223 North Terrace Street
Atchison, KS, USA

Amelia Earhart Birthplace

The house where Amelia Earhart was born and raised was built in 1861 by her grandfather, Judge Alfred G. Otis. She was born in the southwest bedroom of the second floor. Although there is some disagreement about the date of her birth, records of the Trinity Episcopal Church of Atchison indicate the date was July 24, 1897. Her father, Edwin Stanton Earhart, was a lawyer whose position as a claims agent for a railroad required him to travel a great deal. Consequently, Amelia and her sister Muriel stayed with their grandparents much of the time. In one of her books, she mentioned that she had attended grammar school in Atchison until the eighth grade and had skipped two grades in the process.

The accomplishments of Amelia Earhart in the field of aviation were many. However, she is best remembered as the first woman to make a solo flight across the Atlantic, May 20-21, 1932. For this achievement, she was awarded the Distinguished Flying Class by Vice President Charles Curtis on July 29, 1932.

On July 2, 1937, while on a round-the-world flight with her navigator, Fred Noonan, she disappeared into the Pacific and was presumed dead.

Amelia Earhart was a person whose accomplishments have deservedly received recognition. Even though she lived in many different cities, she considered Atchison her hometown. Probably she spent more of her life in the Otis home than anywhere else. The Amelia Earhart Birthplace represents almost the only remaining tangible association with the famous aviatrix.