Elizabeth Lora Gardner (1921 - 2011)

Born 24 Jul 1921 in Wisconsin, United States

Ancestors

Died 20 Dec 2011 at age 90 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States

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Biography

Elizabeth Gardner is Notable.

Elizabeth Gardner served in the United States Army in World War II
Service started: 1943
Unit(s): Womens Airforce Service Pilots
Service ended: 1944

Elizabeth was awarded a Congressional Gold Medal

Elizabeth L. Gardner was an American pilot during World War II who served as a member of the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP). She was one of the first American female military pilots.

Elizabeth was born in 1921. She was the daughter of Herbert Gardner and Grace Lizer. ^[1][2][3]

She attended Rockford High School. ^[4]

She married Michael Remba in 1951.^[5]

They divorced in 1967. ^[6]

Elizabeth went by Gardner after the divorce.

World War II

Elizabeth always wanted to learn to fly. She moved from Wisconsin to Pennsylvania looking for jobs where she could clock in more flying hours. ^[7]

When she was 22 she joined the Women Air Force Service Pilots in Texas. She had two days of aviation training with Lieutenant Col. Paul Tibbets, who later commanded the B-29 that dropped the first atom bomb on Hiroshima.

She flew AT-23s and Martin B-26 Marauder medium bombers.

After the war Libby worked as a commercial pilot for Piper Aircraft in Pennsylvania. She also worked as a test pilot. In 1946 she made news in Life Magazine when she was forced to bail out of an airplane she was testing and her parachute failed to open. She landed safely in a frozen field after deploying her personal parachute.^[8]

In 2009 she and 300 other WASPS were awarded to the Congressional Gold Medal for their service. ^[9]

Elizabeth passed away in 2011 in New York.

Obituary

GARDNER--Elizabeth (Libby). Died December 22, age 90. WASP aviator during WWII, brave and caring social justice activist, writer, computer programmer, autodidact with a vast range of curiosities and pursuits. Loved by daughter Eve, brother Robert, and many others whose lives she touched.^[10]

Sources

1. ↑ "United States Census, 1930," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X39Z-HD9 : accessed 21 February 2022), Lora Gardner in household of Herbert Gardner, Rockford, Winnebago, Illinois, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 41, sheet 20A, line 43, family 496, NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002), roll 571; FHL microfilm 2,340,306.
2. ↑ "United States Census, 1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KW49-SJL : 8 January 2021), Lora Gardner in household of Herbert Gardner, Evanston, Cook, Illinois, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 16-195A, sheet 62B, line 59, family 339, Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790 - 2007, RG 29. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012, roll 778.
3. ↑ Mentioned in father’s obituary Register Star (Rockford, IL) 6 February 1997, page 15. GenealogyBank: accessed 22 February 2022
4. ↑ "U.S., School Yearbooks, 1880-2012"; School Name: Rockford High School; Year: 1938. Free Image

   Name: Lora Gardner

   Estimated Age: 16

   Birth Year: abt 1922

   Yearbook Date: 1938

   School: Rockford High School

   School Location: Rockford, Illinois, USA

5. ↑ "New York, New York City Marriage Licenses Index, 1950-1995," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QLSR-XTH6 : 19 June 2017), Michael Remba and Elizabeth L Gardner, 1951, Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States;Marriage, Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States, from Reclaim the Records, The NYC Marriage Index (http://www.nycmarriageindex.com : 2016); citing New York City Clerk's Office.
6. ↑ Free Image Ancestry.com. Bronx County, New York, Divorce and Civil Case Records, 1914-1995 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014. Original data: Bronx County, New York. Index to Clerks’ Minutes. Office of the Bronx County Clerk, Bronx, New York.

   Name: Michael Sembach

   Plaintiff or Defendant: Defendant

   Date of Action: 18 May 1967

   Place of Action: Bronx, New York

   Other Party: Elizabeth Remba

   Volume Number: 2

   Page Number: 321

   File Number: 1641

   Location: The Office of the Bronx County Clerk

   CD Name: R 1961-1969

   Subfolder: R 1967

7. ↑ Pena, Yazman, Fortune Favors the Brave StoryCorps. July 2, 2010
8. ↑ Parachute Test Life Magazine. Jan. 7, 1946. Pp. 30-31
9. ↑ Obama awards WWII-era women pilots congressional medal, CNN, July 2009
10. ↑ New York Times Jan 6 2012

See also:

• Find A Grave: Memorial #140073991: accessed 10 June 2019), memorial page for Elizabeth L “Libby” Gardner Remba ( 24 Jul 1921–22 Dec 2011), ; Maintained by Michael & Allison Dillingham (contributor 47318014) Non-Cemetery Burial, who reports a Have not located where she is buried.
• Wikipedia: Elizabeth L. Gardner
• Hultgren, Randy. Female WWII Pilots Deserve Full Recognition Feb. 17, 2016.
• Mason, Derrick, Muralists rediscover female Rockford pilot history nearly forgot May 18, 2019.
• Gordon, Kelli WASP – Women Airforce Service Pilots – World War II Dec 28, 2014