Birth (https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content : accessed 3 August 2023), database entry for STEVENS, Winefred Edith: GRO Reference: 1875 D Quarter in STOKE DAMEREL Volume 05B Page 331 (mother's maiden name McCrae).
11. ↑ 1921 Census: "1921 Census Of England & Wales"
    Archive: The National Archives; Series: RG 15; Piece number: 06674; District reference: RD 131 RS 3 ED 30
    FindMyPast Image - FindMyPast Transcription (accessed 14 August 2023)
    Winifred M Harrisson (15), single boarder, in household of Eileen Bignold (11) on Elmshurst East End Road, Finchley in Barnet registration district in Middlesex, England. Born in Hertfordshire, England.
12. ↑ 1921 Census: "1921 Census Of England & Wales"
    Archive: The National Archives; Series: RG 15; Piece number: 06674; District reference: RD 131 RS 3 ED 30
    FindMyPast Image - FindMyPast Transcription (accessed 4 August 2023)
    Marion Russell (48), widowed principal, Principal of School, in household of Maud M Germany (44) on Elmshurst West End Road, Finchley in Barnet registration district in Middlesex, England. Born in Sheffield, Yorkshire, England. Employed by Principal of School.
13. ↑ Baggs A P, Bolton D K, Hicks M A and Pugh R B, Finchley: Introduction, in A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 6, Friern Barnet, Finchley, Hornsey With Highgate, Baker T F T, Elrington CR (editors). London (1980), pp. 38-55. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/middx/vol6/pp38-55 (accessed 4 August 2023).
14. ↑ Barnet. London Borough. East End Road (Finchley N2). Available at: https://www.barnet.gov.uk/libraries-old/local-studies-and-archives/pocket-histories/finchley-friern-barnet-and-totteridge-19 (accessed 4 August 2023).
15. ↑ "England and Wales Marriage Registration Index, 1837-2005," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVZY-45CX : 8 October 2014), Winifred M Harrisson and null, 1926; from "England & Wales Marriages, 1837-2005," database, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : 2012); citing 1926, quarter 3, vol. 3B, p. 711, St. Neots, Huntingdonshire, England, General Register Office, Southport, England.
16. ↑ Interesting wedding. Harrisson-Stevens. Saffron Walden Weekly News 16 October 1903, page 7 of 8. Available at: https://search.findmypast.co.uk/bna/viewarticle?id=BL/0000961/19031016/007&stringtohighlight=winifred%20edith%20stevens%20%22st%20neots%22 (accessed 3 Aug 2023.
17. ↑ 1931 Electoral Register: "Bedfordshire, England, Electoral Registers, 1832-1986"
    Original data: Electoral rolls for Bedfordshire 1832-1986, Bedfordshire Archives, Bedford, Bedfordshire, England
    Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 61264 #5456609 (accessed 14 August 2023)
    Name: Winifred Crossley May; Residence Year: 1931; Address: Mallowry; Residence Place: Bedfordshire, England; Parliamentary Division: Bedfordshire.
18. ↑ Records of Bedford Lawn Tennis Club, Bradgate Road, Bedford. Photographs: Bedfordshire Gentlemen’s County Team Groups. County team at Hythe 1935: J M Warrington, J F Crossley, F/O A E Harbot, G A Robinson, R Powell, J E Dawes, C E Robinson, E A R Garraway. Available at: https://bedsarchivescat.bedford.gov.uk/Details/archive/110070485 (accessed 15 Aug 2023)
19. ↑ Records of Bedford Lawn Tennis Club, Bradgate Road, Bedford. Photographs: Bedfordshire Gentlemen’s County Team Groups. County team at Paignton 1937: F/O A E Harbot, E Johnson, G Robinson, J M Warrington, J F Crossley, J E Dawes (Capt.), C E Robinson. Available at: https://bedsarchivescat.bedford.gov.uk/Details/archive/110070486 (accessed 15 Aug 2023)
20. ↑ Records of Bedford Lawn Tennis Club, Bradgate Road, Bedford. Photographs: Bedfordshire Gentlemen’s County Team Groups. County team 1938: Shaw, J R [?] Strong, Chennelly, J Daniel, Warrington, Dawes, Crossley. Available at: https://bedsarchivescat.bedford.gov.uk/Details/archive/110070487 (accessed 15 Aug 2023)
21. ↑ Records of Bedford Lawn Tennis Club, Bradgate Road, Bedford. Bedfordshire Ladies’ County Team Groups. County team, 1930: Miss Mactier, Mrs Crossley, Miss Smith, Miss Howes, Mrs Martin, Miss A Wells. Available at: https://bedsarchivescat.bedford.gov.uk/Details/archive/110070471 (accessed 15 Aug 2023).
