Article Submitted by Sheila Day
Learning to Fly
Norma Ruth Adams was born August 29, 1924 north of Adams, Neb. She was the youngest child of Newell ”Pat” and Jennie Adams who were farmers. Her older siblings were Roy, Ray, Ruby and Fred. Norma attended the Red Diamond country school north of Adams until her family moved to the Auburn area in April 1936.
While attending Auburn High School, Norma was in the school band and worked on the school newspaper. Frank Bringham, a flight instructor in Hamburg, Iowa gave lessons and starting in 1939, used the pasture half a mile from the Adams family farm to land planes. In June 1940, the new Auburn airport opened and hired Frank to give lessons. At age 15, Norma joined Frank’s first group of students taking flying lessons in Auburn.
Norma’s niece, Lila Adams Bottolfsen remembers a story told by her father, Fred. “When Norma first showed interest in flying, Grandpa asked the man giving lessons to take her up in a plane to scare her so she would lose interest in flying. During the flight, they flew upside down, did loops, anything to scare her — it didn’t work, she just loved it.”
Wilma (Adams) Hesser is the daughter of Norma’s oldest brother, Roy. Being three years younger than Norma, she remembers when her and her brothers went to their Grandma and Grandpa’s. “It was great, we always had someone to play with, our Aunt Norma. While living in Auburn, their farm was only a 1/2 mile from the airport. Norma watched the planes and decided she wanted to learn to fly. Norma was the youngest and was spoiled, so she got to take lessons.”
Ardis Higgins Behrends attended high school with Norma in Auburn, “She was a very friendly and likeable. She talked about airplanes all the time and taking flying lessons.”
Norma earned her solo pilot license in April 1941 and graduated from high school in May 1941. She was age 17. After graduation, Norma and her family moved back to the family farm north of Adams. Norma worked at a store in Filley for a short time.
Adams native Dorothy Young recalls first hearing about Norma becoming a pilot, “We were all very impressed. For a local girl at that time to become a pilot, it was something you did not hear about.”
(pictured at left: Norma and her parents - Norma at center back)
“Norma Adams likes to fly, And to an airplane clings; And if by chance her plane should crash, She’ll get some angel wings.”
- Norma Adams' high school yearbook inscription
Norma at Home
Clarence “Junior” Shoemaker was 8 months old when his mother, Ruby (Norma’s older sister), passed away. He went to live with his Grandparents and his Aunt Norma. “Norma was like a sister to me. I remember her playing with me as a small child and she would read to me whenever Grandma could ever get her to slow down and come in the house.
We would go sledding every winter and I remember her pulling me in the old Radio Flyer. She was a real daredevil and was never afraid to try anything. She also loved and rode horses. I remember one year we did not have any money for a Christmas tree, so we cut a big branch from one of the cedar trees behind the house. We decorated it as best we could, and Norma had learned or read about making Christmas snow from Ivory Flakes Soap which looked like snow on the tree.
I remember her flying over the farm by Adams and doing all kinds of loops, flying upside down, etc. She would land on the old dirt road in front of the house and would sometimes give me a ride. On one occasion, the seat belt was not designed for a small child and she turned the plane upside down and I fell out of my seat! She quickly turned the plane over and got me back in the seat. She threatened me I was never to share this piece of information with anyone — especially her mother!”
Norma's Civil Service
In August 1942, Norma was employed as a pilot and began taking lessons to become a flight instructor under Frank’s business, Bringham Flying Service, at the Crete Airport. In September 1942, Norma was training in Lincoln with the Women’s Air Corp. She earned her private pilot license in November 1942 which allowed her to give flying lessons.
The Civil Air Patrol (CAP) was created during WWII for wartime missions such as aircraft warning, courier service, missing aircraft searches, tow target and tracking missions and disaster relief. In March 1942, Frank helped start the CAP Squadron 762 based in Crete as Commander. It was the second CAP squadron in Nebraska.
It is not known exactly when Norma joined the squadron, but the earliest record in print states she was a member by October 1942. Since she was a pilot, Norma was automatically a Lieutenant. As part of their training, squadron members did mapping and observation flights.
Norma attended several meetings of the 99s (the organization of women pilots which Ameila Earhart was a charter member of) with other women CAP members. Norma was also a member of the Aeronautical Association of Nebraska and the Women Flyers of America, Inc.
Flying for the War Effort
During 1943, Norma worked with the U.S. Government to ferry airplanes (bombers) out of Yankton, S. Dakota to Pueblo, Colo., Sioux City, Iowa and Gander, Newfoundland.
On a 2-day CAP recruiting trip in August 1943, Norma piloted a CAP airplane owned by David Osterhout and A.L. Johnson Jr. to Omaha and then left with two other planes. Her passenger was a cadet sergeant and the recruiter for the U.S. Army Aviation Cadet Examining Board from Omaha, Lieutenant. F. Gange. The caravan visited McCook, Imperial and Hastings. They signed 44 new recruits!
