There is a great deal of mystery surrounding Jackie Cochran's childhood and early life. She claims to have been an orphan, however that has been disputed by members of her immediate family. By all accounts though, Jackie Cochran grew up in extreme poverty in the Florida panhandle. Her foster family traveled from sawmill to sawmill, slaves of the company store. By the age of 10, she was working 12-hour shifts for 6 cents an hour in a cotton mill while supervising 15 other children. A born survivor, Jackie jumped on an opportunity to apprentice with a beautician to escape the Southern cotton mills. She studied nursing for 3 years but decided to return to the cosmetic industry. With only a second-grade education, Jackie opened her first beauty and cosmetics shop. The Depression was in full swing and she realized she needed an edge on her competition. In 1932, at the suggestion of her future husband, Floyd Odlum, Jackie took up flying to cover more sales territory. In typical Jackie style, she soloed in three days and never looked back. She continued to grow her business, even developing and manufacturing her own cosmetics line, but it was flying that became her true passion. Jackie went on to set more speed, altitude and distance records than any other pilot - male or female.
She founded and personally directed all phases of the Women Air Force Service Pilots program during World War II. She lobbied relentlessly to establish an Air Force that was separate from the Army. Ultimately her tenacity paid off. Jackie’s numerous awards include 15 Harmon Trophies for most outstanding woman flyer in the world, the William Mitchell Memorial Award in 1938 for greatest contribution to aviation, four trophies from the Women’s National Aeronautical Association, the Air Force Association Award, the Golden Fleece Award for manufacturing, the United States Distinguished Service Medal and the Distinguished Flying Cross. Her foreign decorations include the French Air Medal as well as the Lady Drummond-Hay Trophy and Air medals from Belgium, Spain, Thailand and Turkey. Jackie received honorary degrees from Russell Sage, Elmira, Northland and Notre Dame Colleges. She was named Honorary Fellow of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots Fellow of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots and inducted into the Aviation Hall of Fame in 1971, the first living woman to receive that honor. Jackie kept esteemed company and considered among her friends Amelia Earhart, General H. H. “Hap” Arnold, Eleanor Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower and Chuck Yeager.
All of these accomplishments do not explain the mysteries of her early life, however. The following is an excerpt from a letter to the ALLSTAR website, dated 03 September 2001 from a grandniece of Jackie Cochran:
"Aunt Jackie does have a real family. She was never orphaned, she just made the story up to be accepted by the East Coast's "high society." It sounded better than saying she was just a poor mill workers daughter. My Grandmother was Mamie, sister to Bessie (Jackie), and Myrtle, and two brothers. My mother (Jackie's niece) was just a few years younger than Aunt Jackie, and more like a younger sister to her than a niece, and the family all lived together in the same house. My mother was about 3 years old or so when Aunt Jackie came home with the doll she had won from the store. My mother cried and wanted the doll, so my Great-grandfather made Aunt Jackie give her the doll. I have a picture of my mother with the doll when she was about three. My mother had kept the doll and when my mother was about 18, Aunt Jackie offered to bring my Mom to New York and care for her while she attended Business College, but the one condition was that my mother give her back the doll, which she did. Aunt Jackie had the doll "restored," and kept it all of her remaining years. Her request upon her death was that she be laid to rest in a "pine box" as had her dad that she loved with all her heart, and that the doll be buried with her, which it was. Aunt Jackie had developed her love for planes as they lived next to the Air Force Base in Pensacola, Florida. That is also where she met her first husband, Jack Cochran. He later died, but they had a son who had burned up in the "outhouse" when he was about 5 yrs. old. He had gotten a hold of some matches and started the fire. Aunt Jackie almost went nuts over that, and after his death is when she left for the East Coast, and made up her false past. She also took the first name, Jacqueline. She met Uncle Floyd at a party, and he is the one who paid for the flying lessons that she wanted so bad. He bought her the Cosmetic Company, then he divorced his wife, left his two children and made a life with Aunt Jackie, and she lived her "fairy tale life." The advise she gave my mother was "you can fall in love with a rich man just as easy as you can a poor one". My mothers name was Willie Mae and she is mentioned in both of Aunt Jackie's books. My older sister was the "little girl" that was in the plane mishap that was also mentioned in the book. Everyone that knew Aunt Jackie well, knew of her family. Most of the family just stayed away from her, and some of them remained close to her. When my Grandmother was very ill and we thought was dying, I went and asked Aunt Jackie to please come and visit my Grandmother and she said she couldn't because she had to go to an "Air Show in France," etc., etc., etc. She said she kept tabs my Grandma and the rest of us in Escondido through a friend that lived there, but she wouldn't tell me who that person was. Just before I left, I told her that I didn't care how big her bank account was or how many accomplishments she had in her life, "my Grandma was the rich one." I never saw her after that, although I did keep her informed of my Grandma's medical condition. When my Grandma died, Aunt Jackie I believe was in France for the Air Show. She sent flowers and her condolences. When Aunt Jackie was dying, the only one who really stayed by her side was her cousin Nell (Alford, Myrtle's daughter)."