22. ↑ Records of Bedford Lawn Tennis Club, Bradgate Road, Bedford. Bedfordshire Ladies’ County Team Groups. County team 1933: Miss M White, Miss D I Davies, Mrs Crossley, Miss C M Smith, Miss A Wells, Miss M E Smith, Mrs Martin, Miss Howes. Available at: https://bedsarchivescat.bedford.gov.uk/Details/archive/110070472 (accessed 15 Aug 2023).
23. ↑ Records of Bedford Lawn Tennis Club, Bradgate Road, Bedford. Bedfordshire Ladies’ County Team Groups. County team undated: Mrs M G Smith, Miss V Scott, Miss N White, Miss M H Smith, Miss D Martin, Mrs Crossley, Miss M E Smith, Miss C M Smith. Available at: https://bedsarchivescat.bedford.gov.uk/Details/archive/110070473 (accessed 15 Aug 2023).
24. ↑ England & Wales General Register Office Online index : accessed 24 July 2023, database entry for CROSSLEY, JOHN JAMES (mother's maiden name HARRISSON) GRO Reference: 1929 M Quarter in BEDFORD Volume 03B Page 364
25. ↑ England & Wales General Register Office, GRO Online Index - Death (https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content : accessed 4 August 2023), database entry for CROSSLEY, John James: GRO Reference: 1950 D Quarter in NEWTON ABBOT Volume 07A Page 593. Age 21.
26. ↑ Announcement of the death of John James Crossley on 18 November 1950 at Bovey Tracey. Deaths column. Western Morning News, Tuesday 21 November 1950, page 2 of 8. Available at: https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000329/19501121/154/0002 (accessed 4 August 2023).
27. ↑ 1939 Register: "1939 England and Wales Register"
    The National Archives; Kew, London, England; 1939 Register; Reference: Rg 101/6325g; Line Number: 16; Schedule Number: 159; Sub Schedule Number: 1
    Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry uk Record 61596 #45487349 (accessed 3 August 2023)
    Winifred M Crossley (born 9 Jan 1906), married, Wife, in Old Woodbury, South Cambridgeshire, Cambridgeshire, England.
28. ↑ 1936 Electoral Register: "Cambridgeshire, England, Electoral Registers, Burgess Rolls and Poll Books, 1722-1966"
    Cambridgeshire Archives; Cambridge, England; Cambridgeshire Electoral Registers; Reference: Er 1936
    Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 61429 #5957341 (accessed 7 August 2023)
    Name: James Francis Crossley; Event Type: Residence; Residence Year: 1936; Street Address: Old Woodbury; Residence Place: Cambridgeshire, England; Parliamentary Division: Cambridgeshire County.
29. ↑ 1938 Electoral Register: "Cambridgeshire, England, Electoral Registers, Burgess Rolls and Poll Books, 1722-1966"
    Cambridgeshire Archives; Cambridge, England; Cambridgeshire Electoral Registers; Reference: Er 1938
    Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 61429 #5408222 (accessed 7 August 2023)
    Name: James Francis Crossley; Event Type: Residence; Residence Year: 1938; Street Address: Old Woodbury; Residence Place: Cambridgeshire, England; Parliamentary Division: Cambridgeshire County.
30. ↑ Historic England. Old Woodbury House, Adjoining Wall and Gateway. Listed Building Grade II. Available at: https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1114065?section=official-list-entry (accessed 16 August 2023).
31. ↑ Military: "UK, London Gazettes World War II Military Notices, 1939-1945"
    The Gazette: Crown Copyright; https://www.thegazette.co.uk; The Gazette, Official Public Record 1665-Present; Volume Number: 34639; Page number: 4235
    Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 62074 #50762 (accessed 6 August 2023)
    Name: James Francis Crossley; Military Rank: Gunner; Military Date: 24 Jun 1939; War: World War II; Publication Date: 23 Jun 1939; Publication Place: London, England; Refence Number: 34639.
32. ↑ "England and Wales Marriage Registration Index, 1837-2005," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QV85-65RZ : 8 October 2014), James F Crossley and null, 1942; from "England & Wales Marriages, 1837-2005," database, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : 2012); citing 1942, quarter 2, vol. 1A, p. 1003, Westminster St. Margaret, London, England, General Register Office, Southport, England.