David and his wife Erma Osterhout and David’s sisters, Ruth and Dorothy, all served with Norma in the Civil Air Patrol. An existing audio recording of Erma said, “There were several mechanics by then and one was … Norma, and she was just like the men out in the hanger.” David and Erma’s daughter, Ruth Osterhout has written an article based on her Mom’s notes. Erma had said Norma had requested if anything ever happened to her while flying, she wanted a military funeral.
In September 1943, Norma earned her commercial pilot license.
Tragedy Strikes
On the late afternoon of October 7, 1943, Norma and Frank Spinar Jr., a mechanic apprentice at Bringham Flying School, were tragically killed in an airplane crash. Frank had been working on the carburetor of a Piper JSA, NC 38590, owned by A.L. Johnson and David and Erma Osterhout.
Norma flew the plane up with Frank to check the mechanics. They left the airport around 4 p.m. and when the plane had not returned in an hour, CAP members began searching for them by air and on the ground. After searching through the night, the plane was located at 9 a.m. the next morning, crashed in a cornfield farmed by Frank’s father, Frank Spinar, Sr., 2 miles west and 1-1/2 miles south of the Crete Airport. The plane hit the ground nose-first at a 45 degree angle to the field. It appeared that both Norma and Frank were killed instantly.
A local farmer reported seeing a plane at the time they were out matching the description of the plane they were flying and it was making simulated forced landings at corn-top height and then followed by steep climbing turns.
Several theories about why the accident happened were a mechanical issue that the plane stalled and fell straight down or that they were practicing dive bombing haystacks and misjudged their altitude and were unable to pull up in time. The final official report on the accident by the Civil Aeronautics Board was probable cause of the accident was not determined. It noted she had flown approximately 300 solo hours, around 37 hours in the type of airplane that had crashed.
Norma’s funeral was conducted by the Civil Air Patrol with 25 uniformed officials and students. Norma was buried in her Civil Air Patrol uniform. David Osterhout was a pall bearer. During burial, a lone plane circled overhead and dipped its wings in a final tribute. A large wreath with the Civil Air Patrol insignia was placed at her grave at the Highland Cemetery outside of Adams. CAP presented Norma’s mother, Jennie, a Gold star for the loss of her daughter, which she placed it in Norma’s bedroom window where it stayed until she and nephew Clarence moved into Adams after the death of her husband, Pat.
Les Adams, was 9 months old when his aunt Norma was killed in the crash. Growing up, he remembers she was the family hero. He heard many stories from his father, Fred. “One story was that Norma tried to get older brother, Roy, to go for a ride in a plane and he said no! After my Aunt Norma was killed, my Grandma kept Norma’s room just as it was. We were allowed to go in her room, but we were not supposed to touch anything.”
Norma's Legacy
As a result of my research into Norma’s story, her family found out Lt. Norma Adams is eligible to be recognized as a joint recipient of the Congressional Gold Medal as a member of CAP during WWII. The family will be presented with this medal soon.
Thank you to all of Norma’s family members; Adams residents Beverly Buss and Karen Page; Civil Air Patrol members Lt. Col. Seth D Hudson and Lt. Col. Robert “Otto” Wachholtz; Ruth Osterhout; author Diane Bartels; and Auburn resident Laura Osborne for helping me with this story.
Author's Note
I was laid off from work for three weeks in April because of Covid-19 and one afternoon while taking photos for a request from “Find A Grave” at Highland Cemetery by Adams, I decided to walk the cemetery row by row. I walked by a grave with an unusual marker and stared at it — it said Civil Air Patrol. I had never seen a marker like that. The tombstone said Lt. Norma Adams 1924-1943. I had never heard of her before, though I went to school at Adams from K-12. I wanted to find out who she was and why she died at a young age.
I started with Ancestry.com and located a distant relative. Since then, it has been a journey of getting to know her through reading newspaper articles and other publications, emailing the Civil Air Patrol and historical military museums, calling local historical societies and the Auburn and Crete airports, and interviewing (in person, by phone and by email) family members and local people who remembered her. I thought her story was very interesting and needs to be told. She was making important contributions to aviation and WWII war effort when her life was tragically cut short.
The Importance of Oral History
Stories like this couldn’t be possible without first-hand accounts provided by friends and family. Oral histories help add depth to stories that might not otherwise be discovered. The Gage County Historical Society will actively be collecting oral histories next year in commemoration of our 50th anniversary.
If you or someone you know would like to share their stories of people, places, or events in Gage County, please contact the museum for more information. Written accounts are also welcome. You can also contribute to this effort monetarily by donating to the Gage County Museum.