33. ↑ Marriage Registration: "England & Wales Marriages 1837-2005"
    Volume: 1A; Page: 115
    FindMyPast Image - FindMyPast Transcription (accessed 24 July 2023)
    Winifred M Crossley marriage to Fair registered Oct-Nov-Dec 1943 in Paddington.
34. ↑ Air Ministry. Royal Air Force. Notices. The London Gazette, Issue 34388, 13 April 1937, page 2380 (accessed 17 August 2023).
35. ↑ Flying Romance. Daily Record, Thursday 09 September 1943, page 6 of 8. Available at https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000728/19430909/072/0006 (accessed 5 August 2023).
36. ↑ Flight International, volume 27, 4 April 1935 (Not available online. Index only at archive.org).
37. ↑ https://www.hockeyarchives.info/register/FairPeter.htm
38. ↑ Memorial: Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/157170329/peter-cleugh-fair: accessed 03 August 2023), memorial page for CPT Peter Cleugh Fair (18 May 1906–4 Nov 1961), Find a Grave Memorial ID 157170329, citing Union Hill Cemetery, Kennett Square, Chester County, Pennsylvania, USA; Maintained by Theresa Ely (contributor 48182797).
39. ↑ England & Wales General Register Office Online index : accessed 24 July 2023, database entry for FAIR, WINIFRED MARY (born 1906) GRO Reference: DOR Q1/1984 in AYLESBURY (3241B) Volume 19 Page 1008.
40. ↑ Probate: "England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995"
    Original data: Principal Probate Registry. Calendar of the Grants of Probate and Letters of Administration made in the Probate Registries of the High Court of Justice in England
    Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry uk Record 1904 #25782722 (accessed 3 August 2023)
    Winifred Mary Fair probate on 29 Aug 1984 in London. Died 27 Mar 1984 in North Dagnall Berkhamsted Herts.
41. ↑ From the Clubs. Norfolk and Norwich Aero Club. Mrs F Crossley welcomed as a new member. Flight International Magazine, 30 November 1933, page 1199. Available at: https://archive.org/details/Flight_International_Magazine_1933-11-30-pdf/page/n33/mode/2up (accessed 15 August 2023).
42. ↑ "Great Britain, Royal Aero Club Aviators’ Certificates, 1910-1950", Original data: Royal Aero Club. Royal Aero Club index cards and photographs are in the care of the Royal Air Force Museum, Hendon, London, England, Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 1283 #27511 (accessed 24 July 2023). Name: Winifred Mary Crossley Crossley; Birth Date: 9 Jan 1906; Birth Location: St Neots.
43. ↑ Ambition Realised. Mrs F Crossley Qualifies as a Pilot. Bedfordshire Times and Independent, Friday 13 April, page 9 of 16. Available at: https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000749/19340413/193/0009 (accessed 15 August 2023, note that the article says Winifred gained her "A" license on 9 March 1934).
44. ↑ DH 60 Moth Production List. Issue 02.21. Item 1080: (Gipsy I #537) DH.60G Autoslot regd G-AAET. Available at: https://air-britain.com/pdfs/production-lists/DH60.pdf (accessed 15 August 2023).
45. ↑ Her New Role. Gloucester Citizen, Thursday 20 February 1936, page 12 of 16: 'Mrs. Crossley is to be leading aerobatic pilot'. Available at: https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000325/19360220/069/0012 (accessed 16 August 2023).
46. ↑ Gossip of the Week. Engaging Personality. The Waterford Standard, Saturday 30 May 1936, page 3 of 12. Available at: https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0001678/19360530/040/0003 (accessed 20 August 2023).
47. ↑ Woman of the Week. Wells Journal, Friday 1 May 1936, page 7 of 8. Available at: https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000308/19360501/144/0007 (accessed 16 August 2023)
48. ↑ Speed and Stunts with Safety. Thrills of C. W. A. Scott's Air Circus. Western Daily Press, 30 April 1936, page 7 of 12. Available at: https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000513/19360430/063/0007 (accessed 16 August 2023).
49. ↑ Bedfordshire's Woman Stunt Flyer. Sky is her writing pad! Luton News and Bedfordshire Chronicle, Thursday 25 May 1939, page 8 of 20. Available at: https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000658/19390525/162/0008 (accessed 16 August 2023).
50. ↑ Ferry Pilots of the ATA. Biographies of female pilots. Mrs Winifred Mary 'Winnie' Crossley. Flight Captain. Available at http://www.ata-ferry-pilots.org/index.php/timeline-all-women-pilots (accessed 3 August 2023).
51. ↑ Winifred Crossley Fair. (2023, January 31). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winifred_Crossley_Fair (accessed 7 August 2023).
52. ↑ Ashman, Jackie on behalf of Wing Commander Rtd. Eric Viles. Eager For The Air: The Story of The Air Transport Auxiliary. Article ID: A3940364. Contributed on: 23 April 2005. In: WW2. People's War. An archive of World War II memories - written by the public, gathered by the BBC. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/64/a3940364.shtml (accessed 23 August 2023).
53. ↑ Unsung heriones of WW2. Emily Retter learns all about the women who flew in the face of danger. Nottingham Post, 5 September 2022. Available at: https://www.pressreader.com/uk/nottingham-post/20220905/281977496447690 (accessed 7 August 2022).
54. ↑ Air Transport Auxiliary. Museum & Archive at Maidenhead Heritage Centre. Anything to Anywhere – A true story of courage, skill and sacrifice. Available at: https://atamuseum.org/ (accessed 7 August 2023).
55. ↑ Air Transport Auxiliary. General Record for Winifred Crossley. Comment by Norman Whitehurst, 4 December 1944. Record currently held by the Royal Air Force Museum: https://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/).
56. ↑ Wikiquote contributors, "Frank Borman," Wikiquote, https://en.wikiquote.org/w/index.php?title=Frank_Borman&oldid=3079364 (accessed August 21, 2023).
57. ↑ Pauline Gower. (2023, June 13). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pauline_Gower (accessed 7 August 2023).
58. ↑ Poad, Richard. ATA's first eight women pilots, 14 Jan 2020. Available at: https://atamuseum.org/atas-first-8-women-pilots/ (accessed 6 August 2023)
59. ↑ Air Transport Auxiliary. (2023, July 16). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_Transport_Auxiliary (accessed 6 August 2023).
60. ↑ Gill, Bob. ATA Pilot Pools. Available at: https://airgunnerbobgilldfm.wordpress.com/womens-air-transport-auxiliary/ata-pilot-poolst/ (accessed 26 August 2023).
61. ↑ 1943-1945. Ferry Pilots. Available at: http://www.haddenhamairfieldhistory.co.uk/ferrypilots.htm (accessed 7 August 2023).
62. ↑ Air Transport Auxiliary. (2023, July 16). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_Transport_Auxiliary (accessed 7 August 2023).
63. ↑ Air Transport Auxiliary. About the ATA. Available at: http://www.airtransportauxiliary.co.uk/about.php (accessed 7 Aug 2023).
64. ↑ Hawker Hurricane. (2023, July 16). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawker_Hurricane (accessed 7 August 2023).
65. ↑ Volkersz, Veronica. The Sky and I. London: W H Allen (1956), page 43.
66. ↑ King, Alison. Golden Wings. The Story of Some of the Women Ferry Pilots of the Air Transport Auxiliary. London: White Lion Publishers Ltd (1956), page 25.
67. ↑ Ferry Pilots of the ATA. All women pilots: Mrs Winifred Mary 'Winnie' Crossley. ATA Pilot Personal Record, pdf available to download from: http://www.ata-ferry-pilots.org/index.php/timeline-all-women-pilots (accessed 28 August 2023).
68. ↑ Hill, Alison. Pauline Gower, Pioneering Leader of the Spitfire Women. Cheltenham: The History Press (2022).
69. ↑ IMDb online database. Spitfire sisters. Available at: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1741711/ (accessed 7 August 2023).
70. ↑ Staveley-Wadham, Rose. Only Angels Have Wings – Celebrating the Women of the Air Transport Auxiliary. Blog, 22 April, 2022. Available at: https://blog.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/2022/04/22/the-women-of-the-air-transport-auxiliary/ (accessed 19 August 2023).
71. ↑ Gossip of the Week. Engaging Personality. The Waterford Standard, Saturday 30 May 1936, page 3 of 12. Available at: https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0001678/19360530/040/0003 (accessed 20 August 2023).
72. ↑ Ready to fly any plane anywhere: Some of the Atagirls or women members of the ATA. The Sketch, Wednesday, 3 June 1942, pages 14 and 15. Available at: https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/search/results/1942-06-03?NewspaperTitle=The%2BSketch&IssueId=BL%2F0001860%2F19420603%2F&County=London%2C%20England (accessed 22 August 2023).
73. ↑ Curtis, Lettice. Lettice Curtis: Her Autobiography. Walton-on-Thames: Red Kite (2014), page 45
74. ↑ Historic England. Abdale House and Northside, Warrengate Road, North Mymms, Hertfordshire. Available at: https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1174939?section=official-list-entry (accessed 22 August 2023